Washington State Cougars (17-10; 7-8) vs. Washington Huskies (18-8; 10-5)
Clarence S. “Hec” Edmundson Pavilion, Seattle, Washington
Sunday, 7 p.m. PST
TV: FSN
Radio: 950 KJR
Scouting the Cougs:
- The Cougars are led by junior guard Klay Thompson, who this season took over primary ballhandling duties and leads the team with 4.0 assists per game. Thompson leads the conference with a 21.2-point scoring average and 81 made three pointers. His apparent inability to create his own shot severely hampered his scoring in last year’s Pac-10 season (16.1 ppg compared to 23.3 in non-conference play). This year, he has had no such trouble; look for him to try to duplicate the 25 points he put on UW in Pullman. Thompson is also an underrated defender at 6’6, averaging a block and nearly two steals per game while providing excellent ball denial to opposing shooters.
- Junior DeAngelo Casto is Washington State’s defensive star. Though undersized at 6’8, Casto’s mobility around screens makes him one of the country’s premier jump-shot defenders. His length also makes him a major shotblocking threat inside. Last season’s Pac-10 blocks leader at 2.2 bpg, Casto has successfully scared opponents into settling for outside shots instead of driving at him—WSU opponents are taking 39.8 threes for every 100 field goals, eighth in the country among teams that do not primarily play zone defense. Casto’s offensive game is yet a work in progress: he struggles to fight through contact around the rim and as a result often fades from the basket when shooting. He averages only 3.6 free throw attempts per game.
- Like the Huskies, Washington State has several capable shooters. Sixth man Faisel Aden, second on the team with 12.9 points per game, is a community college transfer known for his long-range jumper. Aden rested sore knees against Arizona State on Saturday but will play against the Dawgs. Rainier Beach product Reggie Moore, a 6’1 point guard, has improved his shot selection this season and can shoot it, though he has slumped lately. Thompson shoots 42 percent from beyond the arc.
- Junior Marcus Capers is one of the conference’s best rebounding guards at 1.5 offensive boards per contest. Capers also provides fearless defense on the perimeter.
- Coach Ken Bone, Seattle Pacific University alumnus and former UW assistant, is in his second season with the Cougars. He has already led his squad to more Pac-10 wins (seven) than they notched all of last year (six). The Cougars under Bone are ranked 54th in the KenPom rankings. (The Huskies are 10th.)
What happened last time:
The Cougars posted their first win over the Dawgs in six tries, 87-80 at Beasley.
Washington’s top three offensive threats (Isaiah Thomas, Matthew Bryan-Amaning and Justin Holiday) combined to shoot 8/33 from the field and the Cougars forced 24 turnovers.
The Cougars played efficient offense with a .548 eFG% and only 12 turnovers.
Holiday and Thomas split time guarding Thompson and neither seemed to have much success. Casto and forward Brock Motum did an excellent job on Bryan-Amaning, who had one of those “MBA can’t find the bucket” games.
What’s different this time:
Guard Scott Suggs, who played 35 minutes against WSU in January, sprained his MCL against Arizona State and will miss Sunday’s game. The Huskies will, however, have guard CJ Wilcox, who missed January’s contest with a concussion. Wilcox started on Tuesday against Seattle U in place of Suggs. Senior guard Venoy Overton, who took Suggs’ place in the Arizona game, will stay on the bench in Wilcox’s stead—Lorenzo Romar told Percy Allen that Overton expressed interest in starting but understood the importance of doing what’s best for the squad. Still, Romar said, “If he didn’t want to start we probably wouldn’t want him on our team.”
Last month, the WSU student section disregarded Bone’s pleas to “keep it classy,” raining lewd chants and boos onto the Dawgs all night. Expect an equal and opposite result at Hec Ed.
Sometime in the past week, Terrence Ross became DeMar DeRozan. Turns out The AlbaTROSS can actually fly.
Original Story:
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