For the first time since the 1981-82 season (they went 1-2 with losses to Southwestern Louisiana and Ione), the Washington State men's basketball team will participate in the Great Alaska Shootout. It's the first time the Cougars will play away from Pullman this year.
The six team field for the tournament is pretty weak. WSU is in Pool A with Alaska Anchorage (the host team) and Nicholls State (out of Thibidoux, Louisiana). Pool B consists of Houston, San Diego, and Oklahoma. The Sooners are the only nationally ranked team (No. 25 in the AP) in the tourney.
Washington State (3-0) opens on Wednesday at 7:30pm against Alaska Anchorage (2-0). The game can be seen nationally on Fox College Sports and regionally on FSN Northwest.
The Seawolves are a Division II team. They are led by Malcolm Campbell (6'9" 265 lbs.), who averages 15 points and eight rebounds per game. Forward Nick Pacitti also typically scores in double-figures, averaging ten points per contest.
Wazzu gets Thursday off for Thanksgiving, but returns to action on Friday against Nicholls State (1-5). It's the first meeting ever between the two schools. Again, the game will be televised regionally on FSN Northwest at 6pm.
The Colonels have one star player. His name is Anatoly Bose, a forward from Sydney, Australia. He averages 20 points and nearly six rebounds per game. Fred Hunter (11.2 ppg) and Maurice Foster (11.0 ppg) are the only other guys who average double-digit scoring.
Depending on how well the Cougars do, they will play one of the teams from Pool B at either 3pm, 5:30pm, or 8pm on Saturday.
We'll be following Washington State closely during the tournament. Be sure to catch all the latest on KREM 2 News and KREM.com.
That's all I have for now.
GO COUGS!!!
