The Cougars ventured to the midwest in their first Power Five match-up of the season, taking on the Iowa Hawkeyes, and lost 76-66. The ten-point loss was the first of the season for Wazzu, who let a three-point halftime lead slip away.
The Cougars started strong, playing sharp defense and not letting Iowa take advantage of them in the paint. However, they struggled to put up points, particularly from deep, which allowed Iowa to keep it close.
With a 36-33 lead at the half, the Cougars looked promising, particularly on defense. On offense, they hit three of 13 three’s and were making 44% of their shots. Iowa, meanwhile, struggled at the free-throw line in the first half, making just 46% of their free throws (6-13).
In the second half, the Cougs shooting woes got worse. They shot 34%, making just two of 15 three-pointers, combining for a season-low 17.9% mark from deep. Despite collectively struggling, the Cougars continued to shoot, indicating they are confident in their abilities. It might be concerning that the team’s three-point percentage has gone down in each of their four games, but it is promising to see them stay confident. Bad games are bound to happen, even to good teams.
The Cougs fought the Hawkeyes, and stayed in it till the end. With three minutes left, the Cougs took their final lead of the game, but an 8-0 run from Iowa closed the door on a potential upset. Iowa made 86% of free-throws (12-14) in the second half which played a huge role in sealing their win.
“It’s a big lesson for us,” said head coach David Riley. “This was our first time as a group having to really execute at the end of the game.”
WSU lost the turnover battle, as they allowed 18 turnovers, including ten steals, while only forcing 13 turnovers and seven steals.
“The whole game we looked a bit sped up,” said Riley.
One bright spot in the loss was Nate Calmese. The senior transfer continued to establish himself as the Cougs top guard. He led the team with 27 points and now firmly leads the Cougs in total points, with 80 on the season. He did, however, turn the ball over five times and leads the team with 13 on the year.
Another strong metric for the Cougs was their performance in the paint. A question going into the game was how the Cougars would match up with a strong group of big men for Iowa. They answered that question by out-rebounding the Hawkeyes 43 to 38 and outscoring them by ten points in the paint. It is worth noting that while Iowa had fewer rebounds, they still matched the Cougs in second-chance points.
Only one other Coug scored more than ten points. That was LeJuan Watts, who scored 11. The Cougars five starters hit one three each, to combine for five total.
Freshman Kase Wynott scored the first two points of his collegiate career, becoming the eleventh Coug to score in the season. It leaves Parker Gerrits as the only member of the squad (who has played in their four games so far) who is yet to find the hoop.
“It’s November,” said Riley after the game. “This is a time that we can grow.”
He talked about lessons learned, including playing with two fouls and learning how to score when the three-point shot is being taken away.
The Cougars next return home to face North Colorado Nov. 18.
