WSU heads on the road to try and snag the rematch from first place Gaels
Washington State finally got off the snide last weekend with a thrilling comeback win against Pepperdine in the final minutes. The Cougs will look to win back-to-back games for the first time since the New Year, looking to do so against the first-place Gaels in Moraga.
While a one-point win against Pepperdine isn’t much to boast about, there are certainly things to build off of. WSU probably played a better game against Oregon State last Thursday, but on Saturday in Beasley they finally did what was eluding them during their five-game losing streak: making winning plays down the stretch.
WSU and the Gaels faced off in Beasley a little over two weeks ago, before the Cougs’ season had gone completely off the rails. David Riley’s team extended the lead to 10 points in the second half and had the crowd engaged, but failed to make any stops down the stretch, ultimately falling 75-80. The 75 points scored by WSU are tied for the most points allowed by SMC this season—a feat only otherwise accomplished by Utah State in the only home loss Saint Mary’s has suffered this season.
The point being, the Cougs’ offense should be in good shape. Especially with the addition of Isaiah Watts, who was still out with an injury during the last matchup. It’s going to take one of the great Cougar offensive games (which we know they are capable of), in addition to some timely stops to pull off the upset.
Saint Mary’s is 13-1 at home and 12-1 in the conference, with those losses coming to the aforementioned 22-3 USU Aggies, and just last week on the road at 2nd place San Fransisco (who is 15-0 at home). In other words, Saint Mary’s is really good, and they are even better at home. The Gaels currently sit at 20th in the NET Rankings despite no ranking in the AP, making this certifiably a Quad 1 game. The Cougars are 2-6 in Q1, but will have back-to-back opportunities against top twenty teams as the Cougs return to Beasley to take on the rival Zags in a highly anticipated rematch next Wednesday.
This week’s contest will take place on ESPN2 at 7:00 p.m. in Moraga, California. ESPN analytics gives WSU only a 10% chance to win the game.