The Cougars lost 70-68 at Pacific, their second loss of the year to the Tigers.

The Tigers broke a 21-game West Coast Conference losing streak earlier this month when they beat the Cougars in Pullman and lost their next four, before beating the Cougars again.

Once again, WSU competed down the stretch and was tied for most of the game. Pacific dominated the boards, grabbing 34 rebounds, compared to the Cougs’ 24 rebounds.

WSU had a better shooting percentage, making 51.1% of shots compared to Pacific’s 47.5%. The Cougs also shot better from deep (47.4% to 36%) and had a better free-throw percentage (68.8% to 50%).

Despite shooting better across the board, WSU lost because Pacific took more shots, and made the ones they needed to make. The Tigers made eight of their final nine shots, stunning the Cougs again.

Isaiah Watts returned to the starting lineup for the first time since Dec. 18, 2024 against Washington. Watts scored eight points and contributed two steals. Dane Erikstrup led the team with 17 points but only added a single rebound. LeJuan Watts, a week after his triple-double at Santa Clara, was held to eight points and one rebound.

The Cougars were also whistled not once, not twice but three times on technical fouls. They were T’d up twice in the first half, one given to Ethan Price and the other to the bench. Then late in the second half, head coach David Riley was also T’d up. If not for the technical fouls, the Cougs likely would have won the game.

The Cougars have now lost three games in a row, and five of their last seven. At 15-8, they are effectively eliminated from at-large contention for the NCAA tournament, and will now need to steal a bid by winning the competitive WCC tournament.

Next they continue on the road, traveling to the University of San Francisco for a Quad 1 game on Saturday night.