Washington @ Tennessee preview
Scotiabank Arena
Washington looks to continue its perfect start to the season when it faces No. 25 Tennessee on Saturday as part of the James Naismith Hall of Fame Classic in Toronto. The Huskies passed their first test of the campaign with a 67-64 win against 18th-ranked Baylor before overcoming a sluggish start to beat Mount St. Mary's 56-46 on Tuesday, and hope to kick start a sputtering attack, which has been held to 61.5 points per game.
"(The offense) is still a work in progress," Washington guard Nahziah Carter told reporters. "We've got a lot of talent on this team and we still have to figure out how to play with each other better." Tennessee took down Murray State 82-63 on Tuesday to extend its home winning streak to a nation-leading 28 games. The Volunteers rallied from a nine-point halftime deficit to record their ninth consecutive home win by double digits, and hope to post their first signature victory of the season by beating a Power 5 team on a neutral site in non-conference play for the second time in as many seasons, after knocking off top-ranked Gonzaga on last December. "If you aren't ready to go on any given night then you are going to get beat," Tennessee coach Rick Barnes told reporters. "This schedule that we have is challenging and I expect our guys to grow up from it."
TV: 5 p.m. ET, TSN
ABOUT TENNESSEE (2-0): Jordan Bowden drained six 3-pointers en route to a career-high 26 points to help the Volunteers equal the third-longest home winning streak in program history. Yves Pons added a career-best 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the field to go along with four rebounds and four blocked shots against the Racers. Lamonte Turner was 2-of-12 from the floor, but dished out 14 assists, which was the most by a Tennessee player in a single game since LaMarcus Golden achieved the feat on Jan. 19, 1994, while John Fulkerson flirted with a double-double by producing nine points and nine rebounds.
ABOUT WASHINGTON (2-0): Isaiah Stewart registered a team-high 16 points, five rebounds and five blocked shots Tuesday as the Huskies outscored Mount St. Mary's 35-25 in the second half to avoid the upset. Carter scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half, including a highlight reel one-handed dunk that energized a tense home crowd, while Hameir Wright added nine points, seven rebounds and four assists against the Mountaineers. Highly touted freshman forward Jaden McDaniels was limited to five points on 2-of-9 shooting, but he chipped in with nine rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals.
TIP-INS
1. Tennessee is 23-3 in non-conference play since the start of the 2017-18 season.
2. Washington has held its first two opponents to under 36 percent shooting.
3. Pons is averaging 17 points per game after being limited to 1.6 per contest last season.
PREDICTION: Tennessee 76, Washington 73