WSU men’s hoops ready to kick off new season with home matchup against Idaho

PULLMAN – When he started talking about his Washington State team’s first game of the season, an exhibition victory over visiting New Mexico last month, coach David Riley mentioned something different first.

Defense.

“We contested all but 12 of their shots,” Riley said.

As WSU prepares to kick off Riley’s second year at the helm, beginning with a season-opening matchup against nearby Idaho at 6:30 p.m. Monday, the Cougars are working to make defense a more prominent part of their identity. Many of the issues they faced last year, a 19-15 effort, revolved around their defense – or lack thereof at times.

Does WSU have the horses to do it? The team is likely more equipped than it was last season. To address some of their holes on that end of the floor, the Cougs hit the portal over the offseason and brought in Texas Tech transfer Eemeli Yalaho and Boise State transfer Emmanuel Ugbo, both lengthy wings whose athleticism figures to earn them meaningful playing time this season.

The Cougs, who are replacing their entire starting five from last season, will also need to improve on some turnover issues that plagued them a year ago. WSU turned the ball over on more than 20% of its offensive possessions in Riley’s first year, one of the worst marks in the country, so coaches will be working to correct that problem as well. Spanish veteran point guard Adria Rodriguez will likely help, bringing reliable ball handling and savvy from his years playing in Spain.

Around that trio will be a handful of returners who profile as key cogs for WSU, including wing shooter Ri Vavers, who Riley said is recovering from offseason shoulder surgery and may miss Monday’s season-opener. Junior post ND Okafor, an interior force on the glass, will also supply valuable rim protection.

Riley liked what he saw in the Cougars’ exhibition win on that end of the floor.

“I thought we were disruptive, number one,” Riley said. “We didn’t allow them to run offense very much. Our guards, between Jerone (Morton), Adria, Ace (Glass) and Parker (Gerrits), I think they do a great job of picking up the ball and kinda disrupting their rhythm. Our bigs were physical. We had guards going vertical at the rim, too. We had probably 15, 20 verticals where we just threw our hands up, made them finish over bodies. And I think that just shows kinda the guys buying into that side of the ball.”