Washington State MBB Drop Apple Cup Matchup At Washington 89-73

Joe Londergan | Dec 19, 2024

Nov 21, 2024; Spokane, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars forward LeJuan Watts (4) shoots the ball against the Eastern Washington Eagles in the first half at Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-Imagn Images / James Snook-Imagn Images

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Washington State men's basketball's winning streak will end at three games after the Cougars dropped a 89-73 result against Washington in Seattle on Wednesday.

Turnovers mostly doomed the Cougs in the loss, with WSU committing 22 of them compared to seven by the hosts. Washington scored 24 points off of turnovers in this game. Head coach David Riley's team also shot just 43.1% from the floor, connecting on six of 20 shots from beyond the three-point line. WSU had a total of 12 assists on 25 made baskets. Riley called it his team's worst passing game of the year.

"I got to go watch the film. I got to reevaluate," Riley said postgame. "I just think it was really disappointing for us to come into a big game like this and not be able to move the ball like we needed to."

Nate Calmese led the Cougs in scoring against his former team, finishing with 21 points as well as five rebounds and three assists. LeJuan Watts and Ethan Price both also scored in double figures with 15 and 16 points respectively.

The Cougs fall to 9-3 overall after their first true road loss of the year. WSU return to action on Saturday, December 21 against a 7-4 Northern Iowa team at 1 PM Pacific in Las Vegas as part of the Holiday Hoops classic.

"I think it's really important for us to have a good game and play the right way going into Christmas break," Riley noted. "Obviously this one hurts...we got some work to do and and it's going to be a heck of a game here in a few days."

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Published Dec 19, 2024

JOE LONDERGAN

Joe Londergan joined the SI brand in 2023 with G5 Football Daily. With over 15 years of experience in covering and working directly in college and pro sports, Joe's expertise has been featured in Front Office Sports, SB Nation, and XRAY.FM. He is a member of both the Football Writers' Association of America and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association. Joe holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Louisville and a master's degree in sports administration from Seattle University. Outside of his writing career, Joe enjoys golfing, although he admits that while he hits driver decently, his short game is a liability.