WSU got its first win of the season, defeating Northwest 123-87.
Washington State was looking to get on track Saturday morning, coming in 0-3 as they took on the Northwest University Eagles.
For those who don’t know, Northwest University is a private Christian school in Kirkland, with an enrollment of only 1,561 students. They compete in the NAIA (Division 2), so there was no betting line on this contest. Simply put, this was a must-win game for the Cougars.
WSU was coming off a soul-crushing defeat
to Duquesne, a contest they led for 87% of the time. Standout Ronnie Harrison went down once again in that game and remained out Saturday morning. WSU needs to get Harrison healthy if they want to be any kind of competitive moving forward this season.
It was all WSU early and often in the first half, as they took a 69-42 lead into the break.
Sebastian Akins was the breakout scorer, putting up 19 on 5-for-7 shooting and 3 three-pointers. Washington State shot 70 percent from the floor in the first half (24-35 from the floor) and went 16 of 18 at the line.
Tyler Kropp also finished with 12, going four for four inside the arc. It was nice to see touted freshman Brayden Kyman get his first action of the season, making a nice defensive play on his first possession, which turned into a transition three.
The Cougars’ defense eased up toward the end of the half, allowing the Eagles to make a couple of threes, but that was their only hope offensively with the size mismatch in the paint. Washington State won the final rebounding tally 55-24.
The final score won’t indicate it, but the second half was severely underwhelming from WSU. Jamari Phillips picked up a phantom technical foul, making the “too little” gesture after a make towards his own bench. Tyler Kropp left the game with a non-contact injury, although he looked okay as he left the court and returned to the bench.
The real disappointment was Washington State’s defense and inability to break the press for the first 10 minutes of the second period. A lack of intensity led to a lot of open looks for the Eagles and some really sloppy turnovers, as WSU finished with 19.
Six Cougars finished in double figures, and WSU generated a large enough lead to get fan-favorite Dio Blakely into the game in the closing minutes.
However, allowing 87 points and 14 three-pointers to an NAIA school is not what David Riley was hoping for. WSU needs to put in a complete effort if they want to get a Division 1 win.
Washington State will travel to Everett to take on Hawaii this coming Wednesday.
