COUGARS TO FACE OFF AGAINST RANKED ARIZONA SCHOOLS:
• After three-straight road games, the Washington State men's basketball team (9-11, 1-7) returns home to host the Arizona schools, beginning with ninth-ranked Arizona (18-4, 8-1), Wednesday, Jan. 31 at 7 p.m. at Beasley Coliseum. 
• Wednesday's game can be seen on Pac-12 Network as Roxy Bernstein (play-by-play) and PJ Carlesimo (analyst) have the call. 
• Following Wednesday's game, the Cougars will square off against No. 25 Arizona State (16-5, 4-5), Sunday, Feb. 4 at 1 p.m.  at Beasley Coliseum.
• Sunday's game can be seen on ESPNU as Roxy Bernstein (play-by-play) and Corey Williams (Analyst) have the call. 
• All season long, Cougar basketball can be heard on the Cougar IMG Sports Radio Network as the voice of the Cougars, Matt Chazanow will have the call.
• Please see page one of today's notes for the list of affiliates. 
• Live stats are also available at www.wsucougars.com. 

COUGARS VERSUS WILDCATS: 
• Washington State and Arizona are meeting for the 80th time, as the Wildcats hold a 63-16 advantage in the all-time series. 
• WSU has lost 12-straight to Arizona, its last win having come Feb. 6, 2010 at Pullman by the score of 78-60.
• That win came in the midst of a three-game Cougar winning streak which went from the second meeting in the 2008-09 season to the second meeting of the 2009-10 season. 
    • WSU was led by then-sophomore DeAngelo Casto with a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds.
    • His classmate, Klay Thompson, added 14 points and 4 assists, while then-freshman Reggie More had 12 points and 3 assists. 
    • Derrick Williams led Arizona with 16 points and 7 rebounds, while Kyle Fogg added 13 points.
• The Cougars are 8-30 against the Wildcats at home, including an 0-3 mark in WSU home games at Spokane.
• WSU has lost six-straight to Arizona at home, its last win was also its last win in the series, a 78-60 victory, Feb. 6, 2010.
• Last season the Cougars fell to Arizona both times the teams faced off; in Tuscon the Wildcats won 79-62, and in Pullman they won 78-59.
• This season the two teams only meet once and will meet just once next season, at Tucson. 
• Fourth-year WSU head coach Ernie Kent is 9-22 all-time against the Wildcats, 0-5 with WSU and 9-18 as head coach at Oregon from 1998-2010.

BERNSTINE VERSUS THE WILDCATS: 
• Although graduate transfer Drick Bernstine is new to the Pac-12, he is familiar with Arizona.
• Last season at North Dakota, he faced Arizona in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, UND as a No. 15 seed and Arizona a No. 2 seed.
• Bernstine had a huge game for the Fighting Hawks, finishing with 20 points, 15 rebounds and 4 assists. 
• He became the first player to have at least 20 points and 15 rebounds in a game against Arizona since Kyle Anderson of UCLA in the 2014 Pac-12 Tournament.
• His 20 points are still a career high, as are his 4 free throws made in the game.

WSU AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS:
• Arizona is ranked ninth in this week's Associated Press Poll, marking WSU's second ranked opponent of the season and its first time hosting a ranked  opponent this season.
• The Cougars are 51-233 all-time against ranked foes, 1-0 this season, and have lost four-straight games to ranked foes within the conference.
• WSU's last win against a ranked opponent came earlier this season, Nov. 24, 2017 against then-No. 21 Saint Mary's in the semifinals of the Wooden Legacy.
• The win over No. 21 Saint Mary's marks its highest-ranked victory since defeating then-No. 18 Washington, Jan. 30, 2011 and snapped an eight-game losing streak to opponents ranked in the AP Top-25.
• The win marked the first over an Associated Press Top-25 team since defeating then-No. 25 UCLA, Jan. 3, 2016.  
• WSU has lost its last eight games against ranked Arizona teams, its last win was Feb. 1, 2007 at Tucson with the Wildcats ranked 20th and the Cougars ranked 18th. 
• The Cougars are 3-44 all-time against ranked Wildcat teams and 1-27 when Arizona is ranked in the top-10 (the only win came with the Wildcats ranked seventh, Jan. 6, 2007 in overtime, 77-73). 
• The Cougars are 7-129 all-time against against top-10 teams and 0-9 against the No. 9 team in the country, 0-3 against No. 9 Arizona. 

