Washington's High Octane Offense is Back

More exhibition action from the college basketball scene, this time between the University of Washington Huskies and the Div2 Western Washington University. UW won easily but I think what was great to watch was a return to the kind of run and gun guard-oriented offense that we've missed the past couple of seasons.

The Huskies will score, early and often this season, that is certain. They have a whole lineup of quick, sharp-shooting guards that can score in bunches. Combine that with the size and height of veterans like Jon Brockman, and the Huskies could be an early favorite for the PAC-10 Championship. Watch some great early offense clips from last night's game,




Numbers Advantage:

Early offense is very simple. It's all about numbers. You create that numbers advantage by simply out-running your opponent. It's just a matter a hustle. Part of it is talent and ability of course, but the other is attitude and practice. Here, you can see that the Huskies have a 5v2 advantage,


Backpick for 3-pointer:

This is just great instinctual basketball. O1 brings the ball up on the left wing. O3 is the trailer on the right wing. O4 sets an area screen. O1 passes to O3 who has room to take a dribble forward then unload a 3-pointer,


Summary:

With the upcoming college basketball season gearing up, one of the teams that is looking forward to a resurgence are the Washington Huskies. After a couple of under-performing seasons with no NCAA tournament appearance, especially the one with Spencer Hawes 2 seasons ago, the Huskies are looking like the Husky teams of old with super-guards Nate Robinson and Brandon Roy. This year's crop features a nice combination of rookies like Isaiah Thomas and Elston Turner along with veterans like Jon Brockman and Quincy Pontdexter. One thing is clear, the Huskies are going to be very exciting to watch again.

If you like UW basketball, then you'll probably want to check out Lorenzo Romar's DVD on Finishing in Transition. Discuss this and the rest of your favorite basketball topics at the X's and O's Basketball Forum.