BATTLE FOR SEATTLE: In the continuation of the series that was rekindled in 2009, Seattle University and the University of Washington meet on the basketball court, with the Redhawks hosting this year’s version of the crosstown showdown at KeyArena. Seattle U is looking for its first win over the Huskies since 1978, while Washington is hoping to start its season with two straight wins.
WHERE TO CATCH THE GAME: Links to live stats and live video for Friday’s game can be found on the men’s basketball schedule page of GoSeattleU.com. Because the game is being shown on JoeTV, the online video stream will not be available to anyone within the state of Washington. Dick Fain and Tom Newell will be the broadcasters for the JoeTV telecast. Dave Grosby and Gary Hill Jr. will broadcast the game from courtside on 770 AM KTTH, starting with the pregame show 15 minutes before tipoff.
THE NEBRASKA OMAHA GAME: Several players made significant contributions in the Redhawks’ 98-74 victory over the Nebraska Omaha Mavericks Wednesday in a non-conference contest at KeyArena. Isiah Umipig led the Redhawks with 24 points, plus he pulled down five rebounds and dished out six assists while shooting 7-of-15 from the field, including 6-of-9 from behind the three-point line, and 4-of-4 from the free throw line. Jarell Flora scored 20 of his 22 points in the first half, plus he grabbed eight rebounds. Jack Crook notched a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds, and William Powell nearly did the same, finishing with nine points and 11 rebounds.
HEY JOE!: This Friday’s crosstown showdown between Seattle University and the University of Washington will be televised live on JoeTV. Dick Fain will provide the play-by-play description of the action, with Tom Newell serving as color analyst. JoeTV, the home of several Seattle Sounders FC matches during the Major League Soccer regular season, can be found on channel 11 for Wave Broadband subscribers, channel 10 for Comcast customers, and channel 22 for Dish and DirecTV subscribers.
SCOUTING WASHINGTON: The Huskies enter Friday’s game with a 1-0 record after defeating South Carolina State last Friday at Alaska Airlines Arena, 77-59. Shawn Kemp Jr. led the Huskies with 17 points, while Andrew Andrews finished with 13 points, seven rebounds, and six assists. Nigel Williams-Goss stuffed the stat sheet, earning 10 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists, and two steals. Robert Upshaw came off the bench and contributed 14 points, six rebounds, and seven blocked shots. Last season, Washington finished with a 17-15 record, including a 9-9 record within the Pac-12 Conference. The Huskies lost their leading scorer (C.J. Wilcox) and leading rebounder (Perris Blackwell) from last season due to graduation, but they boast one of the top backcourts in the country (Williams-Goss and Andrews).
SERIES HISTORY: Washington leads the all-time series over Seattle U, 25-4, including a current nine-game winning streak. These teams first met on the basketball court in the 1953 NCAA West Regional semifinals, with Washington earning a 92-70 victory. They did not meet again until starting a series in 1969-70 in which they played home-and-home each year. The teams split the season series in the first two years of that agreement before Washington went on a 10-game winning streak. After splitting the series again in 1976-77, Washington swept the two games in 1977-78. On Nov. 28, 1978, Seattle U defeated Washington at Hec-Ed Pavilion, 82-78, but the Huskies would win the later meeting at the Seattle Coliseum as well as both games in 1979-80. The crosstown series was brought back as a late addition to the 2008-09 season after Washington lost a home game to weather earlier in the year. On March 3, 2009, the Huskies defeated the Redhawks, 87-60. The two schools negotiated a deal to play once each season, starting Jan. 26, 2010, at Washington, a game won by the Huskies, 123-76. In front of over 11,000 fans at KeyArena Feb. 22, 2011, Washington defeated Seattle U, 95-74. The game during the 2011-12 season was the closest played between the two Division I schools of Seattle since the Redhawks started the reclassification process back. On Jan. 10, 2012, at Alaska Airlines Arena, Seattle U pulled into a 76-76 tie with 4:53 remaining in the second half before Washington pulled away for a hard-fought 91-83 victory.