Cougs Enter Pac-10 Play

Unless you've been under a rock for the past month or so, you've taken notice to the Cougs' 10-2 start to the basketball season.

Led by super sophomore Klay Thompson (third in the country with 25.0 ppg), the Cougs are proving those wrong who picked the young team to finish eighth in the Pac-10.

Who would've thought that Reggie Moore would be as great as he has been so far. Or that DeAngelo Casto would continue to develop his offensive game to match his tenacity on defense.

Now I'd be lying if I told you I had an inkling the Cougs would have the record they have so far heading into conference play, but I'm not lying when I tell you the Cougs actually have a shot to win their first Pac-10 title since the 1940-41 season. At least one guy at ESPN feels the same way.

Some may point to the Pac-10 being weaker than it has been in the past few years, but others will point to how well the Cougs have taken to new coach Ken Bone's up-tempo offense. The Cougs are averaging 80.2 ppg, while only giving up 68.4 ppg. They lead the conference in free throw percentage(73.4), field goal percentage(49.8) and shooting from three point land (42.3).

From the games that I've seen, the biggest bug-a-boo for me was how the Cougs seemed to be a terrible rebounding team. Upon further review it actually hasn't been that bad. Wazzu ranks fifth in the Pac in rebounding margin with a +5.6.

The Cougs showed they could hang with a ranked team (Gonzaga) for 30 plus minutes in a hostile environment. What remains to be seen is how these youngsters respond to having to travel to Hec Ed Pavillion, or face the likes of players like Jerome Randle and Patrick Christopher. The upgrade in competition is another thing to consider. Playing San Diego and Alaska-Anchorage is one thing, but facing Pac-10 favorites Washington and Cal is another.

It's obvious the Pac-10 is down this year, but if Washington State can continue to play at the same level it's played at during its out-of-conference schedule, Coug fans can prepare for the school's third NCAA Tournament appearance in the last four years.

A Look into the Minds of Cougar Football Fans

Intramural Flag Football Begins Playoffs

Undefeated Cougs Head to Spokane

The 6-0 Cougars travel to McCarthey Athletic Center tonight to face a red-hot Gonzaga team.

The Cougs' undefeated record has been belittled by some who claim that Washington State has yet to face a serious opponent. After tonight, the critics will either shut up or say, "I told you so," as the Cougs take on the No. 17 Bulldogs at Gonzaga.

The Zags (5-1) suffered their only loss this season at Michigan State against the then No. 2 Spartans, and that game came down to only 4 points. Although the Zags lost three of their best players last season (Josh Heytvelt, Jeremy Pargo, and Austin Daye), the Bulldogs have proven that they are still a Top 25 team.

The Zags average 77.3 points per game, giving up 66 points. Senior guard Matt Bouldin is leading the team with 16.2 points with six rebounds per game. Steven Gray and Robert Sacre are right behind him with 15.8 and 14.3 points respectively.

The Cougs, on the other hand, are not the "Bennett Ball" team that they were last year. So far this season, the Cougars average 84.7 points per game, giving up only 65 points. Sophomore guard Klay Thompson is leading the nation in scoring with 28.3 points per game. However, true freshman Reggie Moore has certainly been doing his part with 13.5 points, and sophomore forward DeAngelo Casto is as solid as ever with 12.8 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.

After the Cougs ran over San Diego 93-56 to win the Great Alaska Shootout, they received a few votes for a top 25 ranking. A win against Gonzaga would definitely earn them a spot. However, their challenge to stay undefeated will not end in Spokane, as the Cougs' next three opponents hold a combined 15-3 record.

The game tonight starts at 6 p.m. and will be televised on FSN.

Two Cougar Teams Are Quite Thankful

The men's basketball team went 3-0 in Alaska during Thanksgiving Break to win the 2009 Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout. Sophomore Klay Thompson was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player and scored 43 points in the championship game.

The women's volleyball team received an at-large bid to the 2009 NCAA Championship Volleyball Tournament. The Cougs (18-12, 6-12 Pac-10) will face Northern Iowa (30-2) Friday Dec. 4 in Lincoln, Nebraska. This marks the first time the Cougs have competed in the NCAAs since 2002, when they reached the Elite Eight.

Preseason Tournaments Galore

It’s that time of the year again. College basketball teams all around the country are trying to get that postseason feel. From New York to Maui, the Virgin Islands to Alaska, champions are being crowned at preseason tournaments. Washington State tries its hand at the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout starting at 8:30 p.m. (Pacific) Wednesday against host Alaska Anchorage. That game will be available on FSN Northwest and Fox College Sports.

