Washington State Basketball: Cougs defeat Buffalo Bulls 65-54 in Seattle
By Evan Baron
Dec 21, 2012; Seattle, WA, USA; Washington State Cougars guard Royce Woolridge (22) drives to the basket past Buffalo Bulls forward Raphell Thomas-Edwards (0) during the 1st half at KeyArena. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
The Cougars defeated Buffalo in a close game last night in front of a solid Seattle fan base at the famous Key Arena. WSU came out strong in the first couple minutes, but with the questionable strategy of playing a 2-3 zone, allowed Buffalo to make this a game.
Many fans expected this game to be a blow in favor of WSU, but it was another test for this Cougar basketball team. In fact this team struggled offensively in the first half, allowing Buffalo an opportunity to take control, however the quality play of Brock Motum and DeVonte Lacy kept this game close.
WSU head coach Ken Bone must have really encouraged his players in the locker room because we saw a different Cougar basketball team in the second half. The Cougars would focus more on going inside to the big men which was the difference in this game. DJ Shelton finished the game with 11 rebounds and had few monster dunks. Brock Motum had another strong game and finished with 15 points.
Buffalo would continue to make their three point shots but WSU did a better job of containing the big men. Of course WSU’s other main scorer in DeVonte Lacy was making his shots and finished with a team high 19 points. Point guard Royce Woolridge only had 6 points but did his job at running the point; finishing with 7 assists. Each game Woolridge is improving as a point guard, but Cougar fans are still waiting for the Kansas transfer to “break out of his shell” and start scoring more often.
Overall this was a good win for the Cougars, but it seems like this team plays to their opponents’ level. This team lost to the number 10 team in the country in Gonzaga by 2 points, and only beat Buffalo and Jackson by 11 points? The Cougars have one more non-conference game against Idaho State before Washington comes to Beasley Coliseum. If the Cougars want to make a run in this (Pac-12) conference, they need to pick up their game and play with more efficiency. The Cougars next game against Idaho State is on December 29, 2012 at 3:00 p.m. in Kennewick, Washington. The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Network.
Go Cougs!
–Evan Baron (Follow Me On Twitter: @BaselineBaron09)