Originally published Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 12:00 AM

Winthrop mirrors Cougars

Matt Woodley, Washington State assistant basketball coach, got to bed about midnight Sunday. That wasn't bad, considering the variety of...

By Bud Withers

Seattle Times staff reporter

Matt Woodley, Washington State assistant basketball coach, got to bed about midnight Sunday. That wasn't bad, considering the variety of plays presented by Winthrop, WSU's first-round NCAA opponent Thursday in Denver.

"Offensively, they run a hundred set plays," said Woodley from his office at WSU. "You should see my chart. It's like I'm making my own playbook."

Monday on his radio show in Rock Hill, S.C., Winthrop coach Randy Peele repeated his belief a day earlier that "I thought it was a great draw, initially. My biggest fear in this tournament is our ability to score. I was really concerned about us playing a great pressing team like Louisville or Georgetown.

"We and Washington State are so similar, it's unbelievable."

Peele said the 22-11 Eagles "added a couple of wrinkles" in practice Monday and "may even add a couple of new defenses, you never know."

Michael Jenkins, Winthrop's leading scorer at 14.3 points a game, lit up UNC-Asheville for 33 in the Big South championship game. But if he's well guarded by WSU defensive standout Kyle Weaver, where else will the offense come from?

"That's a good question," Peele said. "It's probably why we're 22-11 and not 28-5. The ability to score is by our biggest concern as a staff."

A couple of WSU stats have Peele's attention: The Cougars have made one more free throw (454) than opponents have attempted. And WSU has 106 more assists than opponents, to go with 97 fewer turnovers.

Notes

• The Denver siting was good for at least a couple of families of WSU players from Colorado. Reserve forwards Daven Harmeling and Caleb Forrest are from Grand Junction and Pagosa Springs, respectively.

• WSU signee Klay Thompson, a 6-6 forward from Santa Margarita, Calif., capped a big senior year with a record-tying 37 points in the state Division III title game victory over Sacramento. Thompson, who had a career-high 40-point game Feb. 19, rose this season to Hoop Scoop's No. 29 spot among all 2008 seniors.

• The Cougars were scheduled to charter out of Lewiston this morning at 10.

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

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