Washington makes third straight NCAA appearance

Utah St. (23-8) vs. Washington (24-6) 9:55 pm EST

SAN DIEGO (Ticker) -- Washington hopes a first-round victory over Utah State will make up for a disappointing finish in the Pac-10 Conference Tournament.

The fifth-seeded Huskies begin their third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance Thursday when they meet the 12th-seeded Aggies in the Washington D.C. Region.

One of the nation's top scoring teams at 82.7 points, Washington ended the regular season with eight consecutive victories before suffering an 84-73 loss to Oregon in the Pac-10 quarterfinals.

Leading scorer Brandon Roy had 30 points, Jamaal Williams added 17 and Bobby Jones 10 with 11 rebounds for the Huskies, who were outscored, 54-32, in the second half.

A top seed in last season's NCAA Tournament, Washington lost to Louisville in the regional semifinals. The Huskies are making their 13th NCAA appearance and third straight for the first time since 1984-1986.

Moving from the Big West Conference to the Mountain West, Utah State has reached the "Big Dance" for the fifth time in seven years and the 17th overall. The Aggies were ousted by Arizona in the first round last season.

Utah State won seven of its last eight games, including WAC Tournament victories over San Jose State and Louisiana Tech before dropping the title game to Nevada, 70-63, in overtime Saturday.

Nate Harris scored 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds en route to being named to the WAC All-Tournament Team. He has helped the Aggies rank among the nation's leaders in shooting percentage (49.8) and three-point percentage (41.5).

Utah State has won five of the seven encounters with Washington, taking the most recent matchup, 71-60, in the 1986 Great Alaska Shootout.

The winner of this game faces either fourth-seeded Illinois or 13th-seeded Air Force on Saturday.