Washington State and Gonzaga will battle for the top of the West Coast Conference standings in Spokane, Washington on Saturday.
With just 77 miles separating each campus, No. 18 Gonzaga (13-4, 4-0) and Washington State (13-4, 3-1) will be renewing its century-old rivalry that dates back to 1907. This will be the 151st all-time meeting between these two programs.
The Cougars lead the all-time series at 98-52 but the Zags have won the last five games. The last time these two played each other was back in 2015 which resulted in a 69-60 win for Gonzaga.
Eastern Washington transfer turned Washington State forward Dane Erikstrup has erupted in his first season in Pullman. The senior is averaging 12.6 PPG on a shooting split of 48.1 FG%/40.2 3PT%/65.9 FT%, 4.1 RPG, 1.6 APG, and 1.0 SPG in 17 starts for the Cougars. He also hits about 2.3 three-pointers per game and blocks 1.2 shots per game which both rank tied for the fourth most in the West Coast Conference.
Ahead of the massive matchup, I caught up with the 6’11 senior to talk about how the season is going for the Cougars and about the battle for Eastern Washington bragging rights.
Arden Cravalho: You have a lot of Pacific Northwest, Eastern Washington ties having played your high school ball in Beaverton, Oregon and played in Cheney with the Eagles from 2022-24, now with Washington State. What is it about this area that has kept you around?
Dane Erikstrup: I’ve kind of lived all up and down the West Coast my whole life. I’ve been in Arizona, I’ve been in California, been in Oregon, been in Washington. What’s kept me around is just mainly the coaching staff here. They’re my guys and I rock with them.
AC: What was it about coach David Riley that made you say I can’t get enough of this young buck as my coach and have to follow him to Pullman? What’s it like being developed by him over the years?
DE: While he’s a great coach, he really believes in personal development. Like obviously there’s team development, but in order for the team to develop, you got to improve your players. He laid out my college path and put the vision in front of me so that I could go chase it.
Trust is a hard thing to come by in this sports industry. And I really trust him.
AC: Love to hear your perspective on your game currently and how much it has changed since your freshman season to your senior season now. You bring size and paint scoring but I feel like your shooting mechanics and overall percentage has improved each season following you.
DE: I started Division II. I was more of a traditional big at Cal Poly Pomona, just because there’s not that many big dudes back there.
Once I got to Division I and over the last three years, I’ve just been developing my overall game, shooting, passing, being scrappy. I’ve been in the gym a lot and the numbers are showing it. Just got to keep improving.
AC: Gonzaga and Washington State haven’t played each other since 2015 but this rivalry is over a century year old. What does it mean to have these two programs play each other again and renew its deep history with one other?
DE: It’ll be fun. Obviously being down the road at Eastern Washington for two years, all you hear is Gonzaga, Gonzaga. It’ll be fun to go play them and put on a show for everybody. We’ll see how the chips fall.
AC: Is this going to be your first time playing at the McCarthey Athletic Center? What are you expecting out of that environment?
DE: It is going to be my first time. It’ll be jumping. It’ll be fun.
AC: The Cougars have entered NCAA Tournament bid-stealing territory. What has made this team so successful as we enter into the halfway point of this college basketball season?
DE: I think it’s just honestly our chemistry and how the coaches have laid everything out for us. Obviously, we’ve lost a lot of pieces as the season has gone on, but everyone just keep stepping up and filling their role. It’s been awesome to see. The guys are having fun as a team and playing good ball.
AC: You mentioned losing pieces, losing Cedric Coward (shoulder) seemed like a big one for your team. You’ve been able to bounce back from that. How is it that you’ve been able to do so?
DE: I mean, losing Cedric hurt as he’s a big piece. So is Marcus Wilson (shoulder), so is Rihards Vavers (hands). But it’s just kind of next man up. You just got to make the best of what you got in front of you.
Tomas (Thrastarson), Kase (Wynott), Parker (Gerrits), they’ve all started. They’re getting more and more confident with themselves on the court. You can just see it as games go on. As long as they keep doing their thing, we will be just fine.
It truly has been the next man up mentality for this group as they have been dealing with injuries left and right, featuring only eight healthy players currently. Washington State will be without Isaiah Watts (hand) for the next week or so. He was averaging 12.5 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 1.8 APG, and 1.6 SPG for the Cougars.
Ethan Price (12.9 PPG on 50.3 FG%/40.3 3PT%/79.3 FT%, 6.0 RPG, 2.4 APG) also suffered an injury late in the 95-94 overtime loss to Pacific on a Lamar Washington game winning three-pointer this past Thursday night. Will Price be 100 percent ready to go for Saturday?
Despite all of that, coach David Riley has major depth to his roster with six double-figure scorers. One of those players is Nate Calmese who has taken over the reins of the Washington State offense as the lead guard. The 6’2 junior is averaging 16.2 PPG (7th in the WCC) on 46.6 FG% (9th in the WCC), 4.4 APG (6th in the WCC), 3.4 RPG, and 1.9 SPG (tied for 4th in the WCC).
The Cougars have found their biggest identity coming on the defensive end, especially when guarding out on the perimeter. Washington State also ranks sixth in the nation in blocked shots with 93 total. ND Okafor is second in the WCC in that category individually at 1.6 BPG.
Classes start on Monday so expect the Kennel to be back to packed with students for the Eastern Washington showdown and fight for the top of the WCC standings. Gonzaga hosts Washington State on Saturday, January 11th at 6 PM PT on ESPN+/KHQ. A high-scoring affair for both teams is in order.
Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on Twitter @a_cravalho