For some Cougar fans, basking in the afterglow of a terrific season of basketball may not have lasted very long. It’s lasted about as long as it takes to flame the fires of blogger’s keyboards. That doesn’t take long…unless the blogger is waiting for his pc to boot up Vista!

So what’s the concern? What’s the problem? Why the long face?

Here’s the dealio…

The rumor mills are ripe with stories about Coach Tony Bennett heading off to take over the University of Indiana basketball program. Jeff Goodman of Fox Sports cites the administration at Indiana having made the offer to Coach Bennett just one day after the Cougs were defeated by UNC in the Sweet 16. Oh my!

Andy Katz of ESPN is reporting just the opposite. His source is named to support a contrary position. The source? Ah… Coach Bennett was contacted by ESPN.com and specifically stated that he has NOT been offered the job at Indiana.

Who’s right here?

Well, Coach Bennett fueled the rumor mills by dodging the question about whether he was considering the Indiana job. This was during the press conference following the Cougs final game of the season.

But wait. There’s more…

With Cal looking for a new head man to fill their opening, Coach Bennett’s name has been mentioned as a candidate. Cal showed their 12 year head Coach Ben Braun very little respect by firing him almost as soon as the team’s jet landed back home following the Bears final loss of the season in the NIT. Since that time, speculation is running wild as to who will take over for Cal. However, there was some hint given to the search priorities by the school athletic director, Sandy Barbour. Specifically, she is looking for a coach with “a proven track record”.

Digging a little deeper into this story, it appears that one of the prime candidates for the Cal job is Coach Bennett. There’s a twist though. Barbour and the Cal search team is supposedly taking a look at Coach Randy Bennett of St. Mary’s of the West Coast Conference. Another WCC head man, Coach Mark Few is on the rumored list.

For the sake of Cougar Nation, let’s hope the Cal job search doesn’t include our Coach Bennett.

In the meantime, let’s return to the enjoyment provided by our Cougs this past season. Rather than repeat what others have waxed on about, let me put it very simply.

“It’s great to be a Coug these days!”

GO COUGS!!!

Coach Tony Bennett and his Washington State Cougar team ran into the unexpected against No. 1 North Carolina in Charlotte. The Tar Heels completely shut down the Cougar offense in route to winning the Sweet 16 matchup. Final score: NC 68 - WSU 47

WSU succeeded on defense, holding the high flying Heels to well under their season average. That was expected.  That wasn’t enough.  Not even close.

Going into this game, the Tar Heels won 34 games by running their opponents off the court. That never came close to happening in their 35th win. But the dominance by a tremendously athletic team brought about yet another lopsided win for Coach Roy Williams.

Time and time again in the first half, WSU had chances to take control of the game after stopping the Heels offense. But Carolina would have none of it. By the end of the game, the Cougar offensive stats were a sad sight. Taylor Rochestie never found a rhythm, going 1-8 from the field. Kyle Weaver tried just about every trick in his bag, but never pulled a rabbit out of the hat. He went 3-13 after watching shot after shot doink off the rim. With those two struggling to get a hoop, Robbie Cowgill wasn’t much of an option either. Though he had plenty of open looks, it didn’t matter. Derrick Low never managed to put together a couple of makes.

When you’re playing a team as physically talented as North Carolina, you have to score more than 47 points.

Credit is due the Tar Heel squad. The executed a game plan by Coach Williams to perfection. It’s hard to believe they can play much better than the 40 minutes in this game. On offense, they took the crumbs WSU left on the table at that end of the court. When it came to defense, they completely stifled the Cougs. Stuffed might be a better term to apply to the Heel effort on D.

This game was another step forward for Washington State basketball. Coach Bennett clearly has changed the attitude about Cougar hoops. Players know they can win…and expect to. Fans have circled around this new phenomenon. There is still work to be done, but Bennett Ball has become something very special.

Washington State made a nice run in the tournament and returns home from North Carolina with an experience that should help continue the building process.

