The Cougars’ first-half woes struck again, as they fell to 0–2 with an 85–69 defeat at Davidson.
It was the first-ever meeting between Washington State and Davidson — the alma maters of Klay Thompson and Steph Curry. The “Splash Bros” are two of the greatest shooters the game has ever seen, but only one of their alma maters lived up to that reputation tonight.
Washington State traveled 3,000 miles to North Carolina, but their effort did not. From the opening tip, it was clear this was the same Washington State team that came out against Idaho on Monday.
There wasn’t much of anything positive to report from the first half, as the Cougs trailed by as many as 21 before trimming it to 16 at the break. At that point, Ugbo was the only Coug with multiple field goals, and WSU was an abysmal 1-for-11 from three. Davidson, on the other hand, was 7-for-14 from deep (50%) — a discrepancy that essentially accounted for the entire deficit.
The Cougs carried a little momentum into halftime, winning the under-four timeout and chipping away at the lead. That energy continued into the second half, as WSU came out with much-improved defensive intensity, leading to a Parker Gerrits fast-break dunk that cut the lead to 13.
At that moment, it looked like Washington State might claw back into the game — but it didn’t last long. Davidson continued to drain threes, improving to 11-for-19 midway through the second half. While some of the shooting could be attributed to ridiculous shot-making, many of those looks came from defensive breakdowns and wide-open opportunities.
Late in the game, three Washington State players converged for a nasty block on a Davidson player driving to the basket, but the ball deflected to the corner for a wide-open three. That play summed up WSU’s first two games.
There have been stretches of excellent defense, but by that point, WSU is usually trying to crawl out of a massive hole. The only player who looks confident on offense is Ace Glass; everyone else looks like they don’t want any part of the ball until they’re down 15 or more.
This team clearly has athletic ability and several solid basketball players. However, they look like a shell of themselves — lacking confidence and playing scared. It’s a long season, and this is a young team, but things could get off the rails quickly for David Riley’s squad.
The Cougs need to come out early and establish themselves in the paint, creating more open looks from three. In addition, they need to stick with successful lineups longer — if something’s working, ride with it for a while.
Washington State will look to get in the win column back home on Monday, November 10, against the St. Thomas (Minnesota) Tommies at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+, before hosting rival Washington on Friday.
