Cougars Hit Shore Running WSU Transition Game Gets Boost In Win

Washington State got what it was looking for - an easy win.

And the Cougars couldn’t be happier about it.

Never mind that Saturday’s win at Friel Court was 80-54 blowout against Maryland-Eastern Shore, a team ranked in the lower 50 of the RPI. Or that the Cougars didn’t play as well as they could have. Or that only 1,837 showed up to watch.

The important thing was that after losing a game at Portland, Washington State responded with a win to improve its record to 3-2. Maryland-Eastern Shore fell to 0-4. “This is what our team needed,” said Cougars coach Paul Graham. The Cougars needed and got a balanced attack with five players scoring in double figures. That’s the first time in two years five WSU players have scored at least 10 points each.

They needed and got a chance to work on their transition game.

“We wanted to stretch that other team,’ said Graham. “Get out and run.”

And they needed and got solid play off the bench from Milton Riley.

“Milt played almost a perfect game,” said senior Eddie Miller. “Something positive happened every time he got into the game.”

Riley, a string-bean sophomore, played 15 minutes, scored a career-high 13 points, had five boards, two steals and a block.

“He’s like Spiderman out there,” said Graham. “He gets those long arms out there and makes things happen. He got us ignited.”

After a sluggish first 10 minutes, Riley came into the game, converted a three-point play and chased that with a blocked shot on the other end. A few minutes later, the 6-foot-9 forward pinched a Hawks pass and went the other way for a dunk.

Suddenly, a team that was struggling to pull away from the Hawks pushed a four-point lead to a 15-point lead by halftime.

“For me, I’m just asserting myself,” Riley said. “Every day I come to practice and try to learn some moves from Eddie and J (center J Locklier). Having guys around like that is going to make me a whole lot better.”

Just finally getting some playing time is making Riley a lot better. He was forced to redshirt his freshman year because of brittle bones in his jaw. Last season, he did not have the strength to play extended minutes. This year, Riley is averaging 12.5 minutes per game and while his stats aren’t stellar (3.8 points per game, 2.3 rebounds), his contributions have been immeasurable.

“To watch him progress the way that he has is very encouraging,” said Graham.

The progress for the rest of the team was hard to measure against Maryland-Eastern Shore, because the Hawks’ talent level was considerably lower than WSU’s.

Still, it was evident that Locklier has started to feel more comfortable in the post. After going 2 for 7 against Idaho, the junior is 13 of 20 with an average of 15 points in his last two games.

But it was equally clear that point guards Marcus Moore and Cedric Clark do not have command of the team yet. The pair combined for eight turnovers and only four assists.

Miller is also still mired in a self-admitted slump.

After going scoreless against Portland, the senior forward tried to press the action against the Hawks. He finished with a team-high 15 points. But he missed some shots down low and only had three rebounds.

As a team, the Cougars were outrebounded 38-32 by the Hawks.

“Any team we play we should outrebound,” said Locklier. “That’s hustle right there.”

One plausible reason for the loss in the rebounding column is that Maryland-Eastern Shore did not run a traditional or recognizable offense. Instead, the Hawks just chucked it up from wherever and whenever, causing long rebounds that went right back to their guards.

But Maryland-Eastern Shore shot just 33 percent, so the few extra boards it did get were not enough to make a difference.

The Cougars will play host to Montana at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

WSU 80, Md.-Eastern Shore 54

Maryland-Eastern Shore (0-4) - Trotter 4-13 4-4 14; Newson 7-15 0-0 14; Street 3-7 1-2 7; Hickman 0-4 4-5 4; Hughes 1-2 2-2 4; Smith 1-4 1-2 3; Trotman 1-2 0-1 2; Roberts 0-3 2-2 2; N’Diaye 1-2 0-0 2; Darby 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 18-54 16-20 54.

Washington State (3-2) - Miller 5-10 5-6 15; Riley 4-7 5-7 13; McNair 4-9 3-5 12; Locklier 5-8 2-2 12; Adams 3-7 3-5 10; Moore 1-2 5-6 7; Little 1-1 2-2 4; Clark 1-6 1-2 4; Murray 1-1 0-0 3; Graham 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 25-52 26-35 80.

Halftime-Washington State 32, Maryland-Eastern Shore 17. 3-Point goals-Maryland-Eastern Shore 2-14 (Trotter 2-8, Newson 0-1, Roberts 0-1, Hickman 0-4), Washington State 4-14 (Murray 1-1, McNair 1-4, Clark 1-4, Adams 1-5). Fouled out-Trotman, McNair. Rebounds-Maryland-Eastern Shore 38 (Newson, Street 9), Washington State 32 (McNair, Moore, Riley 5). Assists-MarylandEastern Shore 8 (Newson 3), Washington State 11 (Moore 3). Total fouls-Maryland-Eastern Shore 25, Washington State 19. A-1,837.