Terrell Brown Jr. had 20 points and nine assists to help Washington pull away for a 72-65 win against visiting Texas Southern on Monday night in Seattle.
Daejon Davis added 15 points, PJ Fuller scored 11 and Jamal Bey had 10 for the Huskies (2-1).
Joirdon Karl Nicholas scored 16 points, Justin Hopkins scored 11 and PJ Henry finished with 10 points for Texas Southern (0-3).
Brown, a graduate transfer from Arizona, sank a jumper off a steal by Fuller with 6:44 left to give the Huskies their first four-point lead of the game at 60-56.
Neither team led by more than four points until Emmitt Matthews Jr. made one of two free throws for a 61-56 lead for the Huskies with 5:02 left. Davis made a layup on Washington’s next possession to expand the lead to 63-56 with 4:26 left.
The Tigers had taken a 56-55 lead on a layup by Brison Gresham with 7:25 left, but they missed five straight shots and committed five turnovers before scoring again on a putback by Jordan Gilliam to make it 63-58 with 3:17 left.
Washington then went cold and Nicholas sank a jumper to make it 63-60 with 2:05 remaining, but the Huskies made 7 of 8 free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
Texas Southern finished the first half with a 7-2 burst to take a 37-33 lead into the half, the fourth time the Tigers led by four points.
Washington scored six straight points to retake the lead 43-41 with 16:27 left in the game, but the lead continued to trade hands.
Another 6-0 burst by the Huskies put them back on top 53-50 with 10:07 left.
Texas Southern is the defending Southwestern Athletic Conference champion and the Tigers beat Mount St. Mary’s in a First Four game of the NCAA Tournament last March before losing to top-seeded Michigan 82-66 in the first round.
Washington, which finished 11th in the Pac-12 last season, lost its season opener to Northern Illinois 71-64 on Tuesday before beating Northern Arizona 73-62 on Thursday.
–Field Level Media