It is the Cougars’ first appearance at the Shootout since 1981. That season the Cougars opened the season with a win at the tournament against Alaska Anchorage, before dropping the next two games. Like this season, that squad’s trip to Alaska was followed by a Dec. 2 game in Spokane against Gonzaga.

Before the much-anticipated matchup, WSU will try its hand at a field of less familiar opponents. The Cougars are 3-0 all-time against Alaska Anchorage, and Friday will be the first meeting between WSU and Nicholls State. That game will tip off at 6 p.m. (Pacific) and will also be featured on FSN Northwest and Fox College Sports.

WSU’s third opponent will be determined based on the outcomes of the first two games. Depending on their place in Pool A, Saturday the Cougars will take on the corresponding finisher in Pool B. WSU is a combined 1-3 against the three teams in Pool B, and has never met pool-favorite No. 17 Oklahoma.

The Cougars’ first games away from Pullman will offer a good way for the team to gauge its early season success. One player head coach Ken Bone is hoping the arctic won’t cool down is sophomore guard Klay Thompson. Fresh off his career-high 37 points in the last outing against IPFW, Thompson earned his first Pac-10 Player of the Week honor. Averaging 27 points a game during the first three games, the Ladera Ranch, Calif. native is fourth in the nation in scoring.

While WSU is getting its preseason tournament underway in the 49th state, Gonzaga is trying to wrap up a tournament title in the 50th. At the EA Sports Maui Invitational, the Bulldogs came from behind Monday to beat Colorado 76-72, then knocked off Wisconsin Tuesday in impressive fashion 74-61. Gonzaga will meet up with Cincinnati at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the championship game. The Bearcats reached the title game after upsetting No. 22 Maryland 69-57 Tuesday in the first semifinal.

Elsewhere in the Pacific-10 Conference, a number of young and inexperienced teams are trying to find their identities at tournaments across the continent. Arizona is also participating in the Maui Invitational. After a gritty loss to Wisconsin Monday, the Wildcats pulled out an overtime win against Colorado Tuesday behind 30 points from Nic Wise. They will try for fifth place at 2 p.m. Wednesday against No. 24 Vanderbilt.

Arizona State travels to the Big Apple for the final four of the NIT Preseason Tip-Off. After winning two home games earlier this month to advance to Madison Square Garden, the Sun Devils earned a date with No. 7 Duke at 6 p.m. Wednesday on ESPN2. LSU and No. 13 Connecticut are in the other semifinal.

Stanford is getting more than just a warm holiday in Cancun, Mexico. Something Cougar fans became all too familiar with during the past three seasons, Landry Fields gave Tony Bennett all he could handle Tuesday as the Cardinal knocked off Virginia 57-52. Fields’ 25-point, 13-rebound performance powered Stanford into the final of the Cancun Challenge against No. 5 Kentucky. Fields and the rest of the Cardinal will try to take down John Wall and Patrick Patterson at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday in a game that can be seen on CBS College Sports.

UCLA gets to play a little closer to home as a strong field convenes on Anaheim, Calif. for the 76 Classic. The Bruins open the tournament at 10:30 p.m. Thursday against Portland. The three-day tournament features four ranked teams (No. 9 West Virginia, No. 10 Butler, No. 18 Minnesota, and No. 24 Clemson).

Oregon is hosting its own local mid-major invitational of sorts, and right now is losing. The Ducks take on Montana State Saturday, after already suffering losses to Portland and Montana.

The next Cougar home game is Dec. 9 against a very formidable Idaho team.

Cougar Basketball Moves to 2-0

Although the Cougs had to work to hold the lead last night against Eastern Washington University, they ended the game with a 67-61 win that advanced them to 2-0 in the regular season.

The 94-66 win against Mississippi Valley State on Friday earned Ken Bone his first regular season victory as head coach of the Cougars, and marked the beginning of a new era with a much different feel than "Bennett Ball."

Sophomore Klay Thompson led the Cougs in scoring in both games with 24 points against the Eagles and 20 against Mississippi Valley State. Thompson struggled early against Eastern Washington, missing his first six shots, but he pulled it together as the game progressed.

Sophomore DeAngelo Casto finished the game with 16 points against the Eagles, just two points shy of his career-high (18 points) that he put up against Mississippi Valley State on Friday. True freshman Reggie Moore ended the game against Eastern Washington with 15 points.

Despite the Cougs' record, there are certainly areas for improvement. The Cougs gave up the ball 19 times against the Delta Devils on Friday, and were 21-for-50 shooting against the Eagles on Monday. Another sour spot was Thompson's free-throw shooting against Eastern Washington. He missed five of his 14 foul shots -- he only missed three total last year.

The Cougs may be 2-0, but with a close call against the Eagles, hopefully the Cougars received a wake-up call and will continue to keep the Bone era undefeated.