WSU head coach Kamie Ethridge is not one to oversell her team on the challenges of the final month of the regular season.
But she does know that, even without star senior Charlisse Leger-Walker, the Cougars have the chance to win every time they step on the court.
“What a great opportunity. The need for everybody to be great every single time you step on the court, the urgency to play better than we’ve ever played, given that you know, just a handful of games left for our seniors. You know, just give them big-picture stuff,” Ethridge said.
WSU women’s basketball (15-10, 4-8 Pac-12) travel to Arizona to face two of the four teams below them in the Pac-12 standings.
The eighth-place Cougars will challenge the ninth-place Arizona Wildcats (12-12, 4-8) at 5 p.m. Friday and the last-place Arizona State Sun Devils (10-14, 2-10) at 11 a.m. Sunday.
“People are desperate right now to find wins, ” Ethridge said. “That’s us in a nutshell and we’ve gotta be unbelievably focused and on point and we’ve got to get some production from a lot of different players on our team to be successful.”
Ethridge said shaking up the starting lineup at this point in the season is not in her nature, especially when her starting lineup is doing a slew of things well.
Senior center Bella Murekatete continues to be the focal point of the Cougar offense when it is at its best. Murekatete found herself in foul trouble Sunday versus Stanford and only spent about half of the game (21 minutes) on the floor.
When she was in the game, she was impactful. While the box score might not show it, Murekatete played at a high level against top-10 Stanford.
She made 2-of-8 shots and 1-of-1 free throws with three rebounds, two assists and a block.
“I feel good about Bella,” Ethridge said.
Beyonce Bea has capitalized on her additional touches and scoring opportunities. Between the Cougars’ Jan. 14 win over Washington, in which she scored 12 points and their Feb. 9 loss to Cal, Bea did not score in double figures.
With more touches to go around and the need for an offensive spark, Bea, the second-leading scorer in Idaho women’s basketball history, will need to step up for the Cougs.
“Bea’s in a really good spot,” Ethridge said. “I just like how she competes every single day in practice.”
Astera Tuhina returned to the court two weeks ago following six weeks off the court because of injury. In her 23-minute 2024 debut, AT looked like her old self, posting 15 points and draining 7-of-15 shots. Against Cal Friday, Tuhina was held scoreless, but against Stanford, the reigning All-Pac-12 freshman sank three 3-pointers on her way to a 13-point performance.
The youngest starter on the team who has stepped up to an extraordinary extent is Eleonora Villa. She has scored in double figures in nine straight games, including 18 in WSU’s upset of No. 2 Stanford, Jan. 28 and 15, 15, 17 and 16 points respectively in the four games without Leger-Walker.
“I’ve been so impressed with her,” Ethridge said. “Her competitive excellence and her desire to be good is really great.”
Ethridge said Eleonora Villa has succeeded in every aspect of college life, from good grades to putting forth maximum effort in practice.
Eleonora has been one of WSU’s most consistent players the last week, including an excellent job guarding Stanford’s lineup.
“She has no agenda, other than to help us win,” Ethridge said. “You just gotta love it.”
WSU beat Arizona 78-57, Jan. 21. Five Cougs scored in double figures, including freshman Jenna Villa. Junior Tara Wallack paced the Cougs with 20 points and three 3-pointers.
WSU beat ASU 79-64, Jan. 19 as Eleonora Villa and Murekatete each posted 16 points.
Leger-Walker provided 10 points versus Arizona and 15 vs. ASU. In her absence, Wallack has stepped up.
“We’re still learning how to play without Charlisse and still adapting to that,” Wallack said. “There’s always, like I said, room for improvement and just keeping our heads high.”
Stanford broke the junior from South Surrey’s streak of seven straight games in double figures. Despite the challenge, Wallack posted 9 points vs. the Cardinal. Wallack has been her own biggest critic as the team relies on each other to fill the void of scoring, defense and on-court leadership left by Leger-Walker.
Ethridge said Wallack gives the Cougs a range of offensive opportunities with her ability to post up and score at the rim and be lethal from beyond the arc.
“She can’t sit back and wait for Charlisse [Leger-Walker] anymore or anybody else. It’s really got to be on her shoulders and she’s handled that great,” Ethridge said.
WSU plays Arizona at 5 p.m. Friday at the McKale Center in Tucson, Arizona. Fans can watch on Pac-12 Washington.