For all Cougar fans, I pump my arm and enthusiastically shout…

GO COUGS!!!

Coach Tony Bennett offers a great take on the upcoming Sweet 16 contest between No. 1 North Carolina Tarheels and No. 4 Washington State Cougars. “It’s going to be a collision.”

That’s bound to be the case when the second best scoring offense in college basketball this season matches up against the second best scoring defense. Move over Avis, these two teams are working very hard to become No. 1 in the nation. Being crowned national champion is what North Carolina and WSU are focused on.

Classic. How’s that for a overused adjective that might be applied to this game.

David vs. Goliath. How can the lowly Cougars actually think they deserve to be playing in the Sweet 16 against the perennial powerhouse Tarheels led by the dapper, classy and Hall of Fame Coach Roy Williams? After all, the Cougs are from a small, small town in the middle of Eastern Washington wheat fields.

Enough with the standard blah, blah, blah…

Coach Bennett and the Cougars are always ready to play any team, anywhere, anytime. Period. And they will give any team everything they might be able to handle. Though WSU hasn’t won them all this season, they’ve been in them all.

When there is a matchup between athletic teams that love to run their opponents off the court, conventional wisdom sides with such strengths. Case in point, last weekend WSU was given little chance by experts to stop the 80+PPG juggernaut Notre Dame. The Irish were too big up front, too talented from the outside and too fast for the boys from WSU. All of that made sense before tipoff. The final buzzer ended the suffocation of Notre Dames’ vaunted scoring machine. The Lucky Irish put up an astounding 41 points on poor ol’ WSU. Yikes!

Washington State looks to be peaking at just the right time. They have played excellent ball in the NCAA Tournament. Granted, they haven’t played North Carolina, but that’s simply a matter of scheduling.

Kyle Weaver, Derrick Low, Taylor Rochestie, Aron Baynes and Robbie Cowgill are anxious to play the Tarheels.

What?

No way.

Way.

These young men love to play basketball. Specifically, the love playing Bennett Ball. Team play is what these guys are all about. They know how to win as a team and don’t have to run up scores on opponents to prove a darn thing. None of these players are concerned about making ESPN Top Ten Plays. No, this group is all about competition. They are passionate about winning and will leave everything they’ve got on the court to earn a victory.

WSU is one of the best road teams this season. Sadly, they play better on the road than at home. That might reveal something about the level of their focus. On the road, they are all about executing Coach Bennett’s game plan and taking advantage of what host teams offer. That may be a bit easier to do without any distractions from friends and family.

Home game? Yes, this game will be a virtual home game for Coach Williams and the Tarheels. North Carolina has one of the best and most loyal fan bases in college basketball. They will be making the two hour drive to Charlotte in full force, ready to cheer their team on.

It’s hard to believe that a team that didn’t really respect their last opponent, running up the score for absolutely no reason other than personal gratification, will truly consider the Cougs to be a serious competitor. And once WSU gets a team off balance, they keep pushing them away from their foundation.

When the final buzzer sounds Thursday evening in Charlotte, the Tarheels will be left shaking their heads and wondering, “Who were those guys?”

Here’s the answer. Those guys are a team that has played in plenty of big games in the Pac-10, on the road, at home…anywhere.

They are the Cougars of Washington State, a team destined to join the Elite 8 this season.

The second round NCAA Tournament game for Washington State was quintessential Cougar basketball.

Result?

Try this. No. 4 WSU 61 - No. 5 Notre Dame 41 Holy crap!

Experts everywhere were confident in offering modest praise for the Pac-10 third place team. Just enough kind words here and there before jumping on the Irish bandwagon and heaping high praise on the boys from South Bend. The talk was about how Notre Dame was going to run up and down the court and outscore the Cougs.  OK.

Just before the opening tipoff, the trio of talking heads doing the pre-game for CBS (who shall remain nameless to protect their credibility) crowned the Irish a winner. They had too much offense for the Cougs and are a “really solid club on defense.”

What?

