UCLA’s Jaquez Jr., Cronin highlight AP All-Pac-12 team

Associated PressMar 7, 2023, 5:46 PM EST

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Jaime Jaquez Jr.’s decision to return for his senior season worked out quite well for No. 2 UCLA.

Jaquez was named The Associated Press player of the year in the Pac-12 and Bruins coach Mick Cronin is the conference coach of the year. Washington forward Keion Brooks was named Pac-12 newcomer of the year by an eight-person panel of journalists who cover the conference.

Jaquez considered leaving Westwood for the NBA after three productive seasons that included a trip the Final Four and the Sweet 16 in consecutive years. The crafty 6-foot-7 swing man had another boxscore-stuffing season in his return, averaging 17.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while helping lead the Bruins to their first Pac-12 regular-season title in a decade.

Cronin has returned UCLA to prominence in four seasons since leaving Cincinnati. The Bruins had deep NCAA Tournament runs the past two seasons and were the class of the Pac-12 this year.

UCLA went 27-4 overall during the regular season, 18-2 in Pac-12 play and had its first undefeated home season (17-0) since 2006-07. The Bruins have the nation’s longest active home winning streak at 25 games and are the No. 1 seed in the Pac-12 Tournament this week in Las Vegas.

Brooks had an immediate impact at Washington after transferring from Kentucky. The 6-foot-7 forward was third in Pac-12 scoring at 17.8 points per game while grabbing 6.9 rebounds.

FIRST TEAM

u-Guard – Tyger Campbell, UCLA, Sr., 5-11, 180, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Guard – Boogie Ellis, USC, Sr., 6-3, 185, San Diego.

u-Forward – Jaime Jaquez Jr., UCLA, Sr., 6-7, 225, Camarillo, California.

u-Forward – Azuolas Tubelis, Arizona, Jr., 6-11, 245, Vilnius, Lithuania.

Center – Branden Carlson, Utah, Sr., 7-0, 228, South Jordan, Utah.

-“u” denotes unanimous selection.

SECOND TEAM

Guard – Drew Peterson, USC, Sr., 6-9, 205, Libertyville, Illinois.

Guard – Keion Brooks Jr., Washington, Sr., 6-7, 210, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Forward – Mouhamed Gueye, Washington St., So., 6-11, 210, Dakar, Senegal.

Forward – N’Faly Dante, Oregon, Sr., 6-11, 230, Bamako, Mali.

Center – Oumar Ballo, Arizona, Jr., 7-0, 260, Koulikoro, Mali.

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Player of the year – Jaime Jaquez Jr., UCLA.

Coach of the year – Mick Cronin, UCLA.

Newcomer of the year – Keion Brooks, Washington.

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All-Pac-12 voting panel: Bruce Pascoe, Arizona Daily Star; Michelle Gardner, Arizona Republic; Paul Klee, Colorado Springs Gazette; Adam Grosbard, Orange County Register; Jon Wilner, San Jose Mercury News; James Crepea, The Oregonian; Pat Rooney, BuffZone.com; Jesse Sowa, Corvallis Gazette-Times.

No. 7 Utah hits 16 3-pointers in 92-69 win over Washington

Associated PressFeb 11, 2023, 12:00 AM EST

Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

SALT LAKE CITY – Gianna Kneepkens hit five 3-pointers and scored 19 points to lead No. 7 Utah to a 92-69 victory over Washington on Friday night.

Kneepkens added a team-high six assists for the Utes (21-2, 11-2 Pac-12), who shot 51% from the field and made 16 3-pointers overall. Alissa Pili finished with 17 points and Lani White and Jenna Johnson added 11 points apiece.

Elle Ladine scored 18 points to lead Washington. Haley Van Dyke and Darcy Rees scored 10 points apiece for the Huskies (13-10, 5-8), who shot 44% from the field.

Utah overwhelmed Washington with its outside shooting in the first half. The Utes went 10 for 14 from 3-point range, punctuated by Issy Palmer’s buzzer-beater from halfcourt to end the half. Kneepkens led the way, knocking down four outside baskets.

The Huskies struggled to match Utah’s potent offense. Washington knotted it up at 9-all on back-to-back baskets from Van Dyke and Lauren Schwartz. Kneepkens countered with back-to-back 3s to fuel a go-ahead 8-0 run for the Utes.

Utah broke the game open behind a 14-2 run in the second quarter. Kneepkens and Kennedy McQueen bookended the outburst with more 3-pointers. McQueen’s outside basket gave the Utes a 44-29 lead.

Utah built a 30-point lead late in the fourth quarter when Johnson made a pair of free throws and a 3-pointer to put the Utes up 88-58.

BIG PICTURE

Washington: Getting stops proved to be a chore for the Huskies. Washington shot the ball well early, but struggled to match the offensive efficiency from Utah.

