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Men's basketball goes to Aneheim
By Braulio Perez
Published 11/28/2011
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Inexperience and poor shooting was showcased by the Cougars this weekend as they went 0-3 in ESPN's 76 Classic in Anaheim. WSU's third and final loss came in a disappointing 64-63 defeat against UC Riverside where the team blew a double-digit lead in the second half and saw their record fall to 2-4.
 
WSU was up 54-40 in the second half and was not only controlling the game's tempo, but was clearly physically superior than the Highlanders. However, UC Riverside gained all the momentum shortly after when they went on a 12-0 run. The team got a huge push from senior leader Phil Martin, who scored nine points during the run.
 
The teams were going back and forth the rest of the way, but the Highlanders got the victory late in the game, providing the Cougars with their third straight loss. WSU shot well in the first half but could not develop any type of rhythm from the outside. 
 
For the game, the Cougars shot 5-17 from behind the three-point line, an anemic 29.4 percent. In total, the team shot 45.3 percent from the floor, connecting on 24-53 attempts from the floor.

Junior Brock Motum led the way for the Cougars on offense with 15 points, and senior Faisal Aden added 14 points. Junior Reggie Moore also scored 10 points off 5-10 shooting and led the team with five 
assists.
 
On Friday night, WSU fell 72-62 to the New Mexico Lobos in a game where the offense could not find any type of consistency. Aden scored a season-high 25 points for the Cougars, but his strong effort wasn't enough to propel the team to victory. WSU was down throughout the game and were able to cut the lead down to seven point in the second half. However, that's as close as they got in the loss.
 
WSU's tournament started on Thanksgiving night with a 74-59 loss to Oklahoma. It was a back and forth game throughout the evening before the Sooners took control. With WSU up by one, OU's Calvin Newell took control offensively and sparked a 13-2 Sooner run, putting them up 60-50 with 7:15 remaining. OU continued adding to their lead, and the Cougars didn't have any late game heroics and suffered the loss. 
 
"I feel like in the second half, our intensity wasn't kept up. Couple possessions didn't go our way and a lot of us had our heads down," senior Marcus Capers said. "Basketball is a game of possessions, and I felt we tried to get everything done quickly instead of possession by possession." 
 
The Cougars will return to Friel Court Wednesday with a showdown against Grambling State. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.

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