November 27, 2009 in Sports

Cougars net first road win

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Klay Thompson scored 25 points and Reggie Moore added 17 off the bench as the Washington State Cougars pulled away in the second half to defeat tournament host Alaska-Anchorage 87-68 in the opening round of the Great Alaska Shootout.

The Cougars ran their record to 4-0 with their first road victory, but had to overcome the 27 points of former Loyola-Marymount guard Brandon Walker, who hit five 3-pointers.

WSU trailed the Division II Seawolves 8-7 after 6 minutes, but scored 10 unanswered points, capped by Thompson’s 24-foot jumper, one of his three 3-pointers.

The Seawolves (2-1) clawed back within five at 24-19, but another 8-0 run gave the Cougars some breathing room.

After seeing that lead dwindled to eight at the half (36-28), WSU outscored Anchorage 8-2 to start the second half, with Marcus Capers, who finished with 10 points, scoring back-to-back fastbreak baskets to jumpstart the offense.

When Moore raced down court and scored a layup with 12:36 left, WSU led 58-39.

But with Walker bombing away outside, the Seawolves chipped away, pulling within eight (65-57) at the 7:14 mark on Donnie Lao’s drive.

Besides his team-high 25 points, Thompson grabbed a game-high seven rebounds. He was also 4 of 5 from the line, giving him 33 free throws this season, two more than he had all of last year.

Lodwick, DeAngelo Casto, who struggled through 22 minutes, and Nik Koprivica all added nine points.

WSU coach Ken Bone pointed to his team’s 27-of-38 showing at the free-throw line as a positive.

“I was pleased with the fact, playing on the road, the first time this year for us, we were aggressive and attacked the rim,” Bone said on the postgame show. “All in all, that’s impressive. I like when we go to the free-throw line.”

The Cougars return to the court today against Nicholls State at 6 p.m. That game will be televised on FSN.

Washington State 87, Alaska Anchorage 68

Percentages: FG .509, FT .7110. 3-Point Goals: 6-15, .400 (Thompson 3-5, Lodwick 2-4, Koprivica 1-3, Moore 0-2, Allen 0-1). Team Rebounds: 4. Blocked Shots: 3 (Casto 2, Thompson). Turnovers: 9 (Moore 3, Casto 2, Thompson, Harthun, Enquist, Koprivica). Steals: 11 (Casto 3, Moore 3, Thompson 2, Allen, Koprivica, Lodwick). Technical Fouls: None.

Percentages: FG .389, FT .762. 3-Point Goals: 10-25, .400 (Walker 5-8, C.Robinson 2-7, K.White 2-5, D.Robinson 1-3, Lao 0-2). Team Rebounds: 1. Blocked Shots: 2 (C.Robinson, Campbell). Turnovers: 17 (Pacitti 5, D.Robinson 4, Lao 3, C.Robinson 2, K.White 2, Gibcus). Steals: 3 (Gibcus 2, Walker). Technical Fouls: None.

Halftime–WSU 36, Alaska Anchorage 28. A–5,849.

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