Washington
State Opens 2020 with a Road Trip to No. 4-5 Stanford
From
WSU Sports Info 1/1/2020
STANFORD,
Calif. – The Washington State University women's basketball team opens 2020
this Friday, Jan. 3, seeking its first Pac-12 Conference win of the season with
a trip to No. 4/5 Stanford. Tip-off from Maples Pavilion is set for 7 p.m. PT
on the Pac-12 Network Bay Area.
WASHINGTON
STATE women basketball
(7-6, 0-1)
at
No. 4/5 Stanford (11-1, 0-0) | Friday, Jan. 3 | 7 p.m. | Maples Pavilion
Live Stats | WSUCougars.com
Watch | Pac-12 Network Bay Area
Listen | WSU IMG Radio Network (Steve Grubbs)
Game Notes | WSUCougars.com (PDF)
THE
STARTING FIVE
->
Friday's matchup at Stanford kicks off a three-game road trip for Washington
State. After the game against the Cardinal, WSU heads to Berkley, California
for a matchup against the Golden Bears on Jan. 5, then ends the trip with a
Jan. 11 meeting against Washington in Seattle.
->
The Cougars enter Friday's matchup not only looking for their first Pac-12 win
of the season, but also their first-ever victory against Stanford. Washington
State is 0-65 all-time against the Cardinal, in a series that dates back to
1983.
->
Washington State has been hitting shots with high efficiency in 2019-20. The
Cougs rank 58th in NCAA Division I in field goal percentage (44.1%), 64th in
3-point percentage (34.3%) and 74th in free throw percentage (72.8%).
->
Redshirt senior Borislava Hristova enters Friday's contest against the Cardinal
needing just 29 points to break Jeanne Eggart's (1977-82) program record of
1,967 points. The forward is averaging 18.5 points per game this season. Her
season high on the year came in a 27-point performance against Arkansas-Pine
Bluff on Dec. 4.
->
Friday's game will mark the first contest for the Cougs in a new decade.
Washington State closed out 2010-2019 with a 125-194 overall record and made
three WNIT postseason tournaments. WSU made the Final Four of the 2017 WNIT,
where they picked up three road wins before falling at Georgia Tech in the semifinals.
LAST
TIME OUT
The
Cougars dropped a 65-56 decision against rival Washington last Sunday, Dec. 29,
to open Pac-12 Conference play. Washington State was outscored 14-2 at the free
throw line, as the Cougs only maded six attempts from the charity stripe.
Senior
Chanelle Molina led the way for Washington State with 15 points, while redshirt
junior Jovana Subasic contributed 12 points off the bench. Sophomore Ula Motuga
(11 points) and redshirt senior Borislava Hristova (10 points) rounded out a
quartet of double-digit scorers for the Cougs.
#BOBIBUCKETS
LEADING THE WAY
Redshirt
senior Borislava Hristova is putting on a cap to a remarkable career as a
Cougar this season. The forward currently ranks first in the Pac-12 in total
points (240), field goals made (100) and field goals attempted (219). She ranks
inside the top-10 nationally in field goals made (4th) and field goals
attempted (6th).
#BobiBuckets
is currently riding a seven-game double-digit scoring streaks, which has helped
her to an 18.5 points per game average this season. Her scoring average is the
third-highest in the Pac-12, and puts her at 38th nationally.
TAKING
ON THE BEST
Friday's
contest against No. 4/5 Stanford will mark the fifth time this season the
Cougars will face a top-25 opponent. Washington State is currently 0-4 against
teams in the top 25, which includes losses to No. 2 Baylor (89-66), No. 5 South
Carolina (68-53), No. 17/22 Indiana (78-44) and No. 17/18 Gonzaga (76-53).
WSU
still has games against No. 2 Oregon (March 1), No. 3 Oregon State (Feb. 28),
No. 10 UCLA (Jan. 26 & Feb. 21) and No. 18 Arizona (Jan. 17 & Feb. 16)
this season.
HIGH
MILEAGE PERFORMANCES
Seniors
Chanelle Molina and Borislava Hristova rank first and second in the Pac-12 in
minutes played this season. Molina leads the conference with 453:27 minutes
played, while Hristova's 443:12 is second-highest. Molina's 34.9 minutes played
per game is also the high-mark in the Pac-12 this season, while Hristova's 34.1
minutes played per game ranks right behind her teammate.
