Fast Break

BASKETBALL

Cougars finish exhibitions tonight

The Washington State men’s basketball team will hold its final tuneup for the 2008-09 season tonight, hosting Lewis-Clark State College at 7 p.m. at Friel Court in Pullman.

Tony Bennett’s Cougars return two starters and five letterwinners from last season’s team that advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament for the first time.

Admission to tonight’s game is free.

The regular season begins Saturday at 7:30 p.m. against Mississippi Valley State, also at Friel Court.

BASKETBALL

Freshmen lead WSU women

Freshmen April Cook, Jazmine Perkins and Rosie Tarnowski all scored in double figures Sunday as the Washington State women’s basketball team defeated Concordia 86-61 at Friel Court in Pullman.

Cook scored 21 points and added seven rebounds, six assists and six steals; Perkins had 15 points and eight rebounds; and Tarnowski scored 13 points.

In all, freshmen combined for 59 of WSU’s points.

Senior Ebonee Coates had a game-high 12 rebounds.

The Cougars open the regular season on Sunday against Texas Tech in Lubbock, Texas.

GOLF

Tigers star chooses Tennessee

Chessey Thomas, a junior at Saint George’s School who plays golf for Lewis & Clark, has made an oral commitment to attend the University of Tennessee on a golf scholarship.

Thomas, a two-time Greater Spokane League player of the year, is ranked 24th in the class of 2010 in the American Junior Golf Association rankings.

Among the more than 40 schools recruiting Thomas were Washington, Washington State and Idaho.

Soccer

Mikkelsen advances in Sounders tryout

Chase Mikkelsen, a former Spokane Spiders player who still lives in Spokane, was one of three finalists during an open tryout Sunday for Seattle Sounders FC.

The Major League Soccer club, which begins play next season, is holding tryouts in Yakima and the Seattle area later this month in addition to the Spokane tryout Sunday at Plantes Ferry Park. Three finalists from each tryout move on to a tryout in Seattle; one player from the tryout will make the Sounders’ roster.

Spiders technical directory Al Brown believes Mikkelsen, who played for the team during its inaugural 2007 season, has a good chance of making the MLS squad.

“He’s the type of player who has everything you’re looking for,” Brown said.