WSU CONTINUES ROAD TRIP AT BOISE STATE
The Washington State women's basketball team (5-1) will look to rebound from its first loss of the season, traveling to Boise, Idaho to face the Boise State Broncos (3-2) Thursday, Dec. 3. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. MT (6 p.m. PT) from Taco Bell Arena. Fans can tune in to the Washington State IMG Sports Network with Steve Grubbs on the call, follow live updated on Twitter with @WSUWomensHoops, and catch live stats online at wsucougars.com.
ABOUT THE BRONCOS
Head coach Gordy Presnell is in his 11th season at the helm of the Boise State women's basketball program. Presnell has guided the Broncos to a 3-2 record this season, most recently defeating Stetson in the San Juan Shootout (Puerto Rico). Last season, Presnell and BSU finished fourth in the Mountain West Conference with a 22-11 record, making an appearance in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
LAST TIME ON THE HARDWOOD
Freshman Borislava Hristova continued her high-scoring season with 22 points at Oklahoma State Monday night, but it was not enough to lead the Cougars to victory, as they fell in Stillwater, 70-60, for their first loss of the season. Redshirt-freshman Nike McClure played a career-high 10 minutes, while pulling in a career-best five rebounds along with senior Mariah Cooks to lead WSU on the glass.
COMING UP
Washington State will conclude its three-game road trip with a Sunday afternoon game in San Diego, Dec. 6. The Cougars and Toreros are scheduled to tip off at 1 p.m. at Jenny Craig Pavilion.
COACHING STAFF RETURNS TO BOISE
Thursday's game marks a return to Boise State for several of WSU's coaching staff, including head coach June Daugherty, associate head coach Mike Daugherty, and assistant coach Rod Jensen. June Daugherty began her coaching career at Boise State, along with Mike, leading the Broncos from 1989-96. In their time in Boise, the Daughertys compiled a 123-74 record, a pair of Big Sky regular season titles, and BSU's first NCAA Tournament berth in school history. Jensen began his Boise State tenure in 1983 as the Broncos' top assistant coach. In 1995 he became the head coach, leading BSU to a 109-93 record in seven years. Jensen gained as a defensive coach, as the Broncos regularly ranked among the top teams in the country defensively and won a Big West East Division Championship in 1999.
THREE OPPONENTS – THREE TIME ZONES
The Cougars are in the middle of a nine-day road trip spanning three time zones and three states. WSU traveled to Stillwater, Oklahoma and the Central Time Zone, falling to the Cowgirls, 70-60, Monday. The team jumps back one hour into the Mountain Time Zone for a matchup with the Boise State Broncos this Thursday, before concluding the trip at San Diego, Sunday, in the Pacific Time Zone. WSU won't have much of a break as it hosts Gonzaga at home just two days after facing USD in southern California.
OFF TO A HOT START
The Cougars (5-1) started their season 5-0 for the first time since 1998-99 when WSU also started the year 5-0. The honor for best start in school history goes to the Cougars' 1978-79 squad that started the season 10-0 before falling to Oregon.
BORISLAVA 'BOBI BUCKETS' HRISTOVA
True freshman Borislava Hristova has turned heads in her first six games with the Cougars. The Varna, Bulgaria native is averaging 21.0 points per game, best in the conference by a freshman and second-best overall. Her scoring average is the third-best by a freshman in the entire country. Hristova dropped 30 points on San Jose State, becoming just the second freshman in WSU history to reach the 30-point plateau. She is a dead-eye from the field, shooting an impressive .571 (50-of-90) as a forward. Hristova was named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Week, the conference released Nov. 23, and was also named the Rainbow Wahine Classic MVP after pouring on 39 points in two games.
RECORD WATCH
Senior Taylor Edmondson has made 77.4 percent (65-of-84) of her free throws during her WSU career. The mark is currently fifth-best in school history, after the New Mexico native began the season tied for seventh with a .769 clip. Fellow senior Dawnyelle Awa enters Thursday's game with 277 career assists, eight shy of a place on the school's all-time top-10 list. Awa, along with senior Mariah Cooks, have each played in 103 games during their time on the Palouse. If both seniors play in the 23 remaining regular season games, they will sit in a tie for third on WSU's all-time games-played list (126 games), and just three games shy of the school record held by former teammate Sage Romberg (129).