FINDING
HER STROKE
Sophomore
Ula Motuga has improved her offensive game of late, as the Logan, Australia
native has averaged 8.0 points per game over her last four contests. Motuga is
coming off back-to-back season-high 11-point performances against Miami and
Washington.
FIRE
POWER OFF THE BENCH
Redshirt
junior Jovana Subasic has got her 2019-20 season started with an offensive
tear, as the Sabac, Serbia native is averaging a team-best 10.1 points per game
off the bench. The forward comes into Friday's game on a six-game double-digit
scoring streak, which includes a career-high 19-point performance against UC
Irvine on Dec. 15.
CLOSING
IN ON 100 WINS FOR COACH E
Head
coach Kamie Ethridge needs just one win to collect her 100th career victory as
an NCAA Division I head coach.
SCOUTING
THE CARDINAL
Stanford
opens up Pac-12 play against the Cougars this Friday. The Cardinal enter play
at 11-1 overall and are ranked No. 4 in the USA Today WBCA Coaches Poll, while
they check-in at No. 5 in the Associated Press Poll. Stanford was recently the
No. 1-ranked team in NCAA Division I, before they suffered a 69-65 defeat at
Texas on Dec. 22.
The
Cardinal feature a high-octane offense that averages 79.2 points per game,
while shooting 46% from the field. Lexie Hull paces a trio of double-digit
scorers at 14.4 points per game. The Spokane, Washington native also leads
Stanford on the glass with a 6.0 rebounds per game clip.
Defensively,
Stanford has limited teams to 58.2 points per game, as opponents are shooting
just 32.1% from the field against them. The Cardinals are forcing 14.1 points
per game and 8.2 steals per contest.
FOLLOW
THE COUGS
Get
all the info, photos, and videos a true Coug Fan could want by following the
team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
::::
WSU
MEN BASKETBALL … Begins Pac-12 Play Thursday
From
WSU Sports Info
WASHINGTON
STATE (9-4, 0-0)
vs
USC (11-2, 0-0) | Thr., Jan. 2 | 7:30 p.m.
Live Stats | Statbroadcast.com
Watch | Pac-12 Network (Greg Heister &
Eldridge Recasner)
Listen | WSU IMG Radio Network (Matt Chazanow
& Craig Ehlo)
OPENING
FIVE
>
The Cougs have won six-straight tying the longest winning streak since a 14-0
start to the 2007-08 season. WSU finished December a perfect 6-0 and
non-conference play 9-4.
>
WSU closes out a 7-game homestand with two against the LA schools as Pac-12
play begins. First up is 11-2 USC Thursday night. The Trojans have won
6-straight in the series.
>
CJ Elleby, named to the Julius Erving and Wooden Award watch lists, ranks 3rd
in the Pac-12 in scoring at 20.1 ppg and has scored in double-figures in all 13
games on the year including 9 20+ pt games.
>
Jeff Pollard is in the midst of a career year scoring 10.2 ppg. He has gone for
double-figures in eight games including four-straight. Isaac Bonton is scoring
at a 13.0 ppg clip and has back-to-back double-digit games.
>
Noah Williams has come on in the Cougs winning-streak with an impressive +61
showing. The freshman went for 8 pts, 3 rbds, 2 blks, 2 stls to lead WSU past
UAPB last week.
GAME
INFORMATION - VS USC
With
non-conference play behind them the Cougs head into the fray of the Pac-12
Conference as the push for the conference title begins. First up for WSU are
the LA Schools with USC and UCLA coming to town to finish off the Cougs
five-game true home stand. The Trojans and three-time player of the week, Onyeka
Okongwu, kick things off Thursday at Beasley. USC is 11-2 on the year led by
the freshman big mans 17.7 ppg and 9.0 rpg. Last season the Trojans took the
lone matchup in Pullman 93-84 and have won the last six contest in a series
they control 75-48.
LAST
TIME OUT
Washington
State 65 - Ark.-Pine Bluff 50 | Dec. 29, 2019 | Pullman, WA
Noah
Williams' defensive performance in the second half helped lead Washington State
on a 17-5 run and to a 65-60 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Sunday night.
The freshman had eight points, one of his two blocks and two steals after
halftime. CJ Elleby had 22 points, his ninth game this season scoring at least
20, and also had seven rebounds and two assists. Isaac Bonton chipped in 16
points, five rebounds and three assists and Jeff Pollard added 11 points.
