There's plenty to gab about after Friday's game at Edmundson Pavilion.

Not that Portland senior ReZina TecleMariam will want to hear most of it. The guard is close friends with Washington's Regina Rogers, once suiting up with the center on the AAU team Tree of Hope with UW senior Charmaine Barlow completing the trio.

Now, Rogers and TecleMariam talk nightly about games — the latter gloating recently about a big win against San Diego State. And TecleMariam, a Bellarmine Prep standout, nearly had local bragging rights to add to the chat.

But Rogers went old school in the second half, scoring 19 of her game-high 26 points to help Washington defeat Portland 61-49. The Huskies (6-2) haven't lost to the Pilots (5-5) in 10 meetings.

"In the second half she was aggressive," UW coach Kevin McGuff said of Rogers. "She was doing a better job at getting position and she's tough to play when she gets the ball around the basket."

That wasn't the case in the opening half. Washington had to overcome some cold shooting with hot defense to ensure the win.

Portland outscored Washington 9-3 in the final 4:09 of the first half to take a 27-24 lead into the break. The Pilots started the game shooting 71.4 percent from the field and only mildly cooled off as the Huskies figured out how to defend Portland, which methodically moved the ball.

And despite UW grabbing 12 offensive rebounds in the opening half and forcing 12 turnovers, it could only shoot 25 percent from the field. Most frustrating for the Huskies had to be the missed layins.

"It did seem like everything they shot was going in," UW freshman point guard Jazmine Davis said. "Hey, Portland is a good team. They knock down shots and they really make you pay if you slip on the defensive end. We just kept battling and focused on the transition and eventually (if) you keep a consistent pace, teams are going to wear down."

The Huskies held the Pilots scoreless for seven minutes in the second half as they built a 14-point lead. Freshman forward Aminah Williams picked off four passes on defense during the 17-0 run while UW found Rogers inside for offensive scores.

"(Aminah) really gave them problems in the second half," said McGuff, whose team used the defense to keep the Pilots scoreless on second-chance shot opportunities and 8-for-30 (26.7 percent) shooting after the break.

Williams finished with a season-high five steals to complement her four points and four boards. Overall, Washington had a season-high 11 steals.

The Huskies, off to their best start since 2005, continue their four-game homestand with a matchup against Houston on Dec. 18.

Note

• McGuff had freshman forward Talia Walton (knee) available for the first time this season, but opted not to play her due to matchups. She could make her season debut against Houston.

• UW assistant coach Adia Barnes wasn't available due to a recruiting trip.

Jayda Evans: 206-464-2067 or jevans@seattletimes.com

PORTLAND
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Day	33	6-10	4-5	0-6	0	3	18
Pupa	17	0-4	0-0	1-3	3	4	0
TecleMriam	33	2-8	2-2	0-3	2	3	7
Byrd	30	4-8	0-2	2-3	2	3	9
C.Brown	19	0-3	0-0	0-7	2	0	0
Luttinen	4	0-1	0-0	0-0	0	0	0
N.Brown	21	5-7	1-1	0-0	0	2	15
Thompson	26	0-5	0-2	2-5	0	2	0
Wooton	14	0-4	0-0	0-2	2	0	0
Snyder	3	0-0	0-0	0-1	0	0	0
	200	17-50	7-12	7-34	11	17	49

Percentages: FG .340, FT .583. Three-point goals: 8-24 (Day 2-3, Pupa 0-1, TecleMariam 1-6, Byrd 1-4, Brown 0-2, Brown 4-5, Wooton 0-3). Team rebounds: 4. Blocked shots: 5 (Day, Brown, Thompson 3). Turnovers: 21 (Day 9, Pupa 2, TecleMariam 2, Brown 2, Luttinen 2, Thompson 2, Wooton 2). Steals: 5 (Day, TecleMariam, Byrd 2, Thompson). Technical fouls: None.

WASHINGTON
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Barlow	22	1-6	0-0	0-2	3	0	2
Argens	17	1-5	2-4	2-3	2	2	4
Rogers	30	10-17	6-8	5-9	1	3	26
Wetmore	34	2-9	1-3	0-4	1	1	6
Davis	36	4-12	3-4	0-1	0	1	13
McCn-Smith	10	1-3	1-2	1-4	1	0	4
Anderson	13	0-1	0-0	1-4	1	1	0
A.Williams	18	2-8	0-0	3-4	1	2	4
M.Williams	20	1-4	0-1	2-6	2	1	2
	200	22-65	13-22	20-46	12	11	61

Percentages: FG .338, FT .591. Three-point goals: 4-18 (Wetmore 1-6, Davis 2-9, McCann-Smith 1-3). Team rebounds: 9. Blocked shots: 5 (Rogers, A.Williams 2, M.Williams 2). Turnovers: 15 (Barlow, Argens 3, Rogers 2, Wetmore 3, Davis, Anderson, A.Williams, M.Williams 3). Steals: 11 (Barlow, Rogers, Wetmore 2, McCann-Smith, Anderson, A.Williams 5). Technical fouls: None.

Portland	27	22	—	49
Washington	24	37	—	61

Attendance: 1,553. Officials: Lisa Jones, Kent Johnson, Paul Patterson.