What a difference a year makes for No. 3 seed Washington
[...] Neighbors focused on one specific aspect Friday as the Huskies prepared for their first-round matchup against No. 14 seed Montana State.
In Saturday's opener, No. 6 seed Oklahoma faces No. 11 seed Gonzaga, with the Bulldogs looking to make another deep postseason run as a double-digit seed.
The Bulldogs would like to add another tournament victory to their resume after missing the NCAAs last season for the first time since 2008.
The Huskies stumbled at Notre Dame and Oregon State, and at home against Stanford in front of the largest crowd in school history.
The Sooners closed the regular season losing two of their final three games then were routed in the Big 12 quarterfinals by West Virginia.
Montana State's reward for winning its final seven games of the regular season, the Big Sky Tournament title and earning just the second NCAA Tournament bid in school history is trying to stymie Plum, the best scorer in NCAA history.