A
PERFECT DECEMBER
The
Cougs finished December a perfect 6-0 to close out non-conference play 9-4. The
perfect month was the first since starting 2017-18 with a 6-0 record in
November. The last time WSU was perfect in December was in 2007-08 with a 5-0
mark as part of a perfect 14-0 start.
The
last time WSU won 7-straight was the start of the 2007-08 season. The
6-straight wins marks the 4th time since the 2007-08 season the Cougs have won
6-in-a-row.
::::
USC
looks to extend winning streak vs Washington State in Pac-12 opener
Wed.,
Jan. 1, 2020 Associated Press
Beer,
wine service begins at Beasley
WSU
basketball fans attending Thursday’s Pac-12 men’s opener against USC will have
more food and beverage options with the addition of the Cougar Den at Beasley
Coliseum.
Located
on the Beasley Coliseum concourse behind sections 18-20, the Cougar Den will
sell beer and wine, along with premium concession items. All fans wishing to
enter the Cougar Den must be 21 years of age or older and present a valid ID.
The
Cougar Den will open 1 hour prior to tip and close 10 minutes into the second
half for men’s games and at the end of the third quarter for women’s games.
USC
(11-2, 0-0 Pac-12) at Washington State (9-4, 0-0)
Beasley
Coliseum, Pullman; Thursday, 7:30 p.m., (Pac-12 Networks, 920-AM).
Bottom
line: Southern California looks for its seventh straight win in the
head-to-head series over Washington State. USC has won by an average of 14
points in its last six wins over the Cougars. WSU’s last win in the series (70-66)
came on Feb. 25, 2015.
Plenty
of experience: Sophomore CJ Elleby, and seniors Jeff Pollard and Jervae
Robinson have collectively scored 48% of WSU’s points this season. For USC, the
quartet of Onyeka Okongwu, Nick Rakocevic, Jonah Mathews and Isaiah Mobley has
combined to account for 66% of all the Trojans’ scoring.
Effective
Elleby: Elleby has connected on 29.3% of the 82 3-pointers he’s attempted and
has gone 7 for 22 over his last five games. He’s also converted 80.9% of his
foul shots this season.
Unbeaten
when: The Cougars are 9-0 when holding opponents to 46.7% or worse from the
field, and 0-4 when opponents shoot better than that. The Trojans are 9-0 when
recording at least 10 offensive rebounds and 2-2 when they fall short of that
total.
Long-range
threat: USC’s Mathews has attempted 81 3-pointers and connected on 37%, and is
9 for 23 over the past three games.
Did
you know?: WSU has turned the ball over on 15.5% of its possessions this
season, the eighth-best rate among all Division I teams. The Cougars have
turned the ball over only 11 times per game.
::::
COUGAR
FOOTBALL
"Will
Heckman, a quarterback transfer, is headed to WSU. Seattle native and Roosevelt
High grad has spent time at Indiana State, New Mexico & most recently Santa
Rosa JC. Per JC stats, completed 31-of-92 passes for 554 yds, 4 TD, 5
int. Rushed for 444 yds, 7 TD." (Don’t know source of this info, sorry)
COUG
FOOTBALL
The Monday After: On brand until the very end
The
2019 Cougars were remarkable in their commitment to being consistently
inconsistent.
By
Jeff Nusser Coug Center Dec 31, 2019,
3:19pm PST
I’m
not sure if I expected the Washington State Cougars to do something different
in the Cheez-It Bowl than they’ve done all year, or be something different than
what they’ve been all year, but I can’t help but be impressed by their
commitment to their particular identity, even in the postseason.
this for the 2019 Cougs: For better or worse,
they were on brand all the way until the bitter end.
Friday
night had it all. There were flashes of brilliance. There were moments of
ineptitude. And, of course, there also was breathtakingly ineffective defense.
And, like so many of their losses this season, the Cougars were really close to
winning the game.
As
usual, the offense was actually very good — WSU rolled up 366 yards on just 50
plays spanning eight drives; the 7.3 yards per play put it in the top half of
games this season. It’s easy to look at just 21 points and conclude the offense
was below its usual standards, but eight drives is at least three or four fewer
opportunities to score than the Cougs usually get. They moved into the red zone
on five of those eight drives. Anthony Gordon threw TD passes on three of those
opportunities; a 60% conversion rate isn’t good, but it’s actually pretty
average.
