SEATTLE -- After struggling defensively in its first two games of the season -- even surrendering 98 points to Yale in a home loss to open the 2016 slate -- Washington appeared to find its mojo on both sides of the ball Sunday in a 92-58 win over Northern Arizona at Alaska Airlines Arena.The Huskies (2-1) set the tone defensively on the Lumberjacks (1-4) opening two possessions, one ending in a Malik Dime block and the other a turnover forced by Matisse Thybulle, the first of five from the Lumberjacks before the under-12 timeout and 16 total.Weve improved (since Yale), Washington coach Lorenzo Romar said. There is more of a sense of urgency out there. That means our teams gonna be better defensively. Theres more of an awareness, more of a want-to. Still got a long ways to go, but definitely made an improvement.Markelle Fultz made 6 of 9 from the field, including two 3-pointers and finished with 16 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. It was his first game not scoring at least 30 points, but taking only nine shots and focusing on getting the Huskies big men involved was part of the game plan going in, Romar said. Washington finished with 50 points in the paint, compared to 24 for NAU.The Lumberjacks remained within striking distance into the second half, but Washington put them away in the games final 13 minutes. The Huskies opened up a 38-point lead, going on 33-10 run before inserting the last men on their bench for the final three minutes.We started denying their big men when they came up to run the high-low and reverse the ball, Noah Dickerson said of what keyed their 23-point run. Once we started to do that, they didnt run any offense. It was basically one-on-one or a ball screen. . We were off to the races.Dickerson scored 12 and grabbed eight rebounds, Thybulle had 15 points for the Huskies.Felix Rivera-Vega scored 11 and Ako Kaluna finished with 10 points and five rebounds for NAU.BIG PICTURENorthern Arizona: Although the Lumberjacks were overmatched physically and athletically -- to be expected from a Big Sky team facing one from the Pac-12 -- they have to be satisfied with keeping it largely competitive for three-fourths of the game against UW. NAU entered the game with just one win in its first four, and it came against a Division III opponent, Benedictine Mesa. NAU cleaned up some sloppy play early in the game and can look to take a sliver of momentum into its game at UNLV on Tuesday.Washington: The Huskies turned in their best performance of the young season, proving they can put away a team, albeit an outclassed one. After giving up 98 points to Yale and 88 to Cal State Fullerton, holding NAU to 58 is a welcome sight for Lorenzo Romar. The Lumberjacks shooting percentage rarely climbed above 40 percent all game, finishing with 20-of-65 shooting (30.8 percent).HE SAID ITIf I were a betting man, Id bet you a pack of Red Vines that he will. -- Romar on if Fultz will record a triple-double before he leaves Washington. He came up two assists and three rebounds shy on Sunday.UP NEXTNorthern Arizona: The Lumberjacks play their second of back-to-back road games when they visit UNLV at 7 p.m. MT on Tuesday.Washington: The Huskies finish up a stretch of four straight home games to open the season against Long Beach State at 8 p.m. PT on Tuesday before heading to Las Vegas for the Global Sports MTE, where NAU is also a participant. Max Pacioretty Jersey . The 31-year-old Spain midfielder hasnt played since Madrid lost in the Copa del Rey final to Atletico Madrid in May due to back and foot injuries. Marc-Andre Fleury Jersey . -- Five former Kansas City Chiefs players who were on the team between 1987 and 1993 filed a lawsuit Tuesday claiming the team hid and even lied about the risks of head injuries during that time period when there was no collective bargaining agreement in place in the NFL. http://www.goldenknightssale.com/authentic-shea-theodore-golden-knights-jersey/ . "I dont know that were close," said general manager Alex Anthopoulos. "I just think, right now, the acquisition cost just doesnt work for us right now. I dont know if I can quantify how far off or things like that that they might be but I would say we continue to have dialogue. Tomas Nosek Jersey . Paul Pierce couldnt believe he missed at the end. Young scored a season-high 26 points to spark a huge effort from the leagues most productive bench, and Los Angeles beat the Brooklyn Nets 99-94 on Wednesday night after blowing a 27-point lead. Jon Merrill Jersey . Tevez, who has had conflicts with coaches in the past, has not been called up since Sabella was named coach in 2011. Argentina boasts Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain, Sergio Aguero, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Angel Di Maria. LOS ANGELES -- Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder could have been excused for looking ahead to a momentous visit to Golden State and a reunion with Kevin Durant looming Thursday night.Instead, Westbrook added another gutsy performance to his incredible start to his first season as the main man.Westbrook hit a jumper with 18.7 seconds left to finish with 35 points, and the Thunder remained unbeaten with an 85-83 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.Westbrook added six rebounds and five assists for the Thunder, who surged in the final minutes of a tight meeting between Western Conference contenders. Although he wasnt near a triple-double for the first time this season, the ferocious point guard carried the Thunder down the stretch, scoring their final six points and making a key hustle play in the last minute.Thats the only way I know how to get it, Westbrook said. Nothing was ever given to me growing up, and I always had to find ways to get it. ... I play every game like its my last. I play every game the same, always, like Ive been saying for years. Regardless of who we play, Im going to play the same way.Westbrook had triple-doubles in the Thunders last two games, and was one assist shy of another in their opener. He mostly concentrated on scoring in his hometown, delivering a spectacular dunk in the third quarter while going 14 for 30 in 31 minutes.Hes been great, Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan said. Just being around him and seeing his commitment to his teammates, his leadership and his competitive fire rubbing off on his teammates, its been great to watch. What hes doing statistically is amazing, but as a coach, Ive been impressed with his leadership.Chris Paul had 15 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists for the Clippers, who hit just one shot in a 5 1/2-minute span late in the fourth quarter. Blake Griffin scored 10 of his 14 points in the third quarter, but none in the fouurth.ddddddddddddThe most frustrating part for me (is) the turnovers especially, said Paul, who made three of his five turnovers in the fourth quarter. My job is to orchestrate the offense, and I had some terrible turnovers down the stretch.TIP-INSThunder: Alex Abrines only played the final 12.3 seconds of the first half, but he hit a 3-pointer with 1.6 seconds left to stake OKC to a 49-41 lead. ... Victor Oladipos nine points were the second-most by an Oklahoma City player.Clippers: LAs early-season struggles from the 3-point line continued in the first half when the Clippers went 3 for 14, including 1 for 7 by the starters. ... Marreese Speights had 14 points.BIG FINISHWestbrooks layup put the Thunder up 81-78 with 2:17 left, and he converted Jamal Crawfords turnover into a dunk 66 seconds later. J.J. Redick hit a 3-pointer to trim Oklahoma Citys lead to two points, but Westbrook hit a 17-footer to essentially seal it.RUSS BALLWestbrook averaged 38.7 points, 12.3 rebounds and 11.7 assists in a spectacular three-game start to the Thunders post-Durant season. He became the first player since Magic Johnson in 1982 to start a season with triple-doubles in two of the first three gamesWestbrooks numbers were down against the Clippers in a defense-minded game featuring poor shooting by both sides. He had 16 points, four assists and two rebounds in the first half.NEW GUYJerami Grant made his Thunder debut one day after they acquired him from Philadelphia in a trade for Ersan Ilyasova and a protected draft pick. The third-year forward from Syracuse came off the bench in the second quarter and eventually finished with six points in 18 minutes.UP NEXTThunder: At Golden State on Thursday to complete a two-game California road trip.Clippers: A two-game road trip begins in Memphis on Friday night. ' ' '