Quincy Pondexter to face former teammate De'Sean Butler | Huskies notebook

Another week, another reunion for Quincy Pondexter.

In the first round of the NCAA tournameent, the Washington senior star played against Lazar Hayward, a teammate on the U.S. World University Games squad, when the Huskies defeated Marquette.

On Thursday, Pondexter will face West Virginia senior Da'Sean Butler, his roommate in Belgrade, Serbia, last July when the Americans took bronze in the World University Games.

"He's such a funny guy," Pondexter said of Butler "He's a good person on and off the floor. He's done great things for that team this year. He's so talented. He's hit big shots for them and he's a real leader."

Butler, a 6-foot-7 senior, leads the Mountaineers in scoring (17.5) and assists (3.3) while ranking third in rebounds (6.3).

"I haven't gotten a chance to talk to him yet, but I've been watching all of his games," Pondexter said. "I've been really impressed with him."

Size vs. speed

Second-seeded West Virginia doesn't have a 7-footer, but the Mountaineers are one of the tallest teams UW will face this season.

The No. 11 Huskies will counter West Virginia's size advantage with speed.

"This is definitely a quick team, with me and Isaiah (Thomas) pushing the ball more," reserve guard Venoy Overton said. "When everybody is running — Justin Holiday running — it's great.

"When you have everybody on a fast break, you just know something good is going to happen."

Inevitably, the 5-8 Thomas and 5-11 Overton will be paired against West Virginia's backcourt featuring 6-2 Darryl Bryant and the 6-7 Butler.

"They're going be a little bigger than us, but I feel like I can play better that way because you can kind of get up under them," Overton said. "It's not going to be different.

"As long as he's outside that three-point line, then I can get him. If he's posting up, then I'm probably going to need a little help."

Huggins connections

When Washington coach Lorenzo Romar played with Athletes in Action in 1990, he met and became friends with Bob Huggins, who was coaching at Cincinnati then. Huggins took over the Mountaineers program in 2008.

"I even went to school there and eventually — because I didn't finish my undergrad at Washington, although I was a student here — ended up finishing at Cincinnati," Romar said. "Took classes with some of their players and got to know their program very well.

"Got to watch Coach Huggins practice and conduct his practice. Even went to one of their banquets. I got real close to their program and have known Coach Huggins ever since."

Notes

• Washington will practice Tuesday morning before departing for its first trip to Syracuse, N.Y., and the Carrier Dome, the site of the East Regional. The Huskies' bus is scheduled to leave Edmundson Pavilion at 11 a.m.

• Pondexter and Thomas need 20 points combined to become the highest season scoring duo in team history.

• The Huskies will play a team-record-tying 36th game Thursday. The record was set in 1938.

• Before last Thursday, Washington had a 10-game losing streak against the Big East, with the Huskies' last win against the conference in 1989. Washington is 10-18 all-time against the Big East and 1-0 against West Virginia.

Percy Allen: 206-464-2278 or pallen@seattletimes.com