But,
as was often the case, they either sabotaged themselves with errors or just
couldn’t make the big play in a critical moment.
If
Max Borghi* scores on a pair of 4th down runs inside the Air Force Falcons’
5-yard line instead of getting stuffed, the Cougs probably win the game,
despite the defense’s impotence. Heck, if the team doesn’t blow a blocking
assignment that leads to a Gordon fumble — the only drive in the first half
that didn’t cover 70 or more yards — there’s a decent chance they put up TDs on
all three of their final first half drives and take a lead into the locker
room. Who knows what happens from there?
*Interesting
note: Borghi actually touched the ball inside the 10 five different times. One
of those was a catch in the back of the end zone; the other four times — one
swing pass, three rushes — he didn’t get across the goal line.
And
for as poorly as the defense played overall ... they were in position to get
the ball back to the offense with four minutes to tie or win the game. All they
needed was a 4th down stop from the 3-yard line. And, for once, they even
played the triple option perfectly! They completely mucked up the middle,
causing the QB to pull the dive. Jahad Woods has the QB, George Hicks III has
the pitch man, and as you’ll see in a second, Tyrese Ross does a masterful job
shedding the block. Now it’s just a matter of making a tackle:
But
then Hicks hesitates ever so slightly on his assignment and takes an angle
that’s just a smidge too aggressive. And Ross is just a 10th of a second late
in the race to the pylon. And — somehow — a service academy running back is
able to turn this into a TD:
Alas,
all of those critical failures did happen. And they did lose, again, just as
they had six other times this season.
The
game was an amazingly perfect microcosm of how you have a team that’s ranked
25th by SP+, 30th by ESPN’s FPI and 38th by FEI while finishing with a losing
record. Each of those systems look at the underlying performances to try and
judge the true strength of a team; they pay no mind to the sequencing of
ill-timed turnovers or penalties. As the 30ish best team, you’d probably expect
at least a couple of more wins, maybe even a few — most everyone around them in
these rankings finished the regular season with a winning record.
But
these guys had an incredible knack for killing their chances to win. Maybe it
was just the randomness of luck; that’s certainly what the objective ranking
systems would say. Maybe they just lacked a little something psychologically
that you can’t measure, but is actually there.
Whatever
it was, it shouldn’t have been any kind of surprise that the Cheez-It Bowl
played out as it did. Which is why I finished the game torn on just how bummed out
to be by the loss. On the one hand, losing sucks, especially for the players.
That wasn’t a team that was sleepwalking, or approaching the game with the
arrogance that sometimes dooms Power 5 teams against the G5 opponents. As in
2013, it stinks that there’s going to be a losing record here every time I
navigate to the page.
On
the other hand ... bowl game. I get as worked up as anyone while it’s going on,
but in the end, the result is meaningless. It’s a weird one-off exhibition in
which nothing is normal. There’s no such thing as bowl momentum, no predictive
power in a bowl loss going forward, so there’s no point at all in dwelling on
large-scale implications.
Still,
it’s worth peeking ahead to 2020.
I’m
legitimately concerned that next season is when the bowl streak finally ends.
The offense is likely to be breaking in an inexperienced quarterback in one way
or another (either Cammon Cooper or Gunner Cruz or a grad transfer with no Air
Raid experience) while trying to replace a pair of linemen (Robert Valencia and
stalwart center Fred Mauigoa) and three receivers, including the team’s two
best (Brandon Arconado and Easop Winston Jr.).
On
the whole, the offense probably will be fine, because it always is under Mike
Leach. But it’s also entirely reasonable to expect at least a modest step back.
And a modest step back there will likely need to be combined with a modest step
forward by the defense if we’re going to reach six wins again — something I
figure will be a harder task next season than it was this one.
WSU
isn’t getting three freebies in the non-conference next fall: Traveling to Utah
State to open the season is no gimme, particularly with an inexperienced QB,
and the Houston team that comes to Pullman is going to be improved after Dana
Holgorsen adds reinforcements to redshirting seniors such as D’Eriq King. Maybe
we get some help in conference games — perhaps the Pac-12 isn’t any better on
the whole than it was this season, and maybe the sequencing of games will be
less brutal; at the very least, we know the Cougs will get five conference home
games. But even so, any slip up in the non-conference will mean needing to go
4-5 in the league to qualify for the postseason again.
