WSU must find answers to Anderson
PULLMAN – The question is simple, the answer complex.
How do you stop Cal’s Ryan Anderson?
Ask Washington State’s Robbie Cowgill, the player who will be charged with the brunt of the task Thursday when the 22nd-ranked Cougars travel to Berkeley and Cowgill talks about the challenge Anderson presents. But a clue on how to stop the sophomore, that’s not forthcoming.
Ask WSU coach Tony Bennett and he talks about how good Anderson is, how he’s the most underrated player in the America, how the Bears have improved, everything, it seems, other than how to contain him.
Maybe it’s because no one has figured out the answer.
“You put a bigger guy on him and he scores outside,” Bennett said this week. “He takes a smaller guy into the post and scores from there. That’s the beauty of Anderson. His versatility causes you to question your matchups.”
Anderson’s basketball beauty can be described, in part, with statistics.
At 6-foot-10, Anderson is big enough to finish around the basket, as his 53 percent shooting from inside the arc attests.
At 240 pounds, he’s strong enough to rebound with anyone in the Pac-10, as his 10.2 rebounds per game, third in the conference, illustrate.
He’s accurate from the outside (converting 45 percent of his 3-point shots) and from the free-throw line (88 percent, second in the Pac-10), he’s a prolific scorer (averaging a conference-leading 21.8 points a game) and he’s durable (he’s started all 25 Cal games and plays nearly 33 minutes in them).
“To have that kind of range with that size is a unique combination,” Bennett said.
“You have to walk this fine line between helping (on defense) and not helping,” said Cowgill, who spent the majority of the time in WSU’s 69-64 home loss guarding Anderson, a game in which Anderson finished with 27 points.
“He’s their main scoring threat, but he’s not running off screens,” Cowgill said. “It seems like most of his shots last game (came from me) getting extended or over helping. It’s not like he’s making tons of 1-on-1 plays, though he can.”
All that being said, Anderson has struggled against the Pac-10’s premier teams.
In three games against conference leaders UCLA and Stanford, he is averaging just more than 12 points a game.
In last Sunday’s 79-69 loss at Stanford, Anderson was held scoreless in the first half, hit just 2 of 13 field goals and finished with 15 points, 10 at the free-throw line.
Still, the Golden Bears were close down the stretch after rallying from a 16-point first-half deficit.
“Cal fought their way back,” Bennett said of the 15-10 Bears (6-8 in Pac-10 play). “They did it with (Patrick) Christopher, they did it with a lot of guys. They’re capable.
“That’s why it’s not just Ryan Anderson.”
For the Cougars (21-6, 9-6), a group that prides itself on team defense, it’s not just Cowgill. Those two will play the leading roles, however, and Cowgill knows what awaits Thursday night.
“In our team-defense set, you have to be conscious where he is at all times,” Cowgill said. “In that sense, it’s a challenge.”
Notes
Is Washington State a better team this year than last, when it finished 13-5 in the Pac-10? Bennett was asked that question in his weekly teleconference and he said yes, though the record might not reflect it. “In some ways, we might be a little bit better ballclub,” he said. “The league being as good as it is, we’re a little better.” … Bennett also said Aron Baynes came into his office this week and apologized for his play against Arizona, a game in which the 6-10 center was just 1 of 5 from the field. “That shows you what kind of kid he is,” Bennett said, adding he expects Baynes to bounce back this week. “That’s part of this level. You are going to have games where it’s not happening. You have to get back to the drawing board and get back to what’s made (you) successful.” … The Bears lead the Pac-10 in scoring, averaging 77.8 points per game. A big part of that is the improvement of sophomore wing Patrick Christopher, who is averaging 16.2. Last season the 6-5 Christopher averaged 5.2 points a game.