COUGS FIRING FROM DOWNTOWN: 
• WSU is third in the nation and leads the Pac-12 with 11.6 made 3-pointers per game.
• The Cougars have made 12 or more 3's in 13 of their 19 games this season; 15 3's in the season opener, 12 against Seattle U, 15 again against Idaho State, 16 against Saint Joseph's, 13 against San Diego State, 12 against UC Davis, 12 at UTEP, 15 against Bethune-Cookman, 14 at UCLA, 13 at USC, 15 vs California and 15 at Colorado...WSU had 11 against Kansas State.
• The WSU record for 3's made in a game by the team is 18 done three times, last, against UTSA, Dec. 6, 2014.
• Last season WSU made 10 or more 3-pointers in a single game just five times, and only once made at least 12 in a game 
• In Washington State's previous five seasons, the Cougars made 12 or more 3-pointers in a single game 9 times total, once last season, none in 2015-16, once in 2014-15, five times in 2013-14 and twice in 2012-13.
• If WSU were to continue to shoot at this clip, it would finish with at least 360 3-pointers made...the school record is 240 set during the Klay Thompson era, the 2010-11 season.
• The Cougars also rank third in the Pac-12 and 46th in the country with a .386 3-point field goal percentage.
• Three Cougars rank individually in the top-10 of the Pac-12 for 3-pointers made per game...Malachi Flynn is third in the league and 95th in the nation (2.65 3fg per game), Carter Skaggs is fourth in the Pac-12 and 114th in the nation (2.55) and Robert Franks is seventh in the league and 152th in the nation (2.40).
• Skaggs leads the Pac-12 and with a .464 3-point field goal percentage, while Franks is third in the league and 47th in the nation with a .432 clip and Malachi Flynn is sixth in the Pac-12 at .354.
• As a team, 51 percent of WSU's shots have come from 3-point range, while 46.7 percent of its points (696) are off 3-pointers...WSU opponents are getting 34.2 percent of their points off of 3-pointers.
• Eighty-six percent of Carter Skaggs' shots are 3-pointers, while 82.5 percent of his points (153) have come off of 3-pointers. 
• Fifty-four percent of Malachi Flynn's points (159) are off 3-pointers, while 76.4 percent (126) of Viont'e Daniels' points are off 3-pointers.

FRANKS BREAKS SINGLE-GAME 3-POINT RECORD:
• Junior Robert Franks broke the WSU single-game 3-point record and tied the Pac-12 mark with 10 3-pointers against California (10-for-13), Saturday, Jan. 13. 
• The previous record of nine was held by four different Cougars; current WSU assistant coach Bennie Seltzer (1992-93), Chris Crosby (1998-99), Marcus Moore (2002-03) and Derrick Low (2006-07).
• Franks is the third Cougar this season to threaten the record, as both Carter Skaggs and Malachi Flynn have each had 7 3-pointers in a game this season. 
• Franks had a career-high 34 points in that game, 25 in the second half and made 7 of his 3's in the second half as well.
• Franks' 10 3-pointers made in a game are tied for the third-most made in a game this season in the entire NCAA with eight other people. 

KLAY THOMPSON'S SINGLE-SEASON RECORD:
• Cougar great Klay Thompson holds the WSU single-season record with 98 which he accomplished in 33 games in 2010-11.
• Malachi Flynn is currently on pace to finish with 82 3-pointers in 31 games, which would account for the regular season and one game in the Pac-12 tournament.
• Carter Skaggs is on pace to make 79...Robert Franks is on pace to make 74. 
• Flynn's 82 would put him fifth in WSU's single-season record books (behind Thompson, Derrick Low, Jan-Michael Thomas and Eddie Hill), while Skaggs would be sixth and Franks 13th.
• Through 20 games, Flynn has 53 made 3-pointers, Skaggs has 51 and Franks 48; Thompson had 62 in that time. 
• With 58 3-pointers as a freshman to add to his 53 as a sophomore, Flynn already ranks tied for 19th in WSU's career 3-point record books with 111 made. 
• Flynn is on pace to end the season ranked tied for 10th on the WSU career list for made 3-pointers with 140.

