at Hawai'i (7-3) | Friday, Dec. 23 | 7 pm HT | 9 pm PT | SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center (Honolulu)
  Live Stats | StatBroadcast
  Watch | ESPN2 (Roxy Bernstein & Tim Welsh)
  Listen | WSU Learfield Radio Network (Matt Chazanow & Craig Ehlo)

OPENING FIVE
1. Washington State advances to the semifinals of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic to face host school Hawai'i at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. The Cougars meet the Warriors for the first time since 1991, and are scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. HT (9 p.m. PT) with coverage on ESPN2.
2. Last time out, WSU defeated George Washington, 66-64 in the opening round of the Diamond Head Classic. Jabe Mullins buried a 3 with 3.1 seconds left to clinch the win. Mouhamed Gueye registered a double-double with a season-high 21 points and 10 rebounds, TJ Bamba added 17 points.
3. TJ Bamba has emerged as Washington State's leading scorer at 16.5 points per game (seventh in the Pac-12), while shooting an efficient 48.1% from the floor. Bamba has scored in double figures for 10-straight games, including a career-high 24 points against Boise State, Nov. 12 - the first 20-point game of his career - and back-to-back 20-point games for the first time in his career with 22 points against Northern Kentucky and 20 points vs UNLV.
4. As a team, WSU averages 9.2 made 3-point field goals per game, more than any team in the Pac-12 (6th in Power 6 conferences, 42nd in Division I). The Cougs boast three players in the Pac-12's top-10 of 3-point shooters. Individually, Jabe Mullins is second in the Pac-12 with a 52.4% (22-of-42) clip from beyond the arc, followed by TJ Bamba with a .442 clip (23-of-52). Against Detroit Mercy (Nov. 25), the Cougars set a school record with 19 made 3s.
5. Junior transfer Justin Powell has become WSU's lethal point guard threat with the third-best assist-to-turnover ratio in the Pac-12 (3.7, 18th in Division I), and the eighth-best 3-point percentage in the Conference at 42.6% (29-of-68). Four times this season Powell has committed zero turnovers, and averages 3.7 assist per game (seventh in Pac-12).

COUGARS VS WARRIORS
Washington State advances to the semifinals of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic to face host school Hawai'i at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. The Cougars meet the Warriors for the first time since 1991, and are scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. HT (9 p.m. PT) with coverage on ESPN2. WSU holds a 5-1 advantage all-time against the Warriors and have never lost to the Warriors at Manoa.

LAST TIME OUT – VS GEORGE WASHINGTON
WSU 66 - GWU 64 | DEC. 22, 2022 | HONOLULU, HAWAII
Jabe Mullins hit a 3-pointer with 3.1 seconds left to give Washington State a 66-64 victory over George Washington on Thursday night in the Diamond Head Classic. Gueye scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead Washington State (5-6). Bamba added 17 points and Mullins finished with eight.

ABOUT THE HAWAIIAN AIRLINES DIAMOND HEAD CLASSIC
The 2022 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic features eight teams with twelve games played over a four-day stretch at the SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu. This year marks the 13th edition of the multi-team event. The participating teams are George Washington (A10), Iona (MAAC), Pepperdine (WCC), Seattle U (WAC), SMU (American), Utah State (Mountain West), Washington State (Pac-12) and tournament host Hawai'i (Big West). Four teams in the 2022 field were part of the postseason last season, including a Washington State squad that advanced to the NIT semifinals. The Cougars were the 2010 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic runner-up, while 2014 tournament champion George Washington also makes its return to Honolulu.

NEXT UP
WSU returns to Pac-12 play, hosting UCLA, Friday, Dec. 30 at Beasley Coliseum in Pullman, Wash. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. PT and televised on Pac-12 Networks, Pac-12 Los Angeles, and Pac-12 Washington. Last year the Cougs met the Bruins three times, picking up an 81-73 win in Pullman, before falling to UCLA 56-76 in Los Angeles and in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Pac-12 Tournament, 65-75, in Los Angeles.

RETURN TO OAHU
The Cougars have previously competed in the Diamond Head Classic twice, and participated in the Rainbow Classic four times before that. In total, the Cougs hold a 10-9 record across seven multi-team events in Honolulu, dating back to the 1973 Rainbow Classic. The Cougs have reached the championship game three times, most recently in 2010 against Butler, but have never won a Hawaiian MTE.

BAMBA'S BACK
TJ Bamba has emerged as Washington State's leading scorer at 16.5 points per game (seventh in the Pac-12), while shooting an efficient 48.1% from the floor. Bamba has scored in double figures for 10-consecutive games, including a career-high 24 points against Boise State, Nov. 12 - the first 20-point game of his career - and back-to-back 20-point games for the first time in his career with 22 points against Northern Kentucky and 20 points vs UNLV. He is also shooting well from beyond the arc with 23 made 3-pointers this season on 44.2% shooting. Bamba led the Cougs with five rebounds against Prairie View A&M to go along with a team-high 16 points, marking the second time in Bamba's career he has led WSU in scoring and rebounding (March 3, 2022 against Oregon State).

