By Lauren Kirschman

The News Tribune

SEATTLE — The individual performances have been eye-popping. And sometimes, they have been enough.

Like in Washington’s win over No. 24 Baylor when Nahziah Carter, Jaden McDaniels and Isaiah Stewart combined for 56 points and 22 rebounds. Then there was the victory over Mount St. Mary’s when Stewart had 16 points, five blocks and five rebounds. Not to be outdone, Carter finished with 14 points, three rebounds, three assists.

There is no denying that No. 25 UW has its stars. Carter has effortlessly taken over the role of the Huskies’ go-to scorer. Stewart is a force inside. McDaniels’ length and athleticism have made him a menace in head coach Mike Hopkins’ two-three zone.

Sometimes, though, even the stars aren’t quite enough. That was the case in Saturday’s loss to No. 20 Tennessee when Carter, Stewart and McDaniels all reached double figures. So did point guard Quade Green. Both Carter and Stewart finished with double-doubles.

But UW didn’t win, and there were multiple contributing factors to the first loss of the season. Another slow start. A sub-par defensive performance. Continuing shooting struggles. There was also this: The Huskies got a combined five points from the rest of their players.

Through three games this season, UW is averaging just 5.0 bench points per game. Carter, Stewart and McDaniels account for nearly 75 percent of the Huskies scoring and 58 percent of their rebounds.

“You obviously want your best offensive players putting up the most shots, but you don’t want them to take contested shots,” Hopkins said. “It’s simple. If I’m going and I drive by … and two guys come, I got to be able to make that pass. Those are simple things. We’ve been aggressive. We’ve turned over the ball because we’ve been over-aggressive. Everybody is trying to … just go rather than (focusing on) good ball movement. I think that will really help us.

“I think in the Tennessee game, I felt like a lot of our defense didn’t lead to offense. That’s when we’re our best is when the defense is creating turnovers, deflections, rebounds, blocked shots. We’ll be able to get out in transition, get some easy baskets, go to the foul line.”

With a young and inexperienced roster, most of the Huskies are still trying to figure out their roles. That includes Carter, who is taking on more of the scoring load this season. Hopkins believes that’s not only contributed to the scoring imbalance, but also UW’s slow starts. The Huskies have often fallen behind because their offense looks sloppy and disjointed early on. They’ve been pressing instead of looking for the best shot.

“That goes back to (playing) anxious,” Hopkins said. “You got to have a ball-reserve guy. The ball has to go from side-to-side. You want your playmakers with the ball because they have the ability to make others around them better. We got those, but we just got to slow down.”

UW has mostly been sticking to a nine-man rotation. If there’s a bench player most likely to turn into an X-factor, it’s sophomore guard Jamal Bey. He’s averaging 17.9 minutes per game, making him the only non-starter to average more than 9 minutes.

Bey has flashed his potential, particularly when he finished with 20 points, five steals, four rebounds and four assists in the exhibition win over Western Washington. He shot 5-of-7 from the field in that game, including 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. UW needs shooters, and Bey could have the ability to fill that role.

But so far, Bey hasn’t been able to replicate that promising outing. He’s averaging 2.7 points per game and has attempted just nine shots. He’s 0-for-2 from the 3-point line.

“He’s a heck of a player,” Hopkins said. “Every game is going to be different. That’s part of the learning curve. He’s a heck of a player. We need him to produce and he can and he will. Unfortunately for him, he’s played the one, he’s played the two, he’s played the three. I even had him at the four. That’s a little bit challenging. But the compliment to him is trying to find ways to get him on the floor because he’s such a good player.”

UW is playing a challenging non-conference slate and faced a top 25 team in two of its first three games. Now, the Huskies will return for Alaska Airlines Arena for a lengthy period that begins with Maine on Tuesday night. The stretch could help them find some patience and consistency — and perhaps more contributors — before Pac-12 play opens in January.

“When you have a young team, it’s only going to make us better,” Hopkins said of the loss to Tennessee. “Obviously, we want to win every game we play, but when you play tough teams like that you can get exposed a little bit with your youth.”