COMEBACK COUGS:
• WSU has trailed at halftime in 11 of its games this season, as well as its exhibition game,  and was tied at the half once, coming back from five of them for the wins.
• The Cougars trailed Saint Martin's, 44-41, at the half in exhibition action, Nov. 5.
• They were behind, 42-24, to Texas Southern at halftime in their season opener, Nov. 12.
• Against Seattle U, Nov. 15, the Redhawks led the Cougars, 31-26.
• WSU trailed Saint Joseph's by 14 (38-24) at halftime, after the Hawks used a 23-0 run, Nov. 23.
• The Cougars could not comeback from their 42-25 halftime deficit to UC Davis, Dec. 2, falling 81-67.
• Idaho led WSU, 49-30 a halftime, Dec. 9, as the Cougars went on to lose, 91-64.
• WSU trailed Kansas State by 10, 35-25 at halftime after trailing by as much as 17 in the first half.
• The Cougars led by as many as 8 points before the Wildcats regained the lead for good and the 3-point victory.
• WSU was tied with Bethune-Cookman, 40-40 at the half, Dec. 22.
• The Cougars pulled within two in the second half after trailing by five at halftime to UCLA, Dec. 29, but couldn't pull out the comeback win.
• WSU couldn't overcome USC's 41-31 halftime lead Dec. 31.
• The Cougars were down 15 at halftime and trailed by as many as 26 in the second half at Colorado, Jan. 18...WSU pulled within 5 with 8:15 to go, but couldn't complete the comeback.
• Washington State trailed by as many as 13 to Saint Martin's, 22 against Texas Southern, 10  against Seattle U, 20 against Saint Joseph's, 6 to Saint Mary's (Nov. 24) and 9 with 8 minutes left to San Diego State (Nov. 26), overcoming all the deficits for victories.  

MORE ON COUGAR COMEBACKS: 
• The Cougars have overcome two 20-point deficits in their regular season games this season, marking the two largest comebacks for WSU since at least the 1992-93 season (research ongoing).
• WSU erased a 22-point first-half deficit to defeat Texas Southern, 86-84, Nov. 12, in WSU's season opener at Beasley Coliseum.
• Junior Robert Franks scored a career-high 25 points, grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds and had his first career double-double. 
• Franks scored just 3 points in the first half and had 22 in the second before fouling out in the second half. 
• At the Wooden Legacy against Saint Joseph's, WSU trailed by 20 points with 3:30 left in the first and was able to come back for the 75-71 victory, Nov. 23 at Fullerton.
• Franks scored 15 of his WSU-high 19 points in the second half, while his classmate Viont'e Daniels had 11 of his 17 in the second period. 
• After Saint Joseph turned the ball over just once in the first half, WSU forced 6 second-half turnovers. 
• Prior to this season, Washington State's largest deficit overcome for a victory since 1992-93  was  also 20 points, Jan. 30, 1993 at California.
• In that game, current WSU assistant coach, Bennie Seltzer scored 20 points and dished out 7 assists, as Cal's Jason Kidd put up a double-double with 11 points and 11 assists. 
• The Cougars' next-largest comeback was 16 points, also at California, two seasons later, March 11, 1995...the 16-point lead occurred with 9:45 to go in the game. 
• In 2009-10 WSU overcame a 15 point USC lead with 17:26 left for a 67-60 victory at Los Angeles. 
• Prior to this season, the largest lead overcome in the Ernie Kent era was 14 done twice in 2014-15, first against Missouri State at the Great Alaska Shootout and then again a 1-point victory over Stanford, Jan. 31, 2015.
• See page four of today's notes for more on the comebacks. 

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A HALF MAKES:
• Washington State is a different team in the second half compared to the first.
• It is averaging 40.9 points per game this season in the second half, compared to just 32.8 in the first.
• On top of that, WSU is shooting .480 (282-587) from the field and .432 (130-301) from 3-point range in the second half, compared to .414 (241-582) from the field and .336 (99-295) from 3-point in the first half. 
• Robert Franks is the team's second-half scoring leader at 9.8, and the first half leading scorer with 7.8 first-half points a game.

GIVING THE HELPING HAND: 
• Sophomore Malachi Flynn has been a solid ball handler for the Cougars this season.
• He leads the team and ranks ninth in the Pac-12 and 166th in the nation with 4.0 assists per game.
• He has 79 total assists and 37 turnovers in 20 games this season, ranking 112th in the country and sixth in the Pac-12 in assist/turnover ratio with a 2.014 mark. 

LET'S BE FRANK(S): 
• Robert Franks is off to a hot start in his junior season, averaging 17.76 points and 7.1 rebounds per game, while shooting .478 from the field and .425 from 3-point range. 
• Last year Franks averaged 6.3 points and had 3.3 rebounds per game...with 352 points, he has surpassed his total points from his first two seasons (245).
• With 48 3-pointers in 20 games this year, Franks has surpassed his number of 3-pointers made from the 54 games his first two seasons, 25.
• Franks currently ranks seventh in the Pac-12 and 125th in the nation in scoring and 12th in rebounds per game while he's third in the league with a .872 free throw percentage. 

