Bad starts beget losses

There are just two mini-seasons left. The women's basketball team breaks the season down into five mini-seasons at the beginning of the year, and through three the team has already been from the bottom of the roller coaster to the top and back again. Senior Maggie O'Hara said last week that the time is now or never for her team to come together. However, this was before the Huskies lost two conference games in Southern California.

So what has happened so far?

An experience-laden team, the Dawgs (13-9 overall, 6-5 Pac-10) struggled through one of their toughest non-conference schedules ever. They played ranked teams on the road and they lost. Some of the losses were close and others were blowouts, but all of them contributed to the team's maturity. By the time the Pac-10 conference schedule rolled around, the Huskies were playing like a team scorned.

Five games into the Pac-10 season, Washington was as high above the crowd as ever. The Huskies opened with five straight wins (nine in a row overall) and were first in a conference that boasted three nationally ranked teams. The Dawgs weren't among them, a fact that was an ominous foreshadowing of their January slump.

The UW led Arizona State from beginning to nearly end on Jan. 7. Then, they gave the game to the Sun Devils. It was an emotional loss that could have been the win that would have put them on cruise control to the postseason. It too was a bad sign of things to come.

The Dawgs came home and got stomped by Stanford and Cal. The blowout losses were as uncompetitive as any game the women have played in the past three years. When Washington State came to Hec Edmondson Pavilion, it seemed as if the three losses were only a hiccup as the Dawgs trounced the lowly Cougs. But the losing continued at the Los Angeles schools and the Huskies now face the most crucial stretch of their schedule.

It begins with a rematch against Arizona State on Thursday. Entering the game, the Dawgs have some shiny bright spots and some glaring weaknesses.

[HTML_REMOVED]Offense: Grade B[HTML_REMOVED]

Something isn't quite right. This mark should be an "A," and it would be, if the team could figure out how to get on the board at the beginning of games. In all four of its recent losses, the Pac-10's second-best scoring team came out flat. Better put, maybe they didn't come out at all.

After the home loss to Cal, coach June Daugherty warned that starts can be contagious either way; unfortunately for her team, lately they've all been ice cold. She and members of the team say the key to success on the offensive end is patience and taking good shots. While that may be true, those good shots still have to fall. Shooting percentages in the 20-30 percent range don't make champions.

While the team also says its success begins inside, they need to start scoring outside as well. With talented 3-point shooters all over the court for the Dawgs, a 30 percent outside clip is unacceptable.

The coach and players also look to their defense to lead to offensive success, which hasn't been happening.

[HTML_REMOVED]Defense: Grade C+[HTML_REMOVED]

How can a team that is second in the league in steals and turnover margin earn a "C?" The Dawgs do it by having a total defensive hiatus in their past four losses. Daugherty finally called out her post players after the USC loss, saying they need to show up. They do. In those losses, the Dawgs were outscored in the paint by an overwhelming margin. While the stats aren't available, it has literally been nearly 4-1.

The post players aren't alone. USC showed that Washington has been slow on switches and defensive rotations. The Trojans lit the Dawgs up from the 3-point line in the first half.

Stefanie Clark and Daugherty both commented after the loss that if the Huskies are taking the ball from the net every time, their defense is not helping out their offense.

[HTML_REMOVED]Looking Ahead:[HTML_REMOVED]

The Dawgs play four of their last seven games against opponents below them in the conference standings. These games are must-wins. Of the three remaining games with Cal, Stanford and ASU, the Dawgs need at least one win to keep them in the upper half of the Pac-10.

Reach reporter Sam Cameron at sports@thedaily.washington.edu.