Utah: Rebounding ended up being a huge difference-maker for the Utes early. Utah outrebounded Washington 32-25 and had 14 offensive rebounds. The Utes had six offensive boards in the first quarter alone after holding the Huskies to four total rebounds.

UP NEXT

Washington: At Colorado on Sunday.

Utah: Hosts Washington State on Sunday.

No. 11 UCLA defeats Washington 74-49 for 10th straight win

Associated PressJan 2, 2023, 2:05 AM EST

Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images

SEATTLE, Wash. — Adem Bona scored a career-high 18 points, Jaime Jaquez Jr. added another 17, and No. 11 UCLA defeated Washington 74-49 on Sunday night.

It was the Bruins’ 10th straight victory to close out their Pacific Northwest road trip.

“Winning is contagious,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin said of the Bruins streak. “Anybody that I can give advice to that gets a head coaching job . you can never accept losing.”

David Singleton added 14 points for the Bruins (13-2, 4-0 Pac-12) and Tyger Campbell had 15 points and 11 assists.

“This is one that we needed really bad,” said Jaquez, who added seven rebounds and five assists. “We didn’t play really well in Washington (State) and we knew that, so we had to come back as a collective.”

Washington (9-6, 1-3) has dropped their last three, two against ranked opponents. The Huskies were led by junior center Braxton Meah, notching a season high 20 points on 9 of 10 shooting. Senior Cole Bajema tallied nine points.

“For the most part, I like how we battled,” Washington head coach Mike Hopkins said. “UCLA is one of the top teams in the country for a reason. They were physical with us, the refs let us play. We missed some shots we normally make.”

Washington was held to 35% from the field (19-55) and 2 of 25 from 3-point range.

UCLA finished 45% from the field (29-64) and hit 9 of 23 3-point attempts. UCLA narrowly edged Washington in the rebound battle (36-34).

“We have a saying – uncomfortable teams shoot a low percentage,” Cronin said.

UCLA held Washington’s leading scorer senior Keion Brooks to a season-low six points, hitting 1 of 7 attempts from the field and 4 of 4 from the free throw line.

He didn’t make a basket in the second half.

“We tried to make sure we didn’t let him get the ball easily and get one on one opportunities,” Cronin said.

Bona, the freshman forward from Nigeria, along with making 8 of 10 from the field, blocked three shots including one from 3-point range.

“I will say I did good today on both ends,” Bona said. “I tried my best in any way possible to win.”

UCLA never trailed after a 12-0 run early in the first half gave them a 17-6 advantage. They held the Huskies 0-7 from the field during that spurt before Meah scored to cut the deficit to 17-8 with 11:30 remaining in the half.

Washington hit its first 3-pointer from Koren Johnson with 5:09 left in the first half after starting 0-10 from beyond the arc.

The Huskies trailed by five in the final minutes of the first before a pair of 3s from Singleton and Campbell gave the Bruins a 36-27 advantage at halftime.

BIG PICTURE

UCLA: Freshman guard Amari Bailey missed his second straight game because of a sore foot. Singleton stepped in to make his second start of the season on the road trip, scoring in double figures and hitting all four free throws.

Washington: The Huskies face another tough challenge on the road with No. 5 Arizona on Thursday. It’s their fourth ranked opponent in their last seven games.

UP NEXT

UCLA: The Bruins return home and host Southern Cal on Thursday.

Washington: The Huskies travel to No. 5 Arizona on Thursday.

No. 18 Gonzaga rolls to 7th straight over Washington 77-60

Associated PressDec 10, 2022, 12:39 PM EST

James Snook/USA TODAY Sports

SPOKANE, Wash. — For the most part, Gonzaga has passed on a nonconference schedule that includes a significant number of its Pacific Northwest rivals with one exception.

And in its recent history, the matchup with Washington has been completely one-sided toward the Bulldogs, including Friday night.

Drew Timme scored 22 points, Julian Strawther added 18 points and 12 rebounds, and No. 18 Gonzaga pulled away in the second half to beat Washington 77-60.

Facing off for the first time since 2019 with games canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bulldogs (7-3) won their seventh straight over the Huskies. Dating to 1998, Gonzaga has won 14 of the last 15 games in the series.

“Every game that we play against each other, it’s just been super competitive,” Gonzaga’s Anton Watson said. “I’m happy we got the W.”

How competitive the Huskies have been facing off against the Bulldogs is open to debate. During Gonzaga’s seven-game winning streak, only twice has the game been decided by 10 points or less.

“I think if you look for the rest of the country they’ve been up here and everybody else has been down here. They’ve created that and that’s why their one of the best teams in the country and that’s what you’re trying to be,” Washington coach Mike Hopkins said.

Gonzaga extended the nation’s longest home winning streak to 70 games, the longest since Arizona won 71 straight at home from 1987-92. The Bulldogs will have a chance to match that mark next Monday against Northern Illinois.

