Game preview: WSU at UW

Jan 29, 2010, 12:00 AM

KEY MATCHUP: KLAY THOMPSON VS. JUSTIN HOLIDAY/QUINCY PONDEXTER Thompson and Pondexter are obviously the catalysts for their teams, though it's more likely that Thompson will be defended by the 6-foot-6 Holiday, who tends to guard the other team's best player, especially if he's a big-time scorer with size like Thompson has. Thompson leads WSU with 22.3 points per game, but his conference average is a little lower, at 18.3 points per game. Still, the UW seems to have issues with athletic guards who can score in bunches. And Thompson does a lot better job of getting to the free-throw line than he did last year: He's 107 of 133 this season, and only attempted 31 all of last year. That could be a factor if the Huskies, known for being an aggressive defensive team, allow penetration and let WSU get into the bonus early. On the flip side, Pondexter may draw DeAngelo Casto, WSU's 6-foot-8 post player who is seen as one of the better big-men defenders in the Pac-10. Pondexter's at his best when he's being covered by smaller guards, so Casto may pose a problem for him, especially if the UW tries to put him on the block again. That didn't work very well the last time they tried it, which was against USC in an 87-61 loss last weekend. Pondexter was held to a season-low of two points on 1-10 shooting by USC forward Marcus Johnson. ALSO INTRIGUING Isaiah Thomas has sometimes had to guard some of the UW's opponent's --------best scorers in conference play, such as Jerome Randle of Cal and Jeremy Green of Stanford. And he'll have another challenge tomorrow, matching up against the one player -in the Pac-10 who shares the most similarities with the UW sophomore -- 6-foot-1 WSU guard Reggie Moore. Moore has replaced Taylor Rochestie more than adequately, scoring 14.4 points per game this year and an even better 17 points per game in conference play. He's like a less-built, taller, slower, better-shooting version of the UW's Thomas, and there's some local intrigue to this one, too; Moore is a graduate of Rainier Beach High School in Seattle; Thomas hails from Tacoma. This could be one of the more entertaining matchups of the season for UW fans. Thomas has made note of his increased defensive effort, and it's taken somewhat of a toll on his offensive game. He Tweeted after the UW's loss to UCLA last Thursday that, "my body is dead, been lockin dudes up something serious and takin a beatin man especially last night running off all them damn screens." And after he missed the Seattle U game Tuesday with a stomach illness, he may be especially eager to prove himself against another local guard made from the same mold. THE HUSKIES WIN IF... They keep playing like they have at home this year. That starts on the defensive end. UW opponents are averaging just 68.7 points at Hec Ed, but 80.6 on the road. If Holiday can get after Thompson early, and the Huskies can find ways to get open shots for Pondexter and maybe get Elston Turner and Scott Suggs going from the three-point line, they should be able to run their home record to 14-1 this year. THE COUGARS WIN IF... The Huskies can't stop Thompson, or Moore, or either. They've both shown themselves capable of scoring against anybody, and the UW may have to make a team effort out of guarding Thompson. It could also be a long day if Washington can't find a way to penetrate what will surely be a zone defense played by WSU. And with the way the UW has struggled against zones this year, and with a big guy like Casto in the middle, that's entirely possible. Reach Sports Editor Christian Caple at sports@dailyuw.com.

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Game preview: WSU at UW

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