Can
the defense step up? I suppose it depends on the new defensive coordinator, but
seeing “Power 5” defenders get beaten to the corner and also trucked and
dragged on dives by service academy running backs didn’t exactly inspire a ton
of confidence that the young players simply need a little more seasoning and
better game plans. And I don’t hold out hope for immediate contributions from a
meaningful infusion of talent with the handful of scholarships that remain in
the 2020 class — that’s not the kind of recruit WSU can typically attract,
especially this late in the game.
Hopefully
the new defensive coordinator is able to exceed my expectations and somehow
achieve marginal improvement. The 2020 postseason probably rides on it.
What
We Liked: One last ride with Gordo and Arco
I’m
well aware that the offense only scored 21 points, and that we never really got
the fireworks we were promised. But that was largely a function of a defense
that gave up an astounding 43 minutes of possession to the Falcons, limiting
the offense to just eight drives.
I
also know there are some fans who always will expect more from the quarterback,
but Gordon did just about everything he could on those eight drives: 351 yards
on just 42 attempts for 8.4 yards per pass (above his season average) with three
touchdowns (all in the red zone, I might add) and zero interceptions. Fumble
notwithstanding, his performance was everything I’ve come to love about him,
and I’m glad I got to see him sling it around one more time, because he was so
special this year.
It
also was awesome to see Arconado finish like that. Outside of Gordon, there was
nobody more important to this offense than him, and it’s an absolute joke that
he didn’t even make all-Pac-12 honorable mention. He was WSU’s best receiver,
full stop, and him going off for 167 yards on 11 catches was exactly what he
deserved.
Much
like Gordon will probably never get the respect he deserves for this season, I
feel like Arconado’s year will suffer the same fate. He finished the year with
1,109 yards — 8th all time in a single season at WSU. And it wasn’t just a
function of volume: He didn’t lead the team in catches (that was Winston) and
he had the highest per-catch average of anyone on the team — from the inside
receiver position. AND HE MISSED TWO FULL GAMES AND MOST OF ANOTHER ONE.
The
only Air Raid receivers at WSU to put up more yards in a single season were
Vince Mayle and Gabe Marks — both outside receivers. River Cracraft, the gold
standard for the Y position, never had more than 771 yards.
Maybe
with time, people will properly appreciate how awesome this duo was.
Who
Impressed: Lamonte McDougle
I
just got done saying there’s little predictive value in a bowl game, so let me
go right ahead and contradict myself immediately by getting excited about
Lamonte McDougle’s junior season after watching him wreck Air Force.
We’ve
been waiting for this kind of performance out of McDougle all season, and for
whatever reason, it didn’t show up until the final game. I don’t know why that
is. Perhaps it was a function of opportunity (he played more snaps in this game
than any other); perhaps it was a function of assignment (maybe for this game
against this offense they just wanted him to be as disruptive as possible);
perhaps it was a function of competition (he was definitely the biggest dude on
the field against AFA’s diminutive line).
Whatever
it was, it sure was encouraging to see, particularly in a game where there
wasn’t a lot to be encouraged by on that side of the ball. Here’s to hoping the
next defensive coordinator figures out how to use him effectively, because the
talent is undeniable.
What
Needs Work: Defensive game planning
When
it comes to football analysis, I make no secret of the fact that Xs and Os are
not my strength. I’ve learned a few things over the years from Jesse Cassino
and Brian Anderson, but it’ll never be my strength — particularly in real time
as a game is unfolding. So it was that, as I was lamenting the seeming physical
deficiencies of the defense in the Cheez-It Bowl, this was happening:
As
Brian Floyd said, if you want to know how to defend an option attack, talk to
high school coaches. They were clearly unimpressed with Roc Bellantoni’s game
plan for this one for actual reasons that went beyond my analysis of “man we
can’t stop them at all.”
Which
seems like as good a reason as any to say that while I appreciate Bellantoni’s
contribution this season after Claeys quit on the program, under no
circumstances should he be a candidate for the permanent gig. In fact, I’d go
so far as to say the season was such a mess, the new defensive coordinator
should be given the autonomy to turn over as much of the defensive staff as he
wants. Really, the only person who sticks out to me as an exceptionally strong
candidate for holdover is Darcel McBath; outside of that, I think a fresh start
with fresh voices is absolutely warranted.
