SEATTLE — The Washington Huskies men's basketball team is coming off its most dominant win of the season — a 105-69 victory against the Southern Utah Thunderbirds on Dec. 13 at Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle.

The Huskies had six players reach double-figures and 12-of-13 players who saw the court scored.

Washington improved to 7-3 on the season with the victory. It was its second-straight win, the first of which was an 84-76 victory against then-No. 24 USC on Dec. 6.

The game against the Thunderbirds was also notable for the Huskies due to it being them being the most healthy they've been and having the deepest bench they've had all season.

Sophomore forward Bryson Tucker made his return to the team after missing six games due to an ankle sprain and added freshman forward Nikola Dzepina to the roster, who arrived last week from Serbia.

Tucker scored 12 points and missed just one shot from the floor in his return from injury. Dzepina scored five points, including a 3-pointer, in garbage time.

Washington's roster is full after being plagued with injuries the first month of the season and it's win streak is encouraging so close to conference play.

"Big Ten play is about to start. I think we have three more games before we go on that Indiana trip," Tucker said in a postgame interview Saturday. "So, it's really time to really start ramping it up. Big Ten play starts, that's a gauntlet. The only person we're really waiting on is (senior forward Jacob Ognacevic). He's getting back, he's been working really hard to come back. Once we get him back ... we have all the pieces we need. Then we can start different lineups, different pieces that we put together to really get to the top."

The Huskies have games against Seattle University, San Diego and Utah on the docket before starting Big Ten play on a road trip against Indiana and No. 6 Purdue.

The next three games are critical for Washington to build chemistry and get its players ready for Big Ten action. But the team and coaching staff isn't taking the remaining three non-conference for granted.

"We got to stay hungry," head coach Danny Sprinkle said after the game Saturday. "I know what's coming. And we're gonna have to play a lot better next Friday night. Seattle U is playing great. Coach (Chris Victor) does a great job and obviously they beat us last year. They're playing great right now. They're probably in the top 100 in (net rankings) right now. They got some veteran guys back. They play really good basketball. I love watching Seattle U play other than playing them. I try to catch all of their games, coach Victor is a good friend. I have a lot of respect for their program but we're gonna have to play a lot better defensively next Friday night."

The Huskies have had few opportunities to see what they can do at their peak. But when their best moments are extrapolated, including double-digit comebacks in losses against Baylor, Colorado and UCLA, it provides an image of a team that can be competitive in the Big Ten.

Washington will take on Seattle University at 8:30 p.m. PT on Dec. 19 at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle.

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