Timme was dominant on the interior, taking advantage of foul trouble for the Washington front court. Timme made 8 of 13 shots and Gonzaga held a 44-32 advantage on points in the paint. Strawther found himself scoring in the lane several times, but also hit a pair of 3-pointers that sparked a second-half surge for the Bulldogs.

Gonzaga started the game missing nine of its first 10 shots, but ended up shooting 52% for the game.

“I thought once we settled down against their zone, we were able to kind of get some shots on our terms,” said Gonzaga coach Mark Few, who had little voice left afterward. “And then I thought all night we did a really, really good job of defending.”

Keion Brooks Jr. led Washington (7-3) with 14 points but was hampered by major foul trouble. Brooks picked up three first-half fouls and was whistled for his fourth with 14 minutes remaining.

PJ Fuller II added 13 points and Cole Bajema had 12 for Washington.

“They’re a great offensive team and they go through those scoring spurts,” Hopkins said. “We talked a lot about poise . we felt like when we had a lead we turned it over a little too much and were too careless with the ball. On the road, you can’t do that.”

Gonzaga led by 10 at halftime, but the lead was 42-35 after Braxton Meah’s dunk with 16:15 left. Gonzaga scored 15 of the next 19 points to build the lead to 18. Strawther started the run with both of his 3-pointers and Timme score the final five points. Washington never pulled closer than 12 the rest of the way.

“We know that when they make runs they make big runs and we’ve just got to stay poised, but they did a hell of a job to keep making runs,” Fuller said.

BIG PICTURE

Washington: The Huskies lost their 11th straight game against teams ranked in the AP Top 25, a clear issue that Hopkins has not been able to solve. Hopkins was 4-4 in his first eight games against ranked foes after arriving at Washington.

Gonzaga: Free throw shooting continues to be an issue for the Bulldogs. Gonzaga was 14 of 21 (67%) at the line. They entered the game at 71% at the line.

UP NEXT

Washington: Hosts Cal Poly on Tuesday night.

Gonzaga: Hosts Northern Illinois on Monday night.

No. 5 UCLA at Washington canceled due to COVID-19 issues

Associated PressDec 3, 2021, 9:43 PM EST

Steph Chambers/Getty Images

SEATTLE — No. 5 UCLA’s game at Washington on Sunday has been canceled because of COVID-19 issues in the Huskies’ program.

The game won’t be rescheduled and it will count as a Pac-12 victory for the Bruins. That’s because of the league’s rule for games impacted by COVID-19, which says that if two schools can’t agree on a date to reschedule, then the team dealing with the coronavirus outbreak will forfeit the game. Although the teams’ conference records will reflect the forfeit, it won’t be included by the NCAA in their overall records.

Following the forfeit, UCLA is 2-0 in the Pac-12 and remains 7-1 overall. Washington is 4-5 overall and 0-1 in the league.

The Huskies were previously forced to postpone their game scheduled for Thursday at Arizona.

The cancellation means UCLA won’t play again until Dec. 11 at Marquette. The Bruins last played Wednesday, beating Colorado at home in their Pac-12 opener.

Washington’s next scheduled game is Dec. 12 at No. 3 Gonzaga.

Smith, Dixon lead No. 10 Louisville past Washington 61-53

Associated PressNov 21, 2021, 8:55 PM EST

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

SEATTLE- Kianna Smith and Liz Dixon each scored 13 points for No. 10 Louisville, which beat Washington 61-53 on Saturday.

The Cardinals (3-1) led by as much as 16 late in the third quarter, but had to hold off a late charge by the Huskies to win their third straight.

Haley Van Dyke scored 15 points and had seven rebounds for Washington (2-1), and Alexis Whitfield came off the bench for 10 points.

Haley Van Lith made a pair of free throws with 2:42 left to stop the Huskies’ 11-0 run that had cut Louisville’s lead to 54-51. Emily Engstler then hit a turnaround jumper with 1:52 left for a 58-51 lead that Washington couldn’t erase. Van Lith finished with 11 points.

The Cardinals trailed by five early because of cold shooting, missing 12 of their first 18 shots and were 0 of 3 from the 3-point line.

Louisville forced five of Washington’s 14 first-half turnovers over less than three minutes. Then Smith hit the team’s first 3 with 4:10 left in the half to break a 19-all tie and start a 14-4 run.

Louisville led 52-36 with 3:10 to go, but the Huskies rallied to cut the lead to 54-51. Mykasa Robinson and Smith hit three free throws to finish the game.

BIG PICTURE

Louisville: Coach Jeff Walz improved to 14-4 against the Pac-12, but his team hasn’t had much fun against the conference this year after starting the season with a 61-59 overtime loss to No. 11 Arizona.

Washington: Until new coach Tara Langley finds a solution at point guard, something that may not happen this season, the turnovers will continue to cost Washington games. Louisville scored 17 points off turnovers.

UP NEXT

Louisville: At Cal Poly on Tuesday.

Washington: Plays VCU at the Goombay Splash tournament in the Bahamas on Thursday.