Sorry, but one should question the credibility (even nameless sportscasters) of anyone claiming that a team is a really solid club on defense when the give up an average of 75 points a game. OK, that’s off my chest.

How did the Cougs get the job done? You guessed it. Really solid defense.

Washington State played nearly flawless ball for 40 minutes. They gave up on modest run by the Irish in the second half, but followed up with a nice run of their own.

Kyle Weaver. Let me repeat, Kyle Weaver. The awesome play of the Cougs was highlighted by the talented Weaver. The young man was everywhere. Even the ND leprechaun will have Weaver in his nightmares. Try this set of stats for the game: 15 points; 9 rebounds; 3 assists; 3 steals and a blocked shot. Wow! That is the level of play hoped for from a senior, but certainly beyond reasonable expectations.

For the second consecutive game, Coach Tony Bennett has come up with a game plan to stifle and shut down the opponent’s offense. The Cougs gave up a lowly 40 points to Winthrop and have now followed that performance to hold Notre Dame to 41 points, roughly half their season average. That’s Bennett ball at it’s finest against the best in the nation and with the spotlight beaming down on his no-name players.

Aron Baynes was up to the task of making life miserable for media darling Luke Harangody. Don’t get me wrong, Luke is a very good player, just a little over-hyped. Go figure the odds on that, will you? A Notre Dame player being placed on a pedestal by the media. The color man for CBS (who shall remain nameless) was quite surprised to see that there was virtually no physical difference between the two opposing big men.

In a battle of monsters, both were awful from the field. Harangody was 3-17 and Baynes was 2-7 with a total of 6 points. That’s just a shade under Aron’s season average, slack that is easy enough for the rest of the WSU squad to pick up. On the other hand, Harangody only scoring 10 points put too much pressure on the rest of his teammates. ND is used to their big guy having his way near the basket, setting up open outside jumpers for Irish guards.

Derrick Low. Yes, it’s a name that bears repeating. Derrick Low. The unflappable Hawaiian was brilliant. Low had a game high 18 points, 3 assists and 3 steals. Comparisons by the television announcers to Steve Nash of the NBA Phoenix Suns were just a bit silly. Low is good, but even he would concede he’s not that good! What Low continues to bring to this team as they make their tournament run into the Sweet 16 is the heart of a warrior. He plays full speed ahead the minute the whistle blows to begin play, stopping only for timeouts, halftime and the final buzzer.  There’s really no need to force comparisons with other great players.  Low is his own man.  Period.

The rest of the Cougars played very, very well. They appear to be focused on playing their game at their pace.

And the pace of Washington State basketball is very, very sweet!

GO COUGS!!!

Washington State began their NCAA Tournament play in Denver with a predatory second half attack that sent Winthrop back to South Carolina. Yes, the Cougs played like a No. 4 seed, winning 71-40.

Looking at a 31 point margin for Coach Tony Bennett and the Cougars, you’d think the game was a blowout from beginning to end. Not the case my friends.

The first half was solid for both teams, ending in a 29-29 tie. For twenty minutes, this game was intense. The biggest lead for either team was four points by WSU at 6-2. There were eight ties as the scoring went back and forth.

Kyle Weaver and Aron Baynes were awesome in the opening half. They were on their game. Baynes was scoring and hauling in rebounds with ease. Weaver was calmly going about showing his offensive skills. Derrick Low was content with taking on double teams, then dishing off to teammates for easy shots. Speaking of dishing off, Taylor Rochestie passed out 10 assists in the game. Nice. Very nice.

Give credit to Winthop. The Eagles matched WSU in every phase of the game in the first half. To do that, they had to put out a Herculean effort. WSU was bigger and very comfortable playing physical. Translation. The Cougs banged hard in the paint and chased the Eagles on the perimeter.

Second half.

All Washington State.

The Eagles didn’t score their first bucket until the 13:18 mark. Frustrated with the way their shots were either being blocked or seeing them doink off the rim, Taj McCullough got loose underneath the basket for a slam dunk.

