BY TODD DYBAS / SEATTLESPORTSONLINE.COM

First half, it was simple.

Pressure defense, 50 percent shooting from the field, 23-0 run in the middle of the half, a 41-21 Huskies halftime lead.

Second half, also simple.

Ten turnovers, shoot 38 percent from the field, "da-da da, da-da da," chiming in their heads, a half that Washington outscored Montana by two points.

Add it up, it ended in a 75-53 trampling of the visiting Grizzlies, but not a win that had coach Lorenzo Romar prepared to dance in the streets.

Romar was succinct postgame, labeling the first half "very good" and the second "not good."

"In the beginning when the score is close, seems like we're focused," Romar said. "When the game gets away a little bit, maybe sometimes subconsciously we get distracted and we try to experiment and try to create some highlights. Can't play that way."

But Sunday they did.

Montana actually led Sunday. It was up four, in fact. Tacoma product Anthony Johnson had hit a jumper with 16:19 left in the half, pushing Montana to a 10-6 lead.

The next Grizzlies basket was a strong twisting layup by Jack McGillis. Problem was, it came 9:36 after Johnson's jumper.

In between, Washington went on a school-record 23-0 run, turning the four-point deficit into a 19-point lead.

"We played rather well in the first half," Matthew Bryan-Amaning said.

Indeed. It was the entrance of Venoy Overton and Bryan-Amaning that changed the game.

Both came off the bench following the first standard media timeout. Overton converted a layup 13 seconds after coming in, Bryan-Amaning scored 40 seconds later to give the Huskies a permanent lead.

Overton had a full night. He cracked double figures in scoring for the first time this season, finishing with 10 points. The guard had two tomahawks dunks, the left-hander swooping in and spiking the ball through with his right both times.

Overton also missed two dunks. Alone on the break, he jumped off two feet and lost the ball on the way up to the rim. Never deterred, Overton wheeled and stole the ball from Montana forward Jordan Hasquet before Hasquet could reach midcourt with the first miss. Overton dribbled back in for redemption, but clanged another dunk.

The guard was then subbed for, shipped to the bench where he tried to explain the circumstances that led to his ignominious acts.

Jon Brockman shook his head on the bench. Other Huskies stifled giggles. Romar bit his lip.

"Coach he wanted to saying something so bad," Overton said. "I could tell."

Eventually both team patriarch Brockman and the coach told Overton he has to score uncontested layups, shunning showtime for guaranteed conversions. Brockman and Romar also talked about what was Overton's best game of the season.

"He had an awesome game," Brockman said. "He was (defending) baseline to baseline the entire night."

As for Brockman, he had another double-double following a holiday scare. Aiding a nephew in toy opening, the senior ended up slicing his left thumb open. Brockman was using a small pocket knife to pry a plastic zip tie loose. He ended up with three stitches for his effort.

Christmas night Brockman was in Monroe getting stitched up, the forward following the advice of a family friend who is a doctor. The next day, his father was on the phone with a surprised, concerned, then relieved Romar.

"After it was done, I kind of shook my head as I hung the phone up," Romar said.

Brockman, who said his injured ankle still is not healed, wasn't too worried about the cut. His left hand was wrapped to keep blood off his jersey, the wound still fresh enough to bleed. He'll play Tuesday when Morgan State (5-7) visits Bank of America Arena, ending the non-conference schedule. Less than a week now before the journey to Pullman to start Pac-10 play.

"You can feel guys getting amped up for league play," Brockman said. "Everything we've been doing all season has been getting ready for that. We've got to go over there knowing they beat us seven straight and I think that stings quite a bit for most of our guys."

Todd Dybas is the editor of Seattlesportsonline.com. He can be reached via e-mail at tdybas@seattlesportsonline.com