WSU erases big first-half deficit to earn 90-85 win over Chaminade in Maui Invitational opener

PULLMAN – Maybe Washington State is a second-half team.

After trailing by double digits early in Monday’s Maui Invitational opener against host Chaminade, a Division II school, WSU erased all that in the second half and earned a 90-85 win, moving on to Tuesday’s semifinals.

True freshman guard Ace Glass tallied a career-high 26 points and junior wing Ri Vavers added his own career high of 25 points for the Cougars, who won the second half 49-33, taking a lead as big as 17. Wing Eemeli Yalaho tallied 10 points and nine rebounds, helping WSU pull away in the second half, avoiding what would have been a colossal upset.

“Been waiting for Ri,” WSU coach David Riley said in a postgame radio interview. “He’s was our leading scorer all fall. He had a little injury in the shoulder. Had to sit for a month before the season started, so he’s just getting his rhythm back and really excited to see him go. Ace, I can’t say enough about that kid. He’s done a hell of a job in his first six games in his college career, and he just keeps getting better.”

In the first half, in which the Cougars lost 15 turnovers and looked sped up against the Silverswords’ frenetic full- court press, WSU looked out of its element. Glass and forward ND Okafor each coughed up three turnovers, and unable to stem the tide, Chaminade looked like the better team.

That changed in a big way in the final 20 minutes. Down seven early in the second half, WSU followed with a 23-2 run, taking control with a 76-62 lead. In that surge, Vavers connected on two triples, Glass hit one and guard Kase Wynott cashed a pair, the final one a wide-open look from the left wing. When the ball fell through the net, the Cougars’ bench erupted, capping a game-turning swing.

But thanks to a late run from Chaminade, which scored 13 straight at one point, WSU still had to sweat things out. Clinging to an 84-81 lead with less than a minute to play, the Cougs secured a stop and got the rebound, turning things into a free-throw competition. That went the way of WSU, which shot 12-for-25 from beyond the arc on the night, ending what was a slow start to the season in that department.

Glass put the finishing touches on the win with two free throws, which was a fitting end to the game for Glass, who cruised to another scoring binge. He has now scored in double figures in five of his first seven games at WSU. He’s shown he can create his own shot and let it fly from deep, two abilities that serve him well with the Cougs, who need that kind of wiggle at times.

That’s also two straight games scoring a career-high for Glass, who singed Southern Utah for 20 points last week, an encouraging showing. But it came against a clearly overmatched opponent. Could Glass produce at the same level on a consistent basis? After the game, WSU coach David Riley said, “that’s the tough part about being a freshman, is you don’t really know what consistency looks like.”

Glass is beginning to show that he might. He’ll get one of his toughest challenges in Tuesday night’s game, which will be broadcast on ESPN2.