After a smooth jumper off a pick by Low, Winthrop scored on their next possession as Michael Jenkins knocked down a nice mid-range jumper. That was it. The Eagles wouldn’t score again for almost six minutes.

This was a great start for WSU. They played up to their potential, yet really didn’t look much different than they ever do. Coach Bennett keeps everything in perspective for his players, reminding player to focus on both the opponent and the game plan.

Next up for the Cougs are the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. The Irish dispatched George Mason in the game following the Winthrop-WSU opener. Final in that one was 68-50.

Notre Dame is going to be a very tough matchup for Washington State. They are a very physical team that comes out of the highly touted Big East Conference. The Irish came into the tournament with a nice record of 23-7, adding a notch to their record with an opening round victory.

The question Coach Bennett will have to answer is “How will you slow down the Irish offense?” ND averages over 80 points a game. No team in the Pac-10 puts up numbers like that. However, the Irish give up nearly 76 points a game. Again, no team in the Pac-10 gives up numbers like that. No, not even the lowly Beavers of Oregon State.

Look for the Cougs to give up a few offensive rebounds so they can get back on defense after any shot. They will work to keep the game a half court contest. Should the Cougs control the pace of the game, there will be more celebration in the locker room before moving on to the next round.

Make no mistake, the Irish are primed to run WSU off the court. That hasn’t happened to the Cougs very often this season.

The Irish are about to run out of luck.

GO COUGS!!!

Washington State University will begin their NCAA Tournament run in Denver, CO this coming Thursday against Winthrop University of Rock Hill, SC. The Cougars are the No. 4 seed, while the Eagles visit to the Big Dance this time around as a No. 13 seed.

Both teams have experience playing in the tournament. Winthrop knocked off Notre Dame last year in the first round. That’s some experience! The Cougs didn’t equal the Eagles, losing to Vanderbilt in a very close, hard fought game.

This game might be one that only ardent fans of either school will relish.

What?

We’re talking about two of the best defensive clubs in the country. Great defenses make for a low scoring and methodical paced contest. Translation. A game devoid of ESPN Top Ten Plays. Heck, fans will probably need to be jacked up on Mountain Dew or Red Bull to stay awake.

Here’s a trite generalization to throw at you.

Defense wins.

OK.

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A glance at Winthrop by WSU Coach Tony Bennett is like looking in the mirror. Almost. The Eagles only have two players scoring in double figures, senior guard Michael Jenkins who pours in a little over 14 points a game and senior Taj McCullough who adds another 12 points per game.

The Eagles bring plenty of experience to any game this season. Four of their five starters are seniors. That even tops the Cougs who start three seniors. Yes, these clubs are loaded with experience.

Reviewing team stats for either the Eagles or the Cougs reveals that these are two very well coached teams. They don’t beat themselves. Each will try to control the pace of the game.

Wait.

They each like to play deliberate basketball so it won’t take much to control the pace when both want the same thing. Here’s a thought. Might one team try to push the ball rather than take their time and set up half court offense? Right. That’ll happen.

Winthrop Coach Randy Peele will have the Eagles prepared to make an even deeper run into the tournament this time around. His players experienced success last season and will be intent on doing even better this time around.

Washington State is in great shape physically. Daven Harmeling was the lone question mark and he looked very good in the Pac-10 Tournament. WSU seniors Derrick Low, Robbie Cowgill and Kyle Weaver aren’t ready to hang up their jerseys just yet. This group wants to do something no other WSU team has done. They want to make a serious run at the Final Four.

This time of year, everyone who’s still playing is either good or great. You’re good to get in. Making at least the Elite Eight qualifies as great.

The Cougars are on their way to greatness.

GO COUGS!!!

The Pac-10 semi-final game pitting No. 3 seeded Washington State against No. 2 seeded Stanford played out according to form. Number two defeated number three. Final score: Sanford 75 - WSU 68

Washington State knew what everyone else in the Pac-10 understood about this Stanford Cardinal team. To win, you must contain the Lopez twins. In particular, it’s imperative that Brook Lopez is frustrated and forced away from the paint. Knowledge can be empowering, but only if you can act appropriately.

