WSU Men's Basketball | Bruins too much for Cougars

PULLMAN — It's not enough that there are 78 miles of wheatfields and farmhouses between here and Spokane to accentuate the challenge Washington State must bear against the sun-belt properties of the Pac-10 Conference.

Thursday, there was blowing snow — not from the sky, but from the heavy white blanket on the ground whipped by such high winds that it closed Route 195, the main road between Spokane and Pullman.

Conditions were so wintry that WSU hired a chartered plane to bring game officials from the Spokane airport to Friel Court, where, outside, what snow that wasn't plowed into three-foot berms had turned to rivers of slush.

And then, as if to underscore what WSU fights regularly, intrinsically almost, the fifth-ranked UCLA Bruins again proved their superiority, pulling away in the final seven minutes for a 67-59 victory over the No. 17 Cougars.

Those with a sharp memory will notice that when these teams got together here early last March — when WSU had a chance to tie for the Pac-10 title — the Bruins' winning margin was also eight.

So the Cougars continue to chase the Bruins, who won their 15th straight game in Pullman. You get the feeling that they could play it here, or in Poughkeepsie or Peoria, and still, it would be UCLA's game.

It was a ferocious week of practice for the Cougars, maybe as testy as they've ever had, in response to the twin losses they suffered last weekend from the Bay Area teams. And yet, they lost for the fourth time in five games, falling to 17-5 overall and back to .500 in the Pac-10 at 5-5.

As good as the Cougars are at defending, at taking care of the ball, at simply doing things right, the Bruins do all that and throw in a couple of cans of Red Bull. WSU guarded hard, allowed nothing very easy, and still, guys like Darren Collison (game-high 18 points) create effectively when the shot clock is dying and the crowd is at full throat.

"They make you work for 35 seconds almost every time they bring the ball down," said Taylor Rochestie. "You're coming off ball screens, and as soon as you take a second off or relax, they're just taking it right down the middle, or they're coming off another screen."

Robbie Cowgill, the senior forward, had a more succinct wrap: "It sucks, man."

That's because unless the teams meet in the Pac-10 tournament, the WSU seniors have spent their last chance at the Bruins.

It wasn't for lack of trying.

"When you're playing against that kind of team, your best isn't always good enough," said WSU coach Tony Bennett. Noting the irony in his thought, he added, "Sometimes you've got to come up with something better than that."

They say basketball is a game of runs. It wasn't for the Cougars. The best they could string together all night was five points — five points without a Bruins' answer.

After a 26-all halftime tie, the first 13 minutes of the second half was cat and mouse, the Bruins mostly leading, usually by a point or two. Devastated by Kevin Love in the first game they played in Los Angeles, WSU double-teamed effectively and that left it to slashes by the Bruins' perimeter guys — Collison, Josh Shipp and Russell Westbrook.

WSU trailed 46-45 when the Bruins went on a killing 8-0 burst, spiced by three turnovers by the Cougars. Love lobbed to Shipp for the first two points and then Love blasted through a double-team to draw a questionable foul and hit two free throws, and the Bruins were golden from there on.

"What can I say?" shrugged Bennett. "They know how to win down the stretch."

Westbrook defended Derrick Low most of the night and limited him to eight shots and seven points. Kyle Weaver had 13 points and seven assists, and WSU got big help from reserve forward Caleb Forrest, who made four of his five shots for eight points.

But with the Bruins limiting inside offense, they could afford to play up on the Cougars outside. And though WSU shot a robust 52.3 percent, there was that eight-point deficit again.

"I think our guys played with the right amount of heart and intensity," Bennett said. "The emotion was there. But like I told them, no trickery, nothing phony's going to stand up in this game. (UCLA) will not be fazed by an early run, or a big crowd or anything."

Nor blowing snow, nor closed roads, nor the best the Cougars could dish out.

Bud Withers: 206-464-8281 or bwithers@seattletimes.com

Summary

UCLA (21-2, 9-1 PAC-10)
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Shipp	35	3-8	0-0	1-4	4	1	6
Aboya	29	2-4	0-0	2-3	0	4	4
Love	32	6-8	4-7	4-9	2	4	16
Westbrook	39	7-12	0-1	2-3	4	0	14
Collison	39	5-12	7-7	0-2	3	2	18
Keefe	11	2-2	0-0	0-4	0	1	5
Mata-Real	8	2-3	0-0	1-2	0	1	4
Dragovic	7	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0
	200	27-49	11-15	12-29	13	13	67

Percentages: FG .551, FT .733. Three-point goals: 2-8, .250 (Keefe 1-1, Collison 1-2, Westbrook 0-1, Love 0-2, Shipp 0-2). Team rebounds: 2. Blocked shots: 3 (Shipp, Aboya, Mata-Real). Turnovers: 15 (Westbrook 5, Collison 3, Love 3, Aboya 2, Shipp, Keefe). Steals: 7 (Collison 4, Westbrook 2, Aboya). Technical fouls: None.

WASHINGTON ST. (17-5, 5-5)
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Cowgill	26	2-6	1-2	0-2	0	5	5
Baynes	22	4-5	3-5	2-4	0	4	11
Low	37	3-8	0-0	2-3	1	4	7
Rochestie	39	3-7	1-3	0-2	4	1	7
Weaver	38	5-9	1-2	0-4	7	1	13
Harmeling	22	2-4	2-3	0-0	2	1	8
Forrest	16	4-5	0-0	0-1	0	0	8
	200	23-44	8-15	7-20	14	16	59

Percentages: FG .523, FT .533. Three-point goals: 5-14, .357 (Harmeling 2-3, Weaver 2-4, Low 1-5, Rochestie 0-2). Team rebounds: 4. Blocked shots: 1 (Weaver). Turnovers: 14 (Weaver 5, Low 3, Rochestie 3, Forrest, Harmeling, Baynes). Steals: 11 (Low 4, Weaver 3, Cowgill 3, Forrest). Technical fouls: None.

UCLA	26	41	—	67
Washington St.	26	33	—	59

Attendance: 9,547. Officials: Mike Scyphers, Bobby McRoy, Chris Rastatter.