HONOLULU � The coaches and players on Washington's bench made sure the Huskies on the floor knew where Kyle Mallers and Ishael El-Amin were at all times, considering Ball State's gunners entered Sunday's game ranked 15th and 16th nationally in three-point shooting, respectively.
"In the corner!" assistant Will Conroy shouted.
"Don't leave him!" yelled a UW reserve from the sidelines.
The Huskies scrapped their 2-3 zone and plastered themselves to the Cardinals using a man-to-man defense that short-circuited one of the top perimeter offenses.
And at the other end, Washington stole a page from Ball State and drained a season-high 11 three-pointers for an 85-64 victory in the first round of the Diamond Head Classic at Stan Sherriff Center.
Jaden McDaniels (22 points) and Quade Green (21 points and six assists) each sank four three-pointers while Isaiah Stewart punished the Cardinals inside for 19 points and 10 rebounds.
Washington (9-2) took control early and shot 63% from the floor and 66.7% (8 of 12) on three-pointers in the first half, which were both season highs.
The Huskies led 51-40 at the break.
Ball State began the second half with a 9-1 run and cut its deficit to 52-49 before the Huskies answered and put the game away with a 12-2 run.
Nahziah Carter and Hameir Wright (10 points) capped the spurt with a pair of fastbreak dunks to push UW's lead to 64-51.
The Cardinals (6-5), who received 20 points from Tahjai Teague, never got any closer the rest of the way. Washington held BSU to 7 of 24 on three-pointers.
