The WSU women’s basketball team returns to the Palouse on Friday to face off with the University of San Diego (USD) in Beasley Coliseum after a two-game stint last weekend.

WSU (4-2) is coming off a close loss to the fifth-ranked University of Maryland at the South Point Thanksgiving Shootout in Las Vegas on Saturday in a game the team led after three quarters. A day earlier, the Cougars cruised past Nebraska 79-65 behind a career-high 18 points from junior forward Louise Brown.

“We are a very balanced team, I love seeing our bench outscore our opponents bench,” Head Coach June Daugherty said. “We’ve improved in several categories, our transition defense is getting more stingy about not allowing opponents to have easy buckets.”

The Cougars have enjoyed a strong start to the year, winning their first four games at home and outscoring their opponents by more than 15 points in each contest. WSU’s first loss came Nov. 20 at home to Oklahoma State in a 79-72 overtime defeat.

Sophomore forward Borislava Hristova leads WSU in points per game and total points scored with 98 while Brown has the second-highest total with 68. Brown also leads the team in rebounds with 44 and averages 7.3 rebounds-per-game.

USD carries a 4-1 record into the contest with its one loss coming at Northern Colorado (UNCO). A last-second jump shot and a pair of free throws from UNCO sunk the Toreros 54-51.

“We’ll be tested with how well we can handle the transition of both opponents,” Daugherty said. “They force a lot of turnovers, so we’re going to have to do a much better job of taking care of the basketball.”

The teams met in San Diego last year, with the Cougars pulling out a close 78-72 victory. Hristova led the team in scoring with 21 points and junior guard Caila Hailey added 11 of her own to propel WSU to the win behind a strong scoring output in the second quarter.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. today and the game can be followed live at wsucougars.com.