LAS VEGAS (AP) – Ninth-seeded Stanford bowed out of the Pac-12 Conference Men's Basketball Tournament after a 91-68 opening-round setback Wednesday to eighth-seeded Washington at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Dorian Pickens paced Stanford (15-15) with a team-high 17 points, followed by 13 from Marcus Allen and 12 from Rosco Allen.
Washington (18-13), which will face top-seeded Oregon in the quarterfinals, had four players in double figures, led by Dejounte Murray's game-high 25 points.
"Really good to see, with over half our team playing in the tournament for the first time, they looked like they'd been here before," Washington coach Lorenzo Romar said.
Washington (18-13) entered the Pac-12 tournament hoping boost its slim NCAA Tournament chances. The eighth-seeded Huskies got off to a strong start against Stanford, building a 17-point lead in the game's first six minutes.
"In terms of lately, I thought we were as dialed in and as efficient as we have been, so I thought it was a very good performance," Romar said. "I thought today we could have beaten a lot of teams playing that way."
The Cardinal finished 3-of-21 (14 percent) from 3-point range, while the Huskies shot nearly 40 percent from beyond the arc.
"Washington came out right from the tip ready to compete and got off to a fast start," Dawkins said. "I thought we tried to battle. I thought we tried to force some issues and that led us into a worse direction."
Michael Humphrey hit a layup for the Cardinal's first field goal 8:43 into the game.
"We just didn't get off to a quick start like we should have and we let them dictate to us too much," Stanford's Rosco Allen said.
Washington made 18 of 34 shots, including 7 of 13 from 3-point range in the first half. Murray had 13 points by halftime, Chriss 12 and the Huskies led 50-22.