Cougars shake sluggish start, rally past Ducks
PULLMAN (AP) - Klay Thompson had 16 points and Reggie Moore 15 as Washington State defeated Oregon 77-63 Saturday night.
The Cougars (12-4, 2-2 Pac-10) started slowly, trailing 17-9 nine minutes into the game while adjusting to the Ducks' pressing defense.
"It was a little different look," Thompson said. "After about five minutes we knew what we had to do. We moved the ball well and took good shots and as a result we got the win."
Moore sparked a 10-0 run with a 3-pointer and four free throws to give Washington State a 27-19 lead with 5:43 left in the half, leading to a 39-26 halftime advantage.
"Reggie did a nice job. He hit big shots when we needed him to early," Cougars coach Ken Bone said. "Klay (Thompson) and Faisal (Aden) were not hitting shots (so) it was good to see Reggie step up and put some down."
Washington State hit a trio of 3-pointers in the first 5 minutes of the second half to go on top 50-33. The Cougars' biggest lead came with just over 6 minutes left when DeAngelo Casto scored inside to make it 66-47. Oregon never got within striking distance, but Bone wasn't pleased with the way his team closed out the game.
"I didn't think we were very good that last seven minutes," he said, "but good enough to win the game. Even good teams play bad sometimes, and it's important you win those games."
Oregon (7-9, 0-4), which has lost six straight, wasn't at full strength for much of the game. Starter Joevan Catron only played 12 minutes because of an ankle injury and Jeremy Jacob went out with an injury six minutes into the game.
"I think we'll see a better Oregon team next time," Bone said. "I'm not sure we got their best shot tonight."
Garrett Sim led the Ducks with 13 points and Johnathan Loyd added 11.
Washington lost to Oregon three times last year, including a double-overtime loss in Pullman.
Washington State plays at California on Thursday.
OREGON (7-9)
Jacob 0-1 0-0 0, Singler 3-8 0-0 7, Catron 1-4 2-2 4, Sim 5-14 0-1 13, Loyd 4-13 1-3 11, Fearn 0-1 1-2 1, Losli 0-0 0-0 0, Seiferth 1-2 0-0 2, Williams 4-9 0-0 10, Nared 3-9 1-1 7, Strowbridge 3-10 0-0 8. Totals 24-71 5-9 63.
WASHINGTON ST. (12-4)
Casto 5-9 2-3 12, Lodwick 2-5 0-0 6, Capers 4-7 5-6 13, Thompson 6-13 0-0 16, Moore 3-8 6-6 15, DiIorio 0-0 0-0 0, Aden 1-6 3-4 6, Motum 2-3 0-0 4, Loewen 0-1 0-0 0, Winston Jr. 0-0 0-0 0, Enquist 0-1 0-0 0, Simon 1-2 2-2 5. Totals 24-55 18-21 77.
Halftime_Washington St. 39-26. 3-Point Goals_Oregon 10-32 (Sim 3-7, Williams 2-4, Strowbridge 2-6, Loyd 2-7, Singler 1-2, Fearn 0-1, Catron 0-2, Nared 0-3), Washington St. 11-26 (Thompson 4-10, Moore 3-5, Lodwick 2-4, Simon 1-2, Aden 1-4, Motum 0-1). Fouled Out_Singler. Rebounds_Oregon 35 (Nared, Singler 7), Washington St. 47 (Capers 9). Assists_Oregon 11 (Sim 4), Washington St. 16 (Moore 5). Total Fouls_Oregon 18, Washington St. 16. A_6,690.