Cougs Win In Ot Crowd Of 8,479 Isn’t Disappointed

On the bus ride to the Spokane Arena Friday evening, Kevin Eastman, in a burst of uncanny prescience, mentally outlined the plot for the Washington State-Gonzaga men’s basketball game.

“I felt on the bus ride over, it’s going to be A) ugly, B) unbelievably competitive, and C) it’s going to be a feeling after the game of gosh, why does one team have to lose?”

The WSU coach might have added a D) fabulously entertaining. Or E) an impossible act to follow.

Because WSU’s 72-67 overtime win in the first college hoops game played in the Arena, in front of a crowd of 8,479, will set a precedent for competitiveness by which all following games will be measured.

No, this was not bad for openers, as Gonzaga’s Scott Snider and WSU’s Mark Hendrickson swapped WWF holds in a bruising battle under the boards, and GU’s Kyle Dixon and Cougar Isaac Fontaine alternated slashing drives to the basket down the stretch with the game in the balance.

“I think everybody probably got their money’s worth,” Eastman said. “They were tooth-and-nail - fighting, clawing and scratching tonight.”

“Tough one to win, tough one to lose,” said GU coach Dan Fitzgerald, who took satisfaction in his team’s spirited effort. “Anybody who isn’t proud of our kids’ effort tonight shouldn’t be coaching.”

A clutch defensive stop with only 4.7 seconds left in regulation - in which Snider blocked a Fontaine driving shot in the lane - set up a dramatic finish.

With the clock winding down, Dixon drove up the right side of the floor and somehow coaxed a foul out of Donminic Ellison at the buzzer.

Eastman tried to hustle his team off the floor (“I thought it was over,” he said). But after a huddle, the officials decided Dixon had been fouled before the horn, and also that he was inside the 3-point arc - meaning he had two attempts to tie and not three shots with a chance to win.

Dixon drew nothing but net on both free throws with no time on the clock to force overtime and cap a GU comeback from as many as 10 points down early in the second half.

The thrilling contest, however, grew anticlimactic as WSU refused to miss free throws in overtime and pulled away to the win.

Even in the most frantic moments, Eastman continued to think how enjoyable the game was, he said. In part, that was because of the coaching maneuvering going on.

With roughly 6 minutes gone in the game, Eastman changed the Cougars’ game strategy a bit, and within a few possessions, he saw that GU had adjusted on the fly and was making cuts that capitalized on the changes WSU had made.

GU center Paul Rogers matched Hendrickson’s game-high 21 points. “Rogers gets better by the minute,” Eastman said.

It was Snider and Hendrickson, though, who put on the best show, playing with power and unflagging will.

“He changed his uniform and put on his Superman suit for the second half,” Fitzgerald said of Snider, who finished with 14 points, 10 rebounds (seven offensive), five assists, two blocks and two steals. “I don’t know that anybody has ever played harder for us.”

Hendrickson, meanwhile, pulled down 12 boards and made 11 of 12 shots from the line. “Mark Hendrickson just willed his way to the basket in the overtime period,” Eastman said.

“(Hendrickson) is probably the toughest big guy we’ll face all year,” Snider said. “I just wanted to play physical and always maintain contact with him.”

He certainly did that, breaking contact only when he fouled out in overtime.

The season-opening game for both teams revealed something to Hendrickson, something about the Cougars’ character.

“We showed we can pull these games out and hopefully that will be a trend we follow the rest of the season,” Hendrickson said.

Fitzgerald saw much the same from his team. “I saw we can play hard,” he said.

But several traits displayed Friday night were very uncharacteristic of these teams.

Gonzaga, which perennially leads the West Coast Conference in 3-point shooting, made only 1 of 10 3-point attempts.

WSU, meanwhile, led the nation in field-goal shooting last year (55.5 percent), but managed to sink only 40.7 percent Friday night. Also, having averaged 83.7 points a game last year, the Cougs came up with only 59 in regulation.

Eastman was not surprised by those figures.

“Both teams made the other team go to their options, and it’s too early in the season to look real smooth when your primary stuff isn’t working,” Eastman said.

WSU 72, Gonzaga 67, OT

WASHINGTON ST. (1-0)

Ellison 2-7 2-4 7, Antrum 2-10 4-4 9, Hendrickson 5-10 11-12 21, Fontaine 6-13 3-4 17, Mack 4-7 3-5 11, Daniel 3-5 0-0 6, Johnson 0-0 0-0 0, Scott 0-2 1-2 1. Totals 22-54 24-31 72.

GONZAGA (0-1)

Dixon 4-10 6-6 14, Williams 2-7 0-0 5, Snider 7-10 0-4 14, Kinloch 3-9 3-5 9, Rogers 6-10 9-13 21, Rollins 1-8 0-0 2, Leasure 0-0 0-0 0, Hendrix 0-1 0-0 0, Bond 1-1 0-0 2, Nemeth 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-56 18-28 67.

Halftime-Washington St. 33, Gonzaga 25. 3-Point goals- Washington St. 4-9 (Ellison 1-2, Antrum 1-3, Hendrickson 0-2, Fontaine 2-2), Gonzaga 1-10 (Dixon 0-1, Williams 1-5, Kinloch 0-2, Rollins 0-2). Fouled out-Washington St. Daniel. Gonzaga, Williams, Snider. Rebounds-Wahsington St. 45 (Hendrickson 12), Gonzaga 33 (Snider 10). Assists-Washington St. 10 (Ellison 4), Gonzaga 14 (Snider 5). Total fouls-Washington St. 25, Gonzaga 26. A-8,479.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo