By Lauren Kirschman
The News Tribune
Washington completed its swing through Italy on Tuesday with a 97-39 victory over Siena. With the win, the Huskies concluded their foreign tour 4-0. They’ll return to Seattle on Thursday.
UW opened with two straight victories over the Peak Warriors in Rome, winning 94-35 and 91-46, respectively. The Huskies then traveled to Florence where Pistoia provided more competition in Game 3 but UW still pulled away for the 73-59 victory.
The Huskies averaged 88.8 points over the four games, winning by an average of 44 points. They won three of the games — excluding the 14-point victory over Pistoia — by an average of 54 points.
Here are three takeaways from trip to Italy.
Marcus Tsohonis could contribute early
Washington landed a top-10 recruiting class in 2019 highlighted by five-star prospects Isaiah Stewart and Jaden McDaniels. McDaniels didn’t make the trip to Italy due to personal reasons. And while Stewart was impressive, the lowest-ranked prospect in the class also had a solid debut.
Marcus Tsohonis, a three-star point guard out of Jefferson High School in Portland, Ore., averaged 9.3 points, 2.5 assists and 2.0 rebounds per game.
His best outing came in the final game against Siena. UW was leading just 22-15 after the first quarter but outscored Siena 26-8 in the second quarter to head into the break with a 48-23 lead. While a switch from man-to-man to the more familiar zone helped the Huskies lock-in defensively, it was Tsohonis who ignited the offense with several strong takes to the basket. He led UW with 12 points at the break.
Tsohonis still has some work to do on his jump shot, which was a critique of his game coming out of high school. But throughout the four-game stretch, he proved himself more than capable of managing UW’s offense. Tsohonis excelled when driving and finishing at the hoop, and displayed the kind of confidence and court vision the Huskies will need from a point guard.
As of right now, Kentucky transfer Quade Green — a former five-star recruit — won’t be eligible to play until the start of the winter quarter. UW will have sophomore Elijah Hardy, a former three-star point guard, available to run the offense until then. But Tsohonis looked capable of carving out a role for himself as well. If his performance in Italy is any indication, it’s going to be hard to keep him off the floor.
Isaiah Stewart is as good as advertised
Stewart, a five-star center, was considered by 247Sports to be the No. 1 player in Indiana, the No. 3 player in the country and the No. 2 center nationally in his class. He’s expected to be a lottery pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.
That he dominated the competition in Italy wasn’t a surprise. There wasn’t a player on any of the rosters that could match up with Stewart, who is 6-foot-9 and 240 pounds. He averaged a double-double 19.5 points and 11 rebounds over the four games, leading UW in scoring in Game 2 and Game 3. He recorded two double-doubles and was one rebound away from a third.
But Stewart looked more than capable of carrying over his exhibition game performances to the regular season. Perhaps the most intriguing element of his game was his ability stretch the defense. He looked smoothly knocked down jump shots and even made a few 3-pointers.
It appears the Huskies are going to run much of their offense through Stewart, and it’s easy to see why.
Nahziah Carter looks like a leading scorer
With the departure of Jaylen Nowell, David Crisp, Noah Dickerson, Matisse Thybulle and Dominic Green, the Huskies lost 80 percent of their scoring from last season. Nowell, who entered the NBA Draft after his sophomore season and was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second round, averaged a team-high 16.2 points per game.
Nowell was often the player UW looked to for scoring in pivotal moments. More than any other player on the roster, he was capable of creating his own shot and taking over offensively. Nahziah Carter showed flashes of the same ability last season. And based on his outings in Italy, he’s more than ready to step into that role.
Carter, who averaged 8.1 points per game last season, is the leading returning scorer for UW. He reached double figures 15 times during the 2018-19 seasons and seemed to find better consistency down the stretch. He scored double figures in four out of the last five games, including both NCAA Tournament contests.
Carter averaged 18.3 points and eight rebounds in Italy. He reached double figures in all four games and led the Huskies in scoring in Game 1 and Game 4. He also registered double-doubles in the final two games of 17 points and 10 rebounds and 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Carter’s athleticism has never been in doubt — just watch some of his dunks from last season for evidence — but he also displayed a much-improved jump shot in Italy. That will be key for the Huskies who lost their most reliable shooters from last year’s NCAA Tournament team.
