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2011 Pac-10 Tournament Quarterfinal Recap - Washington vs Washington State

Washington State’s Klay Thompson scored 43 points, but that spectacular effort wasn't enough. Wazzu owned the best player on the floor, but not the superior team. Washington State fell short in an 89-87 loss to the Washington Huskies last night in the quarterfinals of the Pacific Life Pac-10 Tournament.

Thompson emerged with poise, charisma and no shortage of heart, just a week after being cited for Marijuana possession and serving a one game suspension. It was truly a battle of outside shooting and defense during the third matchup between these rivals who combined for 21 three-point baskets.

Thompson, the second Cougar dealing with drug related citations this season, the first being Reggie Moore, was not the only Pac-10 athlete finding issue with law enforcement in the past month.

Washington was without senior guard Venoy Overton and will continue to play without him for the remainder of the tournament after he was charged with furnishing alcohol to a minor early this week; other charges stemmed from early reports of sexual assault in January.

Despite the issues both teams managed to persevere on the court and deliver an entertaining game.

Thompson Sets New Tournament Record with 43 Point Game

Thompson shattered the Pac-10 tournament regulation scoring record with his 43 points. Averaging 21.4 points per game to lead the conference, Thompson played 37 minutes and shot an astonishing 15 of 20 including 8 of 14 from three point range.

Not to be out done, Washington guard Isaiah Thomas, who played all 40 minutes, once again orchestrated a nearly flawless second half offense to rally his Huskies from what was at its largest, a 13-point deficit. Scoring 16 of his 21 points in the final 20 minutes of play, Thomas added 11 assists for his fourth double-double of the season in the Huskies' victory.

Not quite displaying the imbalanced scoring of Washington State, the Huskies did an excellent job spreading the ball around. And while WSU continued to go to its hot hand, the Huskies saw all five of their starters finish in double figures.

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Thomas finished at 21 points, while Matthew Bryan-Amaning poured in 16, and Justin Holiday (who has been struggling as of late but was cleared to play after getting dinged up earlier in the week) finished with 12. Terrence Ross, earning his first start on the night, finished with 17, and C.J. “Catch-N-Shoot” Wilcox added 16 points.

The Huskies, who have turned the last half of their season into mayhem and an experience of complete agony for their fans, turned that around on Thursday night. Redemption may be lurking around the corner and a repeat of last season's conference tournament title may be exactly what the Huskies need to better situate themselves for the Selection Committee and a run in the NCAA Tournament.

A true bubble team, Washington State will head back to Pullman, Wash., where the Cougars will await their fate for Selection Sunday. Should they find a way to burst into the field of 68, or even the NIT, Thompson will return to don the Crimson and Grey. If he plays anything like he did on Thursday, Washington State should be able to win some postseason games.

By Ganelle Swehla
DFN Sports Staff Writer