WSU will host bitter-rival UW on Friday night as the Cougars look to complete the season sweep of the Huskies, who are currently on an eight-game losing streak.

WSU (8-16, 3-10) is coming off of a narrow victory last Saturday against Arizona. The final result was a 90-88 Cougar victory.

Head Coach Kamie Ethridge said the team played exceptionally in one of their best Pac-12 match ups of the season.

“Arizona is a team that makes you take and make outside shots,” Ethridge said. “We did some great things and, when we executed really well, we got great shots at the basket.”

Junior guard Chanelle Molina and redshirt junior Borislava Hristova shone in the game, combining for 65 points to help lift the Cougars over the Wildcats.

This win over Arizona helped snap a seven-game losing streak for the Cougars. With only five games left, WSU is looking to turn around its season during the final stretch.

The final Apple Cup matchup of the season will be the Cougars’ last home game until March 1. The first Apple Cup contest came just before the new year and ended with a 79-76 WSU victory in Seattle.

In this game, Hristova scored a career-best 38 points and made clutch shots during the final seconds. Hristova and Molina displayed their dominance in this first matchup by making key shots when they mattered the most.

Looking forward to their game against UW, Hristova and the rest of the Cougars are aware of how important this game is among all of the others.

“It’s for sure a really good matchup for us and it’s a really good game,” Hristova said. “We beat them the first time in Seattle, so they’re going to be coming in really hungry and we know we got to be prepared.”

The matchup played in Seattle was the Cougars’ first game in conference play. Since then, the Cougars have only won two games and lost 10.

UW (8-16, 1-11) in the meantime is coming off a 69-59 loss to Arizona and its game against Arizona State on Saturday was canceled due to weather conditions. The Huskies are at their lowest of lows, riding an eight-game losing streak into the matchup with the Cougars. They also have a 1-7 record on the road.

Ethridge isn’t taking any game lightly as they compete in the Pac-12. Comparing their performance against Arizona to their upcoming contest, Ethridge said the Cougars have a good understanding of what level of play they need to take to the court.

“We’ve basically said that if we can get to 70 we can win by two,” Ethridge said. “We got to 90 [against Arizona] and won by two so that tells you how perfect we have to be.”

Tipoff against the Huskies is set for 7 p.m. Friday in Beasley Coliseum. Fight Night on the Palouse T-shirts and free popcorn will be handed out to students who attend the game. The contest can also be seen live on Pac-12 Networks.