COUGAR BIG MEN TURNAROUNDS:
• Robert Franks' drastic improvement from his sophomore to junior year mimics similar jumps done by former WSU forwards Brock Motum (2010-13) and Josh Hawkinson (2014-17).
• Motum's jump occurred between his sophomore and junior seasons, going from 7.6 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, to 18.0 points and 6.4 rebounds per game in 2011-12.
• Hawkinson's jump occurred between his freshman and sophomore seasons, going from 1.2 points and 1.5 rebounds per game in 2013-14 to 14.7 points and 10.8 rebounds per game in 2014-15. 
• Motum was named the Pac-12 Most Improved Player of the Year in 2012 and Hawkinson in 2015.  

BERNSTINE STEPPING UP: 
• In his last 11 games (Dec. 9 at UTEP, Dec. 16 against IUPUI, Dec. 20 vs. Kansas State, Dec. 22 vs. Bethune-Cookman, Dec. 31 vs. USC, Jan. 6 vs. Washington, Jan. 11 against Stanford, Jan. 13 against California, Jan. 18 at Colorado, Jan. 21 at Utah and Jan. 28 at Washington), graduate transfer, Drick Bernstine has averaged 8.2 points and 8.7 rebounds, along with 4.4 assists
• His 48 total assists in the last 11 games are more than his 6 in his first seven games as a Cougar. 
• He's first on the team and seventh in the Pac-12 with 7.7 rebounds and second on the team with a .513 field goal percentage. 
• Bernstine missed WSU's Pac-12 opener at UCLA, Dec. 29 due to a sore knee.

SKAGGS' LONG BALL: 
• Sophomore Carter Skaggs had the half of his career, as he scored all 26 of his points in the second period on 7 3-pointers as WSU defeated Seattle U, 75-59, Nov. 15.
• At one point in the second half, Skaggs accounted for 17-straight WSU points, as he made 7-consecutive 3-pointers in the period. 
• Skaggs nearly duplicated that performance Dec. 20 against Kansas State as he finished with 24 points on 6-for-10 from 3-point range and 9-for-14 from the field.
• Over the last seven games, Skaggs is averaging 11.8 points per game in just 22.8 minutes per game, while going 33-for-72 (.458) from 3-point range, the most 3s by a Cougar over that span.

CLOSING GAMES: 
• In the final five minutes of WSU's nine wins this season, the Cougars have averaged 13.8 points, shooting .545 (36-66) from the field and .655 (19-29) from 3-point range.
• In those wins, WSU allowed 8.9 points while holding its opponent to .315 (28-89) from the field and .222 (8-36) from 3-point range.

SHPREYREGIN GETS SCHOLARSHIP: 
• Former walk-on, senior Steven Shpreyregin was awarded a scholarship by head coach Ernie Kent, Dec. 28.
• He is in his second season with the Cougars after starting his career at Skagit Valley College.

COUGARS CROWNED 2017 WOODEN LEGACY CHAMPIONS:
• Malachi Flynn averaged 19.7 points, 4.0 assists per game and shot .500 (12-for-24) from 3-point range as he was named the 2017 Wooden Legacy Most Outstanding Player as WSU captured the tournament championship at Cal State Fullerton's Titan Gym, Nov. 26.
• Robert Franks joined Flynn on the all-tournament team as he averaged 18.7 points and 4.7 rebounds while shooting .528 (19-for-36) from the field. 
• WSU came back from a 20-point deficit to defeat Saint John's in the opening round. 
• The Cougs then led at halftime in their next two games to upset both No. 21 Saint Mary's and San Diego State to capture the title.
• Viont'e Daniels chipped in 9.3 ppg on 8-for-13 (.615) from 3-point, while Jeff Pollard averaged 9.0 ppg to go along with .556 (10-for-18) shooting from the field.
• As a team the Cougars shot .497 (87-for-175) from the field and .439 (36-for-82) from 3-point range along with .808 (42-for-52) from the free throw line.

TOP OF THE TOURNAMENT: 
• WSU captured the 2017 Wooden Legacy Championship over Thanksgiving weekend, marking its first tournament win since the 2009 Great Alaska Shootout. 
• Then-WSU sophomore Klay Thompson was named the Great Alaska Shootout Most Outstanding Player after setting a tournament record with 8 3-pointers made on his way to 43 points in the championship game against San Diego. 
• WSU's appearance in Wooden Legacy championship game marked its first appearance in a tournament championship game since falling in the finals of the 2010 Diamond Head Classic.

