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PULLMAN — In his first year at Washington State, Dick Bennett knew there would be plenty of growing pains. It was a natural assumption, since he was bringing a different, defense-first approach to a veteran Cougar roster.

Now, in his second season, Bennett may have to deal with a different kind of pain — air sickness. In an attempt to set up future Cougar teams with friendly schedules, the head coach took on an inordinate number of road games this season, meaning his team will be traveling for much of December.

In fact, if you want to see the Cougars play on Friel Court, you better act fast. WSU will play just once in their home arena before Jan. 13, a game 12 days from now against Gonzaga.

So how will that translate in Bennett’s second year? Improved play. (They hope.) Same old record. (They fear.)

“We’re looking at perhaps a non-conference schedule that might be a little over our head,” said Bennett, never lacking in candor. “If you want teams to come back to Pullman, you have to go on the road initially. So we’re on the road against the likes of Oklahoma State, Kansas State, Brigham Young and Wyoming — and on and on. That’s always dangerous in a second year.

“Having said that, I’m not sure that the second year is going to be as good as the first year. But I do know that we’ll be a better basketball team.”

He says that despite the loss of their primary threat last season, Marcus Moore. The point guard led the Cougars in minutes, points, assists and steals in his senior year, and just now WSU is starting to understand what he meant to their team in a 13-16 year that included seven Pac-10 wins.

“You kind of realize once he’s gone how much he did for us,” said senior forward Chris Schlatter, one of a number of players expected to help pick up the slack. “Not even necessarily the obvious thing — his scoring ability — but his ability to set up other guys just to make plays and make other guys look that good.”

Bennett’s roster doesn’t have the balance most coaches would wish for, as Randy Green is the lone junior on the roster and everyone else is either a senior or a freshman. And while Schlatter and the other four seniors will contribute heavily, it’s a fact of life for the Cougars that freshmen will have to play a lot of minutes at key positions.

It hasn’t helped that two of the most important freshmen, point guard Derrick Low and power forward Chris Henry, are out until December with injuries. Low was expected to step in as the starting point guard and Henry, at 248 pounds, is the team’s biggest player.

In their place are two more freshmen. Kyle Weaver has taken over, for now, as the team’s starting point guard and Robbie Cowgill is starting in the middle.

“I’m learning a lot,” Weaver said. “It might be a slow process, but I think we’re coming together. Especially with a lot of young guys out there, sometimes as many as two or three at a time. We’re going to have to get used to that, and have the older guys step up and take control.”

Bennett has said ever since fall practices began in mid-October that his job is easier this season with half of his roster already familiar with the concepts and style of play he brings to the table. Still, trying to blend in so many freshmen, especially when they are plugged into important roles, isn’t an easy task. And without Moore or a star on par with some others in the Pac-10 — Thomas Kelati is the team’s leading returning scorer at 11.1 points a game — Bennett is trying to instill a toughness in his newcomers that will translate into wins.

“I know it’s going to be a hard year for us. I have no false illusions about that,” Bennett said. “The only way we’re going to have a decent season is if we win a lot of close games. Because we’re not big and we have a lot of youngsters who are going to play key roles, it’s just going to be hard for us every time out. It’s just something I know.

“I don’t think our kids are capable of picking or choosing. It’s the one habit that good teams sometimes fall into. They’re loaded. They play just well enough to get by. We have to play well just to get by.”

Fortunately for Bennett, he does have some advantages on this year’s roster that he didn’t enjoy last season. The head coach believes an eight- or nine-man rotation (at least) is important on the road to a successful season, and when Low and Henry return he should have enough players on his roster to do so.

Couple that with the flashes of improved play last season — a seventh-place tie in the conference and impressive wins at UCLA and USC on the same road trip — and the makings are there of a program on the upswing.

But like any Bennett team, things always come back to defense. Even though defending the low post could be difficult without a surplus of big men, the coach will preach his aggressive brand of defending the ball-handler at all times. And no matter what the problems are on offense, or on the road, that alone could keep the Cougars competitive.

“We’re not always going to be on offensively,” Schlatter said. “But we can always bring our defense. That’s something that Coach harps on regardless of what’s going on every single day. Our defense is basically our backbone. If we can bring that every single night there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be in every single game.”