For much of the game, WSU Coach Tony Bennett saw his front line players do a fair job of keeping Brook Lopez out of the paint. That didn’t seem to matter. Brook had his soft hook shot working to perfection. When his deft shot attempts didn’t fall, the shooters touch bounce was easily converted for a tip in.

The Cougs defense was tenacious from beginning to end. They held the Cardinal to 44% shooting from the floor. What did Coach Trent Johnson have to counter WSU pressure? Simple. Stanford crashed the offensive boards big time. They collected a massive 14 offensive rebounds. That was the difference in the game.

A career night for Kyle Weaver wasn’t enough. Weaver was amazing. He scored 25 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, dished out 4 assists and stole the ball away from Stanford 3 times. Holy crap! Weaver was everywhere except at center court following the final buzzer celebrating a win. His effort wasn’t enough to offset the brilliant 30 point night by Brook Lopez.

Riding on the backs of the Lopez twins, this game would have been a blow out for the Cardinal were it not for the incredible three-point accuracy of Washington State. As a team, they were 12-20 from long distance. Daven Harmeling led the way with a perfect 4-4. Harmeling looked like his ankle wasn’t giving him trouble which bodes well for NCAA Tournament play.

The game was a seesaw affair for the first 15 minutes. Both coaches were making smart moves and the players were executing pretty well. Stanford was able to rattle WSU into uncharacteristic turnovers. The Cougs were frustrating their opponents, with one exception. Brook Lopez was in a zone that allowed him to impose his will at both ends of the court. Turnovers by WSU were the first half story though. Stanford converted them into 13 points, the key to their 34-30 halftime lead.

There was no quit in either team. The efforts expended on the court translated into a tremendously entertaining college basketball game for fans.

Have to mention officiating once again. This hasn’t been a good year for the Pac-10 men in striped shirts. They have been much too visible because of the way games have been officiated. But at least one of the refs last night had a conscious.

With about 5 minutes left in the game, there was a scramble for a loose ball in the paint near the Cardinal basket. Bodies were flying and whistles shrieked play dead. Taylor Rochestie was a little too aggressive and fouled Lawrence Hill. That’s where things went weird. For some reason, the foul was assessed against Aron Baynes instead of Rochestie. Thanks to world class Cougar Glenn Wallmark, this blogger was sitting right behind the Stanford bench and had a great view from one of the seats he purchased.

Baynes was as close to Hill as yours truly. In other words, there’s no way Baynes deserved his fifth foul, rendering him ineligible to play further. He went through an all too familiar act of being totally shocked. You know, there’s never been a good call made against him thus far!

Strangely, Taylor was dashing from one referee to the other pleading the case of mistaken identity. The foul wasn’t on number 11, it was on number 10, his number. Since both players are well coached by Tony Bennett, they knew not to go ballistic in a close game because a technical foul might make the difference between winning and losing. On top of that, acting the fool by going into a frenzy over a bad call doesn’t show either class or respect.

Baynes sauntered to the sidelines.

Hill made his free throws.

The guilt of making a bad call didn’t weigh as heavy on Cougar fans as it did on one official. As the Cougs brought the ball up court following the made free throws, the desire to set things right got the best of the officials.

They stopped play.

No one had an idea what was going on. No one. OK, the officials had the inside scoop, but they were only sharing their scheme with the television stage director who controlled the courtside monitor.

There was a buzz throughout Staples Center.

Sure enough, both Baynes and Rochestie were right. The officials changed the foul assessment and Baynes returned to the game. Wow! Maybe there really is a Santa Claus. Now that we’ve witnessed that bizarre turn of events, how could you question much of anything?

Turns out that Christmas wasn’t going to come early for Cougar Nation.

Stanford earned a hard fought win.

The Cougs will wait now to see where they will play in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Cougar Nation must stay tuned for the next chapter in the evolution of Washington State basketball.

