Hall of Fame
The 1917 men's basketball team's performance on the court was that of champion; off the court it was heroic. Washington State's legendary coach and athletic director, J. Fred "Doc" Bohler, was entering his ninth season as head coach of the team and was returning the core of his outstanding 1916 team that went 18-3 and earned a Northwest Conference championship; Roy Bohler, Ed Copeland, Bob Moss, Ivan Price and Al Sorenson. The Crimson and Gray (they were not known as the Cougars until 1919) started the season with five-straight road games in consecutive days, winning by an average of 35 points. WSC went on to play just eight of its 26 games at home. Its only loss came at California, 28-20, as the Crimson and Gray notched a 25-1 overall record and 8-1 Pacific Coach Conference mark. The 25 wins marked a school record at the time and remain the fourth-most wins in school history. In 1917 there was no 'national champion' designation awarded to a team at the end of the season, as the first tournament wasn't played until 1939. Washington State was retroactively selected national champion by the Helms Athletic Foundation.
