SPOKANE, Wash. _ For the opening two minutes, this game was competitive.
Then No. 8 Gonzaga proceeded to hammer Washington during a historic 98-71 beat-down much to the delight of the sold-out crowd at McCarthey Center who waited 10 years for the Huskies to return to The Kennel.
Rivalry renewed?
More like a continuation of smack downs for the Huskies who endured their worst loss by the Bulldogs since 1943.
Wednesday's game was more of the same for Gonzaga, which has won 10 of the past 11 meetings against its cross-state rival, including seven straight at home.
This time it wasn't close after the Bulldogs used a 30-6 run to extended their 5-4 lead into a 35-10 advantage with 7:41 remaining in the first half.
Perhaps fittingly, guard Nigel Williams-Goss, the former UW star who transferred to Gonzaga, sank a floater in the lane over freshman standout Markelle Fultz to put the Zags up by 25 points.
Their matchup served as the biggest subplot in a game that included several story lines.
Williams-Goss, who finished with 23 points, five rebounds and five assists, had been critical of his former team for the way the Huskies prepare for games and the lack of winning that occurred during his seasons on Montlake.
Washington's inept performance Wednesday highlighted the criticism surrounding coach Lorenzo Romar, who was serenaded with "Fire Romar" chants from the GU students throughout the game.
Early on, the Huskies had no answer for sophomore forward Johnathan Williams, who scored the first seven points for Gonzaga. Then senior guard Jordan Matthews took over and buried a couple of open three-pointers en route to 14 points.
But it was 7-foot-1 and 300-pound center Przemek Karnowski who gave the Huskies the most trouble while controlling the middle and making it nearly impossible to score inside.
He finished with 17 points and eight rebounds.
Perhaps surprisingly, the Huskies won the rebounding battle (54-40) and held a 29-10 edge in offensive boards.
But nothing else went right for Washington, which didn't have an assist or a three-pointer in the first half.
The Huskies trailed 47-22 at the break and never got closer than 24 points in the second half.
Fultz powered UW's offense, which relied heavily on the freshman standout who is projected to be a top three pick in next year's NBA draft.
While the Huskies relied almost solely on Fultz, who finished with 25 points on 10-of-26 shooting and 10 rebounds, Gonzaga (9-0) had four players score in double figures.
Unlike their other defeats (an upset against Yale and two losses to TCU), Washington never had much of a chance while suffering their third straight loss and dropping to 4-4.
The Huskies have started 4-4 four times under Romar and each season they ended up missing the NCAA tournament.