STRONG START TO SEASON:
• WSU got off to a 6-0 start to the 2017-18 season.
• It marked the Cougars' first 6-0 start since the 2009-10 squad started 6-0.
• That season, Washington State's streak of six-straight wins ended Dec. 2, 2009 of that season at then-No. 17 Gonzaga...this season the streak also ended Dec. 2, this time to UC Davis at Beasley Coliseum. 
• The Cougars went 10-2 in nonconference play that season as they fell to Kansas State the game after playing Gonzaga, Dec. 5. 
• This season's 6-1 start was the best since the 2010-11 squad went 6-1, as they went on to a 10-1 start before losing their second game of the season, Dec. 25 in the championship game of the Diamond Head Classic.
• The Cougars' 6-0 mark in November this season, marks its first undefeated November since going 4-0 in 2015-16.

KENT IN FOURTH YEAR: 
• Veteran head coach and former Fox Sports and Pac-12 Networks basketball analyst was named the 18th head coach in WSU men's basketball history, March 31, 2014.
• Kent came to Pullman with a 325-254 (.561) mark as a head coach, having spent six seasons at the helm for Saint Mary's in Moraga, Calif., and 13 at Oregon.
• In his 13 years at Oregon, Kent compiled a 235-174 (.575) record and a 109-125 (.466) conference mark. 
• His 124 conference wins rank him 15th-best in Pac-12 history (including Pacific-8 and Pacific-10 Conferences). 
• His win, Feb. 18 against Arizona State moved him out of a tie for 15th with former UCLA coach Ben Howland.
• While at Oregon, Kent led the Ducks to seven postseason appearances, including five NCAA Tournament Appearances (2000, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008) as well as a Pac-10 regular-season (2002) and two conference tournament (2003, 2007) titles.
• Kent's first season with the Cougars wasn't much different than his first with the Ducks, as he led Oregon to a 13-14 overall record and 8-10 league mark as Oregon finished sixth in the then-Pacific-10 Conference...he led WSU to a 13-18 overall record and 7-11 league mark.
• WSU's 13 wins in his first season tied him for third-best in Washington State history for wins by a men's basketball coach in his first season…he's tied with Kelvin Sampson (1987-88) and Dick Bennett (2003-04), as both of those were also improvements from the previous season. 
• Kent has 369 career wins, as he got his 350th win Nov. 19 against Montana at the Paradise Jam. 

KENT NAMED TO NCAA COMMITTEE:
• WSU Head Coach Ernie Kent was chosen to serve on the newly created Division I Men's Basketball Competition Committee last season, which reports directly to the Division I Men's Basketball Oversight Committee in an advisory role.
• One student-athlete, two current head coaches, four Division I staff members and three members of the public with significant men's basketball experience form the committee. 
• The committee also has regular communication with the NCAA Men's Basketball Rules Committee and will review student-athlete health and safety, sportsmanship and integrity, game operations and presentation, technology, and statistical trends. 
• The group will develop strategic principles in these areas, subject to the approval of the Men's Basketball Oversight Committee.
• This committee was announced Dec. 2, 2016. 

WSU SIGNS ELLEBY DURING EARLY PERIOD: 
• Charles 'CJ' Elleby (6-6, 195, Forward, Seattle Wash./Cleveland High School) signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball at WSU beginning in the fall of 2018.
• As a junior at Cleveland HS in 2016-17, Elleby averaged 23.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game en route to being named to the All-Metro League team for the third-straight season. 
• As a sophomore, Elleby averaged 16.0 points and 10.0 rebounds while helping lead Cleveland HS to the 3A state tournament...heading into his senior season, Elleby has scored a total of 1,055 career points. 

FLYNN AND FRANKS SPEND SUMMERS PLAYING BALL:
• Sophomore Malachi Flynn was chosen as one of 28 of the nation's top 19-and-unders and was invited to attend the 2017 USA Basketball Men's U19 World Cup Team training camp, June 18-25 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center at Colorado Springs, Colo. 
• Flynn did not qualify for the team, but spent several days training with team coaches, Kentucky head coach John Calipari, Colorado head coach Tad Boyle and Wake Forest head coach, Danny Manning. 
• Franks spent part of his summer in China as part of the USA Eagles' summer tour.
• Other former Cougars to compete in the China with the USA Eagles include Valentine Izundu (2015), Josh Hawkinson (2014) and DaVonté Lacy (2012).

NEW SEASON, NEW LOOK STAFF: 
• Fourth Year WSU head coach, Ernie Kent, has a new look to his coaching staff for the 2017-18 season.
• With the departure of veteran assistant coaches, Greg Graham and Silvey Dominguez, Kent added former WSU standout and veteran coach, Bennie Seltzer (WSU, 1990-93) and well-known high school coach, Ed Haskins...Haskins' late-brother, Aaron Haskins, played basketball for the Cougars from 1980-83.
• Seltzer still holds the WSU career assists record (473) and ranks ninth in scoring (1,423).