A bright Cougar future

Evan Baron Evergreen columnist

The Washington State University men’s basketball team is ranked last in the conference entering this season. The 2013-14 Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Media Poll was released on Oct. 17, after WSU finished in a tie for last place with Oregon State last year and lost key scorers such as Brock Motum and Mike Ladd.

“I don’t really care, it doesn’t matter until you get out there and play,” redshirt junior Dexter Kernich-Drew said. “It’s all opinions, so it doesn’t really bother me that much.”

The team will not only surprise Pullman this season, but also the college basketball writers. The team has the skill set to compete in the Pac-12 this year and possibly make the NCAA Tournament.

“We lost two of our best players in the program, and the guys that are joining us have not proven themselves yet, so I can understand. People think ‘well they’re not going to be very good,’” WSU men’s basketball Head Coach Ken Bone said. “But I feel we’ve got some guys that are somewhat unknown outside the community that are pretty good.”

Those unknown players include redshirt freshman Que Johnson, freshman Ikenna Iroegbu and redshirt junior Jordan Railey.

Johnson originally signed with WSU in 2012, but the NCAA ruled him academically ineligible leading up to the 2012-13 season, and he sat out the entire season. Before college, Johnson was noted as one of the top players in the West Coast for the 2012 recruiting class. Johnson was the 17th best small forward in the country and a four-star recruit, according to Rivals.com. Johnson averaged 20.8 points per game during his junior year at Westwind Preparatory Academy in Pheonix, Ariz., and he led his team to a 30-2 record and a 2A State Championship, according to Cougcenter.com.

“He can really shoot it,” Bone said in an interview with cougcenter.com. “That’s the nice thing about him, he’s not only a good shooter, but he’s a very good athlete. And sometimes that’s what is difficult to find. That’s where Que is really good.”

Besides Johnson, the Cougars also have a new point guard. Iroegbu is another highly recruited player that the Cougars acquired. Iroegbu was ranked as the 30th best point guard in the country for the 2013 recruiting class. He played a legendary high school basketball program at Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va., and knows how to run the point. Iroegbu knows how to run an offense and is a strong passer, which will benefit the Cougars. Not having a true point guard hurt the Cougars last season, and adding Iroegbu to the team will make an immediate impact once the season starts.

The Cougars also add some height to their team. Railey is a 7-foot center who transferred from Iowa State. After losing forward Brock Motum, the addition of Railey helps by providing size inside to grab some boards.

Besides the new additions to the roster, the Cougars return ten players from last year. Even though the Cougars finished 13-19 last season, the team was competitive in almost all games.

Junior shooting guard DaVonte Lacy was hurt for the majority of the season and missed a combined nine games due to his injury. A healthy Lacy will benefit the Cougars on the scoring side.

With one year of playing the point guard under his belt, redshirt junior Royce Woolridge will also have an impact on the Cougars this year. Woolridge now has the experience to lead the Cougar offense down the floor. He struggled at the beginning of last season as the point guard, but toward the end of the year he started to figure out the position.

The fact that there isn’t only one player to rely on to get the majority of the points will make the team successful this year.

“We have more parity when it comes to scoring,” Bone said. “Quite often that’s a good thing, teams can’t just key on one guy.”

The Cougars will also play more of an up-tempo style this year, which means applying more full court pressure in games along with pushing the ball on offense.

“I’m anxious to get out there, our players are anxious to get out there and prove the world that we’re better than people think,” Bone said.