Disappointing start for Cougar women
It was disappointing to see Washington State lost at home to Arizona, especially when Washington knocked off Arizona State.
That means the Cougars are 0-3 in the Pac-10, losing at Oregon State and Oregon and to the Wildcats, teams along with the 2-1 Huskies they were picked to finish ahead of. There is no question WSU has more talent but at the moment that's not translating into wins. What's up with that?
For a few more notes, including the key West Coast Conference opener, keep reading
Facing a difficult decision after the figure skating break - the Spokane Chiefs return home on the 29th to face Seattle, the same time the Huskies visit the Cougars. Since I can't be two places at once, it might be a hard sell to drive to Pullman. A lot can happen between now and then - I know I may be a little tired of being in the Arena with seven days of figure skating coverage - but right now the Cougars are certainly disappointing.
Another hard sell is going to be many WCC league games but not the opener. Though I'm confident Gonzaga will win a sixth straight title, I'm looking forward to Saturday's visit from Portland, which beat the Bulldogs last year at McCarthey, led by junior Tara Cronin (Gonzaga Prep). Freshman Sarah Kliewer (Lewis and Clark) comes off the bench. The Zags will be hard pressed to run the table but I can't imagine any other team winning enough games to claim the title. The Bulldogs have three straight home games to open league with senior Heather Bowman 57 points short of the league scoring record. She needs 115 for the school record. Junior Courtney Vandersloot is 31 assists shy of the school record 90 from the league record.
An interesting weekend for Eastern Washington as well as rebuilding Montana, with standout freshman Katie Baker (Lake City) visits tonight and Montana State, with junior Lyndi Seidensticker (Lewis and Clark) comes in Saturday. With a hockey conflict it's the first time in memory I'll miss Montana's visit. Grizzly assistant Shannon Cate Schweyen was a prep star I was covering in Montana when I moved to Spokane, so it's always nice to say hi to a friend who went on to become one of the greatest players, male or female, in Big Sky Conference history. And later I found out I graduated from high school with assist coach Trish Olson Duce's brother. Small world.
Angie Bjorklund (University) lit it up again for Tennessee. She is now 107 points shy of 1,000 for her career and has moved into third place on the Lady Vol's 3-point list with 178. Only 1,400 fans showed up because of a snow storm. Among those unable to get to the arena was the beatwriter. The Tennessee men are going through a tough time with four players arrested by Lady Vols' coach Pat Summitt is supporting her counterpart, a notebook that points out Bjorklund's red-hot shooting. For more from the game, check here.
The latest ESPN bracketology update is a video clip, but only deals with the top three seeds.
We'll be back after Gonzaga's game on Saturday. Until then, please help us figure out the Cougars.