GO COUGS!!!

Meeting for the third time this season, Washington State and Oregon squared off on the basketball hardwood in the Pac-10 Tournament. The first two games between these two teams resulted in Cougar victories. This time around, the Ducks had different ideas.

Early on, it was all Washington State. We’re talking complete domination. In the opening minutes Oregon players were talking to themselves as they repeatedly headed to the sidelines after timeout was pleaded for by Coach Ernie Kent. About the only way Coach Kent could slow down the high powered assault being waged by Coach Tony Bennett and the Cougs was to ask for “TIME!”

As the first half progressed, the Ducks stopped shaking their heads and talking to themselves. Yes, things got worse. They were dejection personified. How could this be happening to them? A 20 point deficit to the lowest scoring offense in the Pac-10? In the first half? Come on. Are you kidding?

With less than a minute left in the first half, their fortunes brightened ever so slightly after a WSU turnover with :03 left on the clock. LeKendric Longmire launched a controlled desperation shot from about 30 feet that found it’s way through the bottom of the net.

That shot to end the half did something that 19:57 of first basketball couldn’t do for Oregon. The Ducks didn’t wander off to the locker room, they flew there as if escaping a cold winter in the northwest.

How good were the Cougs in the first half? They were 16 of 26 from the field, a blistering 61.5%. Those stats were driven by superb 3-point shooting where WSU lit up the Ducks for 5 of 7 attempts. Heck, WSU wasn’t even that good from the free throw line where they were 5 of 8!

As good as it got for Washington State in the first half, things were almost that good for Oregon in the second twenty minutes of play.

Instead of coming out and continuing to blow away the Quack Attack in the second half, WSU focused on what earned them 23 victories already. Their game plan for the second half? Methodical.

However, methodical became predictable from a coaching standpoint. Coach Kent was able to take advantage of game film study and come up with defensive schemes that denied Washington State good looks at the basket as their shot clock wound down. Suddenly slow play had WSU shooting themselves in the foot.

The Cougar offense sputtered and misfired.

The Ducks began flying down the court with confidence, running their offense. Unlike the first half, they were getting good looks and making that pay off.

With about nine minutes to go, the double digit lead of Washington State headed south.

Oregon continued to peck away at the Cougar lead.

The tremendous throng of WSU fans had a mood swing from nervous to panic. Suddenly the crimson and gray clad fans were bemoaning calls made by officials. Yes, they were even screaming about calls not being made by officials. And out from behind duck blinds popped up vocal Oregon fans inspired by the way their team was migrating the ball up and down the court.

The enthusiasm of loyal Oregon fans obviously pumped some 20 gauge adrenaline into their team.

The nervous concern of WSU fans fell on deaf ears along the Cougar sidelines.

In the end, Coach Bennett inspired his team to do what they do best. The Cougs tightened up their defense and continued to run their offense. In running their offense, WSU also ran a lot of time off the clock. A lot of time off the clock.

When Tajuan Porter was allowed to make an uncontested layup and close the score to 70-66 with :41 left to go in the game, there may have been worry all across Cougar Nation. Not so with Coach Bennett and his team. The dapper coach was beaming with confidence. Kyle Weaver had his typical engaging smile on display. Taylor Rochestie was obviously thrilled to be in that place and time. Derrick Low looked as if he was dreaming of those beautiful Hawaiian sunsets.

With less than a minute to go in the game, the only seriously nervous folks were the bookies who were placing the Cougs at a 3 1/2 point favorite. The smart money was on WSU. The smart money won and were cashing in on a very nice effort by the #3 seed Washington State.

The Cougar fans on hand went wild with jubilant choruses of cheers as the final buzzer sounded after Kyle Weaver blocked the last Oregon shot attempted.

Final score, well, read for yourself in the image above.

Quarterfinal team Washington State advances to the semi-finals tonight on the floor of Staples Center. They will face the Stanford Cardinal and the twin towers Lopez.

