No. 18 Washington beats No. 12 N.C. State

Posted 5:04AM on Monday 20th December 2004 ( 20 years ago )

SEATTLE - Last week in practice with Washington's scout team, Brandon Roy was pretending to be North Carolina State standout Julius Hodge. On Sunday, Roy defended Hodge on the decisive play, and got just enough of his finger on Hodge's final shot to help the Huskies win. Will Conroy and Tre Simmons each scored 12 points, and Roy returned earlier than expected from arthroscopic knee surgery to add 10 points, leading No. 18 Washington to a 68-64 victory over No. 12 North Carolina State. ``This was obviously a huge game for us going in,'' Huskies coach Lorenzo Romar said. ``It was an even bigger game the way we won it. We didn't shoot the ball well from the perimeter and we didn't make foul shots, but we found a way to win.'' It didn't hurt Washington (8-1) that Roy was back in uniform. The Huskies led 66-64, and the clock was ticking down the final seconds when Hodge went up for a short jumper that would have tied it. He slipped past Washington's Nate Robinson, leaned into Roy and launched the shot. ``I knew he was going to shoot it,'' Roy said. ``He went up and I just kind of tipped it. I got high enough, and then it went off his hands and slipped out of bounds. But I got a piece of it.'' Simmons came away with the ball before it went out of play, drew a foul and made two free throws with 0.2 seconds to seal the victory. That left the Wolfpack (8-1) looking back on a questionable no-call. ``When I watch the film, I will be able to tell you,'' N.C. State coach Herb Sendek said. Said Hodge: ``I went straight up and I felt the little guy, Nate, get me in the body some. My shot was a little off target, but I've still got to find a way to put the ball in the bucket. I'm not going to blame them (officials) on that last play.'' The Huskies, off to their best start in seven years, outlasted the Wolfpack in an exciting finish. It wasn't the track meet everyone expected, with Washington averaging 89.5 points per game and N.C. State at 83.8. ``When it was 31-30 at halftime, I looked around and said, 'Man, something's wrong,''' Simmons said. Nor was it a duel between each team's star Hodge and Robinson. Hodge scored 15 points, and Robinson was held to seven on 2-for-11 shooting but added seven rebounds and five assists. ``They had Hodge on him. They tried to put a bigger defender on him,'' Romar said. ``Nate wasn't able to get loose like he normally does.'' Cameron Bennerman had 16 points to lead the Wolfpack, and freshman Andrew Brackman added 14. Simmons scored five points in the final 23 seconds. His three-point play on a breakaway layup put Washington ahead 66-61 with 22 seconds to go, then his two late free throws sealed the win. The Huskies avenged a 77-72 loss last season in Raleigh, N.C. It was Washington's first game against a ranked non-conference opponent since Dec. 1, 1998, when the Huskies lost to No. 15 Connecticut 69-48. It also was one of the school's biggest non-conference games, and the arena was packed to the rafters long before tipoff. Students welcomed the Wolfpack players, needling them at full volume during pregame stretches. ``Coming out and hearing the fans yelling, I said to myself, 'I've got to play in this one,''' Roy said. ``They helped make my knee feel better.'' Roy got a huge cheer when he checked in late in the first half. He tore a knee ligament in the Great Alaska Shootout semifinals and wasn't expected back for another week under the best case of his four-to-six week prognosis. ``Brandon Roy played in practice a couple of days and we couldn't believe how well he was moving,'' said Romar, who let Roy make the decision to play or sit. Roy had a huge basket late when he caught a rebound in midair, off a missed 10-footer by Simmons, and slammed it home. It got the crowd energized and gave the Huskies a 63-58 lead with 2:35 remaining. Brackman scored after a rebound, and Hodge made one of two free throws to make it 63-62 with 1:15 to go. It was the first big test for N.C. State, which coasted at home against teams likes Elon, Campbell and Liberty. It was also the Wolfpack's first road game, kicking off a stretch of five of six away from home. ``A lot of positives to take from a game like this,'' Sendek said. ``To come in here under that kind of pressure and only have 11 turnovers and to see our guys battle the way they did are positives.''

http://accesswdun.com/article/2004/12/144892