PULLMAN -- Whenever Washington State coaches and players head home after their last outing, an 86-65 defeat to No. 9 Gonzaga here on Thursday night, they will regret all manner of developments.
The Cougars lost 17 turnovers. They hit 10 of 20 free throws. They yielded 52 points in the paint. And in the words of forward Simon Hildebrandt, who tallied a career-high 16 points on three 3-pointers, "we kinda let them destroy us down low and really set the tone with their physicality."
All of that is true, and we'll address that in a moment, but perhaps the most concerning part about this game for the Cougs was this: For the entire game, they connected on eight total two-pointers.
Eight.
It almost seems impossible, especially for WSU, a team that prides itself on its efficiency inside the arc. The two-point baskets came from the following: Three from guard Jerone Morton, who tallied 16 points; one from freshman guard Ace Glass, who posted 16 points as well; one from Hildebrandt; two from Emmanuel Ugbo, who finished with seven points; and one from guard Adria Rodriguez, whose struggles at the free throw line continued to the tune of a 3-for-8 display.
It wasn't just that the Cougars (8-11, 3-3 WCC) missed several bunnies, a few mid-range jump shots that were open and available. It was also that they didn't always look comfortable taking those kinds of shots. How many times did Rodriguez turn down opportunities to put up a floater, to attack the rim? How many times did forward Eemeli Yalaho eschew chances to flip in shots around the basket? Even Glass misfired on an open mid-range shot, the type that he usually sinks.
"That's a staple of our offense, that we should be shooting very, very efficiently from two," Riley said. "We've done that. We've gotten much better at that. It was crazy. We were 2-for-12 from two at one point in the second half. It was insane. In the first half, we missed four shots that I thought were probably 90% shots. One of them was a little more fading away.
"I don't know. Some of that's their physicality, some of that's their length, some of that's us not having our night. There's a mix of things. We're gonna take a few more threes than most teams, but our efficiency from two is typically something that stands out."
There is plenty of nuance here. WSU was playing without two starters, guard Tomas Thrastarson and wing shooter Ri Vavers, the latter of whom was a late scratch with a concussion, according to the CBS Sports Network broadcast. Another Cougar starter, 6-foot-10 ND Okafor, was saddled with foul trouble for almost the entire night. He played only 11 minutes.
Plus, the Cougs sizzled from beyond the arc. For the game, they connected on 13 of 28 shots from distance, a remarkable 46% clip that kept them afloat in the first half. Four came from Hildebrandt, including three straight in the first half. Another four came courtesy of Glass, who sunk several over strong contests, and three came from Morton, including one to bail out his team from a sluggish offensive trip.
All of that will contribute to a slower night from inside the arc, and it certainly did for the Cougars. But eight two-pointers is almost unheard of. Here is a sampling of teams that have scored more two-pointers against these Zags: Texas Southern, Southern Utah, North Florida, Campbell, Pepperdine, San Diego, Seattle U. They've cleared that mark with ease.
"I think part of it was in the first half, we played with really good pace," Hildebrandt said. "I thought when we pushed the ball and we get out and run, our offense is much better. Maybe they changed a few things, but I thought we kinda slowed our pace down a little bit after those first 10 minutes, or whatever it was. When we run, we have a lot of really good shooters on this team. So when we run, we can get guys good looks, and we can play unselfish. I don't really think there's any defense that you can do to take away from that."
Then there is the matter of the carelessness Washington State showed taking care of the ball. At some points, the Cougars threw lazy entry passes that were easily stolen. At others, they tried cross-court passes that were also easily intercepted. Still at others, they lost the ball out of bounds—unforced errors that are unbecoming of a team that Riley says “regressed” in Thursday’s game. Gonzaga turned those 17 turnovers into 27 points.
But even if the Cougs eliminated half those turnovers, they would still be in for a similarly long night because of this trend: Gonzaga won the rebounding battle 43-29. That included 17 offensive rebounds, which the Zags parlayed into 19 second-chance points. "It just seemed like we were step slow and a little timid way too much of that game," Riley said.
For WSU, are those kinds of issues correctable? The Cougs won't face Ike again, at least not until they visit the Bulldogs in Spokane next month. They won't face another team with an armada of physical wings. And Okafor will probably be in better shape with fouls on Sunday when WSU hits the road to take on San Francisco.
In other words, the Zags did to WSU what they do to just about every team they face. That makes the Cougars a normal team in that respect. What isn't so normal is the reality that even with Gonzaga down star forward Braden Huff, Washington State managed only eight baskets inside the arc in Thursday's game.
To reclaim what Riley says is a central part of his team's identity, the Cougars will have to get more creative on offense. And maybe a bit healthier, too.
"I felt like we regressed a little bit today with our physicality and just the force that we played with," Riley said. "It seemed like we were thinking or just a step behind. We weren't able to stay in the moment."