Getting back to last night. This Cougar team clearly has confidence. They know what they have to do to win, then focus on execution. Sound almost like seasoned veterans? After all, they start three seniors and two juniors. When the game was over, this Cougar team was anything but stoic. They were loving the moment. Midway through the first half of the second game, the Cougs returned from the locker room to a standing ovation from thousands of Cougar Nation fans who remained. These kids were definitely in the moment. Minutes later, they were making their way through the center court sections filled with Cougar fans. Smiles, high fives, back slapping and a general outpouring of affection was making it’s way through the crowd.

Oh yeah, Stanford was struggling with Arizona then, too.

The Pac-10 quarterfinals are history. All seeded teams held their serve. Tonight the first game pits #1 UCLA against #4 USC. #3 Washington State will play #2 Stanford.

GO COUGS!!!

Here’s some great video on the game posted by Nick Eaton, WSU grad ‘07, of the Spokesman-Review:

http://www.spokesmanreview.com/blogs/sportslink/archive/?postID=7412

http://www.spokesmanreview.com/blogs/sportslink/archive/?postID=7410

When it comes to making tournament bracket predictions a few weeks out, glad that this blogger doesn’t seem to have a clue.  Sure, did manage to predict Oregon State would finish 10th.  Oh, here’s a grand prognostication.  My picks of UCLA to finish 1st and Stanford to come in 2nd turned out to be correct as well.  That’s it folks.  The way the rest completed conference play came as a surprise. Or did it?

Wait a minute.  The prediction garbage is over.  Now it’s time to look at the real deal.

If you’re a Coug, you have to be pleased with the way the brackets worked out for the Pac-10 Tournament.  Washington State won’t face UCLA unless they reach the finals.

First up for the Cougars are those Fightin’ Ducks from Eugene.

Oregon came on strong at the end of the season because of some very nice sharpshooting from outside.  WSU knows how to beat this Oregon team because they have already accomplished that feat twice this year.  Sorry, but this blogger doesn’t buy into all the history of Oregon and Coach Ernie Kent dominating WSU in recent years.  That was then, we’re trying to take a look at the reality of today.  If ever there was a team ripe to knock off the Cougs because of losing a couple in a row to them, it’s the Huskies.  After the double overtime win last Saturday, WSU has a streak of seven in a row over the Dawgs.  This Cougar team will be coached to perfection by Coach Tony Bennett.  Will they execute his game plan?  You bet.  Cougs will make it three in a row over Oregon.

Looking at the bracket Washington State is in, the first game is an early Christmas present for Arizona.  The ‘Cats get to beat up on the Beavers one more time, mercifully ending the nightmare for Oregon State called the “2007-2008 season”.

The reward for Arizona?  No, it’s not settling the impending controversy raised by the return of Coach Lute Olson next season.

The ‘Cats get another crack at Stanford.  The Cardinal have managed two nail-biting wins over Arizona during conference play.  Can they do it again?  Will the Lopez towers dominate?  Nope.  No sir.  Stanford can be beaten by teams that can drain threes.  Arizona both can and will do that very thing.

Arizona-WSU for the third time this season.

As match-ups go, Coach Bennett and his team would’nt mind getting another crack at the Wildcats.  WSU lost both games to Arizona during the regular season.  In fact, Arizona blew the Cougs away in Tucson.  Coach Bennett has yet to come up with a way to slow down Chase Budinger.  Then again, very few coaches have figured that one out.  If the WSU defense can keep the combination of Budinger and Jerryd Bayless under 30 combined points, they have a chance of winning.

Will the third time be the charm for Washington State?  You bet!  They advance to the finals where anything can happen.

On the other side of the tournament bracket, Cal should be able to handle the Huskies.  Losing Jon Brockman is a serious blow to the UW.

Cal will then be taken seriously by UCLA this time around and sent packing.

The other game on this side of the bracket matches USC and ASU.

USC has been playing up to their potential at season end.  Given the athletic talent of their club, that’s saying something.  Trojans will defeat Arizona State to set up another Pac-10 classic.

