Battle For Seattle Takes To Climate Pledge Arena Sunday

SEATTLE – Coming off a monumental win over then-seventh-ranked Gonzaga, Washington (6-3) will head across town on Sunday for a matchup with Seattle University at Climate Pledge Arena.
 
Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. Tony Castricone and Jason Hamilton will call the action on the Husky Sports Network and locally on Sports Radio KJR 950 AM. The game can also be viewed on ESPN+.
 
The Huskies are receiving votes in the AP Top 25 for the first time since Jan. 13, 2020.
 
THE MATCHUP
Washington leads the all-time series 34-4 and enters Sunday’s contest with an 18-game win streak against Seattle. The Redhawks’ last win came in 1978 at Alaska Airlines Arena. Sunday will be the Huskies’ first visit to Climate Pledge Arena and the first game between the teams at the arena formerly known as KeyArena since 2016. Seattle is 6-1 at home this season but 0-1 at Climate Pledge. Both teams have defeated Montana State and UC San Diego this fall. The Huskies have yet to play a true road game this season.
 
ESPN TEAM OF THE WEEK
The Huskies were named Jeff Borzello’s Team of the Week and are receiving votes in the AP Top 25. UW ranks 56 in the NET rankings and 51 in KenPom. Two plays have appeared on SportsCenter’s Top 10 with Nate Calmese’s backboard alley-oop to Braxton Meah against UCSD coming in at eight and Koren Johnson’s circus shot against Gonzaga checking in at number nine. UW is one of four Pac-12 teams to beat a Top-25 non-conference opponent this season.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Keion Brooks Jr. scored 17 points, Sahvir Wheeler added 16, and the Huskies rallied from an 11-point deficit early in the second half to beat No. 7 Gonzaga 78-73 on Saturday night in front of a sold out crowd at Alaska Airlines Arena. The Huskies snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Bulldogs and picked up their first win over their in-state foe since 2005. It was also Washington’s first win over a top 10 opponent since beating Arizona in the 2017-18 season. With the win, the Huskies improved to 4-2 over teams that made last year’s NCAA Tournament. No other Pac-12 team has more such wins this season.
 
FAST FACTS
The Huskies are one of nine DI teams with three players with 1,200 or more career points. The team’s 7,416 combined career points is 10th-most in Division I. Two of the Huskies’ three losses are to top-35 NET teams, both of whom are ranked or receiving votes in the AP Top 25. Nevada ranks 48th.
 
TOP DAWGS
Keion Brooks Jr. ranks top-five in the Pac-12 in points and rebounds. Paul Mulcahy and Sahvir Wheeler both rank in the top-five in the Pac-12 and top-35 in the country in assists per game. Wheeler is the active DI leader in assists (708). Mulcahy ranks 16th (500).
 
THE RETURNERS
UW is one of three Pac-12 teams to return multiple All-Conference honorees, behind only USC. Preseason first-team All-Conference choice Keion Brooks Jr. headlines the core of returners as the leading returning scorer in the entire Pac-12. He averaged 17.7 points and 6.7 rebounds to earn Second Team All-Pac-12 honors. Braxton Meah is back for another season in purple and gold after shooting over 70 percent in 2022-23 to lead the league and set a new single-season Husky record. He was selected to the All-Defensive team after averaging 1.6 blocks per game.
 
Koren Johnson enters his sophomore season following a stellar freshman campaign in which he racked up 34 steals, which were tied for second on the team. Franck Kepnang adds depth to the frontcourt after missing the majority of the 2022-23 season due to injury.
 
THE NEWCOMERS
Kentucky grad transfer Sahvir Wheeler highlights an experienced group of newcomers. Wheeler twice led the SEC in assists, both times ranking in the top five in the NCAA with over six helpers per game.
 
Wilhelm Breidenbach (Nebraska), Nate Calmese (Lamar), Anthony Holland (Fresno State) Paul Mulcahy (Rutgers) and Moses Wood (Portland) also arrived in Seattle via the transfer portal. Four-star guard Wesley Yates III headlines the freshman class of four.
 
SIGNING DAY
Head Coach Mike Hopkins and the Huskies signed four-star guard Casmir Chavis to a letter of intent on National Signing Day Wednesday, the Huskies’ first commit in the 2024 class.
 
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