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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

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WSU trails 41-37 at the half


COUGARS

Talk about a possible TKO. Cal came out of the corner firing lefts and rights and down went the Cougars. But not for long. After trailing 28-8 with 12 minutes left, WSU turned up the defensive pressure – the Cougars had been pretty passive in their man and 3-2 zone they tried before – crawled off the floor and back into the game. It didn't hurt that they started getting back on defense and took away the easy looks in transition – Cal hit four 3-pointers in transition in the first 6 minutes but none in the final 14. Cal was 17 of 32 in the first half (13 of its first 16), including 7 of 12 beyond the arc. Jerome Randle and Theo Robertson split 22 points, with Jamal Boykin adding 10. ... The Cougars found the range, hitting 12 of their final 16 shots (including six consecutive at one point midway in the half), cutting the lead to four at halftime. WSU finished at 50 percent shooting, after starting 3 of 12. Still, the Cougars hit just 3 of 12 3-pointers. Reggie Moore had 10 for WSU, with seven others scoring. ... It's been a physical game but there have been just nine fouls called, with seven of those vs. Cal. We'll be back at the end.



Vince Grippi
Vince Grippi is a freelance local sports blogger for spokesman.com. He also contributes to the SportsLink Blog.

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