UCLA-USC.

If the Trojans can stay out of foul trouble, this has the potential to be the best game of the tournament.  UCLA is much deeper than USC.  Coach Ben Howland will have his troops do their best to frustrate Coach Tim Floyd and company.  This time of the year, defense usually wins.  UCLA has arguably the best defense in the Pac-10.  This one should be another Bruin victory any way you look at it.

There you have it.  Final game UCLA-WSU.  Prediction?

Are you kidding me?

GO COUGS!!!

Senior night in Pullman almost never ended. What better way for WSU senior to close out their career than an Apple Cup Classic? Well, the best way would be for that classic game to end in a victory for Washington State over their cross-state rivals, the Washington Huskies. Yes, this time around things did work out for the best. After two overtime periods, the final score was WSU 76 - UW 73.

Washington State finishes their 2008 conference play with a lock on third place and a record of 11-7. Their final regular season record is complete at a terrific mark of 23-7. Back-to-back twenty win seasons. Back-to-back trips to the NCAA tournament. Things are looking very good for Cougar Nation.

If you didn’t get to see the game, it was the quintessential double overtime game. Both clubs fought hard. Both left everything they had on the court. In the end, the ball bounced the way of the Cougs.

The first overtime swung back the way of WSU with a nice bounce of the ball. Taylor Rochestie launched a three point shot to win the game, but his effort doinked off the side of the rim. Kyle Weaver tipped the errant ball to Robbie Cowgill who deftly made an easy layup. That pushed the game into a second overtime.

Within a minute of the second overtime, it appeared the Cougs finally had the number of the Huskies, jumping out to a 71-67 lead. Ryan Appleby would have none of that, knocking down an NBA distance three pointer to close within a lone point.

That was it for the Huskies. The stifling WSU defense did a job on what was left on the floor for the Dawgs. Two of the UW big men fouled out and Jon Brockman was forced to the bench with an injury.

Speaking of Brockman, seems that some of the class exhibited by Coach Tony Bennett and the rest of the Cougs influenced the Zzu Cru. As Brockman was helped to the sideline, Cougar fans offered a sincere round of applause for the double-double specialist for Washington. He deserved the recognition.

Washington State deserved the win. They fought the physical Huskies from beginning to end. WSU was out of their weight class, but that didn’t matter in the end. They played smart basketball and exploited the elbow-throwing-body-checking-shoving obsession of the UW players.

What tipped the scale?

Don’t sell short the fact that more than 10,000 fans were on hand for the game to support their Cougars. That’s right. That’s right. Friel Court was alive! Despite the fact that spring break began Friday, the Zzu Cru was a force to be sure. They offered a fitting tribute to five WSU seniors and vocal pressure on the Dawgs.

There were a number of reasons this game was close.

The Cougs didn’t seem as aggressive as the Dawgs going after rebounds and loose balls until there was about five minutes left in the game. When they were finally aroused, loose balls became Cougar possessions.

Coach Romar guided his defense to shut down the drive and dish to Aron Baynes. Effective? You be the judge. Baynes ended up taking more free throws than his point total. He had more rebounds than points!

Free throw conversion for WSU was sub-par. They were 19-29 from the charity stripe. Many of those misses were the front end of one-and-ones.

That said, the important stat was the final score: WSU 76 - UW 73

What a great season Cougs! Another 20+ win regular season. Another trip to the NCAA Tournament. Another year of exciting basketball.

Check this out.

There’s more excitement to come. This thing hasn’t ended yet. These teammates aren’t finished. They have a loftier goal to achieve. They’re traveling to Los Angeles with the focus on winning the Pac-10 Tournament in Staples Center. Their first game will be Thursday evening at 6pm. They plan to get deep into March Madness, fully capable of at least a Sweet Sixteen birth.

For now, Cougar Nation can enjoy another victory over Washington. When you dress Sunday morning, wear your crimson and gray with pride Cougs!

GO COUGS!!!