COUGAR FRESHMEN CONTRIBUTING EARLY
Washington State welcomed one of its most talented recruiting classes in June Daugherty's tenure with the signing of its three 2015-16 freshmen. Borislava Hristova currently leads the team with 21.0 points per game. The Varna, Bulgaria native dropped 30 points on San Jose State, becoming just the second freshman in WSU history to reach the 30-point plateau. Maria Kostourkova has proved an inside threat, averaging 6.2 rebounds per game and 6.6 points per game. Alexys Swedlund dropped four 3-pointers against San Jose State to aid the Cougars in victory, finishing with a career-high 16 points.
YOUNG WSU TEAM LED BY FOUR SENIORS
With nine underclassmen, WSU is young this season. The Cougars entered the season with eight student-athletes that had played less than 300 minutes in their careers, but are led by a senior class that has played more than 6,000 minutes in Cougar uniform. Washington State returns two starters from last year after losing Shalie Dheensaw, Tia Presley, and Lia Galdeira (foregone senior year).
THE “UNITED NATIONS OF BASKETBALL”
The 2015-16 Cougar basketball team is represented by student-athletes from seven different countries and five different states. Head coach June Daugherty regards the team as the “United Nations of Basketball.” The Cougars have five student-athletes from Europe compared to six for the rest of the Pac-12 Conference combined. Of the conference's six Australian student-athletes, two of them don WSU uniforms.
WSU PICKED TO FINISH 10TH
The Pac-12 Conference released the 2015-16 Preseason Coaches' Poll, Oct. 14, with the Cougars picked to finish 10th in the conference, receiving 30 points. The 2015-16 Preseason Media Poll also tabbed Washington State for 10th place, with 75 points, the conference announced Nov. 4.
FOUR PLAYERS TABBED TEAM CAPTAINS
Redshirt-freshman Nike McClure, sophomore Pinelopi Pavlopoulou, and seniors Mariah Cooks and Alexas Williamson were named this year's team captains for the Cougars.
DAUGHERTY INKS FOUR FOR 2016-17
Chanelle Molina, Cameron Fernandez, Katie Campbell, and Kayla Washington have each signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball at Washington State University beginning next fall, WSU Head Coach June Daugherty announced Wednesday. Molina (Kailua Kona, Hawaii) is listed as a five-star recruit by ESPN.com, and is the third WSU recruit from Konawaena High School (Dawnyelle Awa and Lia Galdeira). Fernandez (Makawao, Hawaii) led Lahainaluna High School to a 20-2 last season and the state championship game, while averaging 17 points, six assists, four steals, and five rebounds per game. Campbell (Oxnard, Calif.) is a three-time captain at Oaks Christian High School, she is a 3-point threat for the Lions, and made 77 shots from beyond the arc during her junior season. Washington (San Bernardino, Calif.) is a four-year captain at Cajon High School, Washington has led the Cowgirls to three-straight Citrus Belt League Championships.
COUGAR BASKETBALL ON THE RADIO AND WEB
Follow the Cougars on Pullman's 104.7 FM, 1150 AM, or go to wsucougars.com and listen online. Connect with Washington State University Athletics on the web at wsucougars.com, the official website of Cougar Athletics.
COUGARS SEEK RETURN TO POSTSEASON
Washington State has made two-straight appearances in the postseason for the first time in school history. Last year the Cougars were listed as the “First Team Out” of the NCAA Tournament and went on to compete in the WNIT, falling in the opening round to Eastern Washington. WSU also competed in the WNIT in 2014, snapping a postseason drought that dated back to 1991.
FRESHMEN LEAD WSU TO BEST START SINCE 1998-99
WSU's three true freshmen poured on a combined 56 points as the Cougars defeated San Jose State, 95-80. Borislava Hristova led the way with a career-high 30 points, becoming just the second freshman in school history to score 30 points in one game. Alexys Swedlund added 16, making four shots from beyond the arc. Senior Mariah Cooks pulled in a season-best 12 rebounds, as WSU outrebounded the Spartans 63-39.
