The Cougars won their first-round matchup against the Fresno State Bulldogs 84-73, and are now set to play SMU in the finals at 6:30 tonight.
The game was close early on, with the Cougars following a similar script to their other wins this season. It was a back-and-forth game in the first half, with the Cougs emerging at halftime with a 39-36 lead. In the second half, they extended their lead, going on a 9-0 run with about ten minutes left in the game, which helped them pull away and put the game out of reach.
Nate Calmese led the team with 22 points, his second 20-point game this season. The senior guard made 63% of his shots and added eight rebounds and six assists. Calmese did fall victim to turnovers, which has been his Achilles’ heel this season. He turned the ball over a team-leading seven times.
As a team, the Cougs turned the ball over 19 times, a mark that is not ideal. However, they also forced the Bulldogs to turn the ball over 18 times, which helped counter their own turnovers.
The Cougs continued to play well in the paint, outscoring Fresno State 50-34 in the key and out-rebounding them by nine. WSU came away with seven blocks, including three from ND Okafor off the bench, while the Bulldogs did not manage a single one.
Ethan Price scored a season-high 16 points, hitting two of four threes, and also led the team with six assists.
LeJuan Watts and Dane Erikstrup also topped double-digit points, scoring 14 and 13 points each.
In a rare turn of events, WSU did not win the three-point battle, as their 27% (6-22) was slightly outdone by the Bulldogs 32% (7-22).
Most impressive was that the Cougars put on that performance without starter Cedric Coward, who was out. Isaiah Watts made his first start in his absence.
“I think it’s good to show that we got a bunch of guys that can step up and play,” said head coach David Riley after the game.
The Cougs now take on SMU, who beat Cal Baptist 79-77.
“We’re gonna play at a high pace, we’re gonna share the ball,” said Nate Calmese. He said he expects the Cougs to give SMU a tough fight.
SMU (5-2) is favored by 4.5 points by ESPNBet and is given a 63.2% chance to win, with the Cougars holding a 36.8% chance, according to the ESPN Matchup Predictor. The two teams are very close on KenPom rankings, with SMU at No. 72 and WSU at No. 88. Neither team is currently projected to reach the NCAA tournament. A neutral-site win would count as a Quad-2 win for either team.
