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Sloppy Husky men win at Colorado despite 22 turnovers

Washington forward Keion Brooks Jr. drives by Colorado guard KJ Simpson during a Pac-12 Conference game Thursday in Boulder, Colorado. (Courtesy of UW Athletics)
By Percy Allen Seattle Times

BOULDER, Colo. – Keion Brooks stepped out of bounds – twice.

Keyon Menfield slipped while fumbling and losing the ball.

And several passes from Koren Johnson were batted away or intercepted as he flailed his arms and looked helplessly at the Husky bench for answers to solve Colorado’s full-court press that erased Washington’s double-digit lead and forced a frantic finish.

At the end, the UW men’s basketball team overcame 22 turnovers and a handful of gaffes to claim a 75-72 win at CU Events Center.

Brooks finished with a game-high 25 points on 9-for-12 shooting. Braxton Meah added 10 points and 12 rebounds and Menifield chipped in 10 points for the Huskies, who won their third straight game and improved to 12-8 overall, 4-5 in the Pac-12.

Washington connected on five of its first 11 3-pointers to jump out to a 25-15 lead midway through the first half.

The Huskies stretched their advantage to 11 points and went into halftime ahead 33-26. They could have had a bigger lead if not for 10 first-half turnovers that led to 10 points for Colorado.

The Buffaloes weren’t immune to sloppy ball handling and Brooks turned a CU miscue into one of the game’s highlights when he intercepted a Lawson Lovering pass before racing the length of the court for a fast-break dunk.

Colorado seemed to seized momentum and closed to within 39-33 when Washington answered with a 9-2 run capped by a midrange jumper and 3-pointer from Brooks to go up 48-35.

That’s when the Buffaloes resorted to a full-court press that proved to be problematic for the Huskies, who had difficulties finishing offensive possessions without a turnover.

Noah Williams was UW’s most sure-handed player, using guile and daring passes to break CU’s defense.

The Huskies led 73-72 and forced a Buffaloes turnover with 6.2 seconds left. UW’s Cole Bajema hit a pair of free throws and the game ended on a Colorado turnover.

Julian Hammond III scored 13 points and Tristan da Silva added 12 for the Buffaloes, who fell to 11-9, 3-6