Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
WSU redshirt senior linebacker Justus Rogers tackles Utah junior tight end Brant Kuithe Saturday. WSU fell to Utah 45-28 in its final game of the season.
Compiled by Drew Lawson
The Times
Many area sports teams enjoyed victories in the last week, some of which were marquee triumphs. Two men's basketball teams and one women's basketball team have yet to be defeated this year, while other teams are on their way to successful seasons.
Then, there's Cougars football. Oh well, there's always next year, right? To quote a friend and die-hard Wazzu fan: "Maybe it's a good thing the Apple Cup was cancelled." At least, this year Coug fans don't have Mike Leach to blame, because there's no game against the Huskies to lose.
I digress; I don't want to rub too much salt in the already painful wound. Here's a breakdown of what went down in area sports last week.
WSU football
WSU wrapped up the first version of the Nick Rolovich-led Cougars by conceding a 21-point halftime lead and allowing 38 unanswered points while falling at Utah, 45-28. Later, it was reported that the Cougs barely had enough scholarship players available to even play the game.
The Cougars (1-3) finished a bizarre, cancellation-filled season where three games, including the Apple Cup, were called due to COVID-19 concerns. WSU managed to get in just one game in Pullman.
Wazzu won't be attending a bowl game this year.
WSU men's basketball
While the football team struggled to win, or even play, the men's basketball team is off to a roaring 7-0 start. Granted, all the games have been at home against mid-major opponents, but any team will take seven wins with no losses to start their season.
Two more convincing wins came last week. The Montana State Bobcats of the Big Sky Conference were victims of an 82-54 Cougar onslaught Dec. 18. Efe Abogidi scored 19 points and snared 15 rebounds, while Noah Williams led all scorers with 21. The Cougs never trailed.
Then, WSU easily handled Prairie View 90-62 Dec. 21. Five Cougars scored in double figures. Abogidi was the player of the game again, scoring 16 points and grabbing 14 rebounds, both game highs.
WSU's only scheduled game this week was against Northwestern State on Dec. 23 in Pullman. That game occurred after press time.
WSU women's basketball
The Cougars suffered their first defeat of the season despite a valiant effort against mighty Oregon, falling 69-65 on Dec. 21. WSU maintained a lead through three quarters, but couldn't hang on. Charlisse Leger-Walker starred for the Cougs, scoring 20 points against the No. 8 ranked Ducks.
WSU rebounded the next day, pulling away from EWU in the second half to coast to a 72-53 victory in Pullman. Uga Matuga led a balanced Cougar effort with 13 points, as four WSU women scored in double figures.
The Cougars are now off until New Year's Day, for a road PAC-12 matchup with Utah.
Gonzaga men's basketball
Is No. 1 Gonzaga the best team in college basketball, not just this year, but in the last few years? The correct answer is probably "it's too early to tell," but the conversation is starting to occur, especially after Saturday's 99-88 win over No. 3 Iowa.
The Bulldogs hadn't played in over two weeks after shutting down the program temporarily due to positive COVID-19 tests before flying to South Dakota to take on one of the best teams in the country.
Outside of some early turnovers, it seemed as though no break had occurred...especially for freshman phenom Jalen Suggs, who scored 27 points. Junior Joel Ayayi added 11 points and a whopping 18 rebounds, and the Bulldogs overcame the turnovers, a solid game from Iowa star Luka Garza and two key Gonzaga starters, Corey Kispert and Drew Timme, fouling out.
The Zags then thumped Northwestern State 95-57 in Gonzaga's home opener Dec. 21. Kispert led the way with 27 points, one shy of his career high. The Bulldogs were scheduled to take on Northwestern State again Dec. 22. That game occurred after press time.
Gonzaga has a big game on Saturday, Dec. 26 against No. 17 Virginia, which is coached by former WSU head man Tony Bennett.
Gonzaga women's basketball
The women's team also fared well last week, nabbing two wins at the Holiday Hoops Classic in Las Vegas over Eastern Michigan and North Alabama Dec. 20 and 21. Gonzaga improved to 5-2 this season.
Jenn Wirth was Gonzaga's best player over the weekend. She had 18 points to lead four double-figure-scoring Zags against Eastern Michigan while grabbing 10 rebounds. Then, against North Alabama, she and her twin, LeAnne Wirth, posted nearly identical statlines: Jenn had 14 points and 10 rebounds, while LeAnne had 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Gonzaga's only game next week is the start of West Coast Conference play, Dec. 28 at Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles.
EWU men's basketball
EWU was scheduled to play two games against Northern Arizona to start Big Sky play last weekend, but only managed one after Friday's game was called because of an inconclusive COVID-19 test result within the program. Everyone was cleared for Saturday's game, which resulted in an easy 80-64 victory for the Eagles.
Tanner Groves led the way with 26 points and 13 rebounds, while Kim Aiken Jr. added a season-high 19 points.
EWU is off until New Year's Eve, when there's a scheduled Big Sky tilt with Portland State in Cheney.
EWU women's basketball
EWU managed its first win of the season with a 59-46 win over College of Idaho on Dec. 17, but then suffered two more defeats: One at home to Seattle U 77-65 on Dec. 19, and one on the road in Pullman to WSU 72-53. The Eagles are now 1-6 this season.
Kennedy Dickie scored 19 points and grabbed nine rebounds in EWU's win over College of Idaho.
The Eagles are off until a Dec. 31 trip to Oregon to take on the Portland State Vikings.
– Don't see a team you want covered in the area sports roundup? Email reporter Drew Lawson at drew@cheneyfreepress.com.
Drew Lawson is the former managing editor of the Davenport Times and a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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