Oregon sweeps Washington for first time since 1995

SEATTLE -- Just as quickly as the Oregon Ducks lost their mojo, they seem to have gotten it back.

Four days after snapping an unforeseen three-game losing streak with a home win over struggling Utah, the 23rd-ranked Ducks started a different kind of streak with a rare victory at the University of Washington.

Oregon used a balanced scoring attack to knock off the Huskies 65-52 on Wednesday, keeping the Ducks atop the Pac-12 standings while recording the program's first sweep of Washington since 1994-95.

"I think we're on the right path again," point guard Johnathan Loyd said after Oregon (20-5, 9-3) won its second in a row.

Loyd, with 11 points, was one of four Oregon players in double figures -- and that didn't even include E.J. Singler, who had nine points at halftime but missed all seven of his second-half shots. Damyean Dotson had a team-high 13 points.

Washington (13-12, 5-7) wasted a season-high 17 points from Abdul Gaddy in the loss.

It marked the second time in their last 12 trips to Washington that the Ducks have beaten the Huskies on the road. Washington holds an all-time advantage of 112-34 against the Ducks at home, and this marks only the fifth time in the 109-year history of the rivalry that has Oregon swept the Huskies during the regular season.

"It's not an easy place for a lot of people to get a win," said Ducks coach Dana Altman, who recorded his third consecutive 20-win season and only the 14th in program history.

The Ducks, who streaked into Pac-12 play with a nine-game win streak before dropping three in a row, were back on point Wednesday. They led for all but 30 seconds and turned the ball over just nine times -- once after halftime.

The Ducks took a 33-27 halftime lead and never looked back, keeping the cold-shooting Huskies at arm's length for the entire second half.

Washington shot 35 percent from the field while scoring a season-low 52 points, and the Huskies made just 2 of 13 shots from three-point range. Leading scorers Scott Suggs and C.J. Wilcox combined for just 13 points on 4-of-19 shooting.

The Huskies lost for the seventh time in eight games and matched their highest loss total since 2007-08, when Washington went 16-17 and finished eighth in the Pac-10.

"The whole team's upset," Gaddy said after a long locker room session that delayed the players' arrival at the post-game press conference. "We're tired of losing. Being a competitor, it doesn't get comfortable being a loser."

The Ducks appeared to be in a similar freefall two weeks ago but have since gotten back on track. The only moment of concern for the Ducks in Wednesday's game came when Loyd hyperextended his left knee and had to be helped off the court with 1:36 remaining.

Loyd, who has been logging almost all of Oregon's point guard minutes since Dominic Artis went down with a foot injury on Jan. 23, said after the game that he was feeling better.

"I think I'll be fine," Loyd said. "I don't think I'll miss any games or anything."

Despite the injury, Loyd was able to revel in a rare win at Washington.

"We talked about how the fans were going to be loud and disrespectful," he said. "We read a lot on what the (UW student section) had to say about us, so it was good to get a win."

The Huskies suffered their third loss in a string of four home games while falling further out of the race for a conference title.

"We're all disappointed," coach Lorenzo Romar said, "but I don't think this team is ready to quit -- at all."

NOTES: Oregon entered Wednesday's game having lost three of four, while Washington had lost six of seven. ... Huskies leading scorer C.J. Wilcox continues to struggle with his shot; he missed his first six attempts Wednesday and was 3 of 13 overall. He hit 1 of 6 from three-point range and has hit just 4 of 28 dating to the Jan. 31 loss to Arizona. ... Gaddy had just two turnovers to end a streak of five games with four or more. Only twice during the entire 2011-12 season did Gaddy have four or more turnovers in a game.