BOMBS AWAY
The Cougars aren't afraid to pull the trigger from deep. As a team, WSU makes 9.2 3-point field goals per game, more than any team in the Pac-12 (sixth in Power 6 conferences and 42nd in Division I). Washington State also attempts the most 3-pointers in the Conference (24.6) and shoots better than all but Utah in the Pac-12, with a 37.3% clip (101-of-271). The Cougs boast three players in the Pac-12's top-10 of 3-point shooters. Individually, Jabe Mullins leads WSU with a 52.4% (22-of-42) clip from beyond the arc, followed by TJ Bamba with a .442 clip (23-of-52). Junior transfer Justin Powell isn't far behind at 29-of-68 (42.6%). In the Nov. 25th game against Detroit Mercy, the Cougars set a school record with 19 made from beyond the arc. Jabe Mullins led WSU with six made 3-pointers as the Cougs finished 19-of 29 from downtown. The splash show marked the fourth time under Kyle Smith the Cougs have made 15+ from beyond the arc.

GUEYE TAKING OVER
Sophomore Mouhamed Gueye, a preseason All-Pac-12 selection and All-Freshman honoree last season, tallied his fourth double-double of the season Thursday versus George Washington, with a season-high 21 points and 10 rebounds. Gueye registered back-to-back double-doubles versus Utah (Dec. 4) and Northern Kentucky (Dec. 7). In the previous game against Utah, he scored 20 points with 11 rebounds for his first career 20-point, 10-rebound double-double and the first by a Coug since Efe Abogidi registered 21 and 14 against Washington, Feb. 23, 2022. Gueye also tallied a double-double against Texas State, leading the Cougars in scoring and rebounding in the season opener. This season, Gueye has scored in double figures eight times, with 18 double-digit performances in his young career. He has led WSU in rebounding nine times this year.

POWELL'S PERFECT PASSING
Junior transfer Justin Powell has been taking care of the rock all season, sitting at third in the Conference with a 3.7 assist-to-turnover ratio (18th in Division I). Powell is averaging 3.7 assists per game, seventh in the Pac-12. The Kentucky native dished out a career-high 12 assists in his WSU debut against Texas State, Nov. 7, the most assists by a Coug in a season opener since assists became an official stat in the 1985-86 season and the most by a WSU player in any game in 13 years, when Reggie Moore tallied 12 assists against Portland State, Dec. 19, 2009. It's also the first double-double with assists since Malachi Flynn dished out 11 assists to go with 11 points against Arizona, Jan. 31, 2018. Twice this season Powell has tallied seven assists without committing a turnover. When he went a perfect 7.0 against Eastern Washington, Nov. 21, he was the first Coug with at least as many assists and no giveaways since Andrej Jakimovski tallied nine assists without a turnover against Cal, Feb. 18, 2021. Powell is also the Conference's eighth-best 3-point shooter at 42.6% (29-of-68). Four times this season Powell has committed zero turnovers.

FREQUENT FLYERS
The Cougars have spent plenty of time in the air this year. WSU has made two separate trips to Texas this year, in addition to the trip to Hawaii. Since the start of the season, WSU has flown 10,905 miles and will return to Pullman after Honolulu with over 13,797 aeronautical miles travels.

MULLINS MAGIC
Junior transfer Jabe Mullins wasted no time opening his scoring account at WSU. Mullins scored the opening basket for the Cougs in the season opener against Texas State and never looked back. After a four-game absence with knee injury, he has returned to sit second in the Pac-12 Conference with a 52.4% (22-of-42) 3-point field goal percentage. Against Eastern Washington, Nov. 21, Mullins made eight 3-point field goals - the most by a Coug since Noah Williams had eight vs Stanford on Feb. 20, 2021. It's also the most made 3s by a Pac-12 player this season and tied for the most by a high-major player in Division I. He followed the EWU game with six 3-point FGs against Detroit Mercy, as the Cougs set a school record with 19 made from beyond the arc.

RODMAN RETURNING VETERAN
As the Cougars' veteran senior, Rodman leads the Cougars this season with 11 charges drawn, more than double any teammate. On the offensive glass, Rodman has pulled in 21 offensive rebounds, most by any backcourt Coug, and is second on the team with 6.1 total rebounds per game. The Newport Beach native also leads the Cougars with 14 steals this year. Rodman entered WSU's starting lineup in the season opener against Texas State, scoring 16 points, the most since a career high 21 points against Northern Colorado, Dec. 18, 2021. He finished with a +14 plus-minus and 4-of-7 from 3-point range. Rodman followed up with a career-high 14 rebounds against Boise State to lead WSU on the boards, with 5 offensive rebounds.

DOMINATING THE GLASS
Despite the Cougars lack of frontcourt size, they hold a +6.9 rebounding margin this season (third in the Conference). When WSU faced Northern Kentucky, Dec. 7, the Cougs held the Norse to four first-half rebounds and just 12 rebounds in the game. It marked the fewest rebounds by a Washington State opponent since Dec. 29, 1992 when Princeton pulled in seven rebounds. The last time a WSU opponent was held below 20 rebounds was when Idaho State gathered 16 boards in Kennewick, Wash., Dec. 29, 2012. The Cougars finished with a +29 rebounding margin against Northern Kentucky, the largest margin since Nov. 15, 2008 when WSU went +34 (53-19) on the glass against Mississippi Valley State and only the second time in the last 25 years. WSU followed with another dominate rebounding performance against UNLV, limiting the Runnin' Rebels to 20 total boards (five in the first half) and finished with a +13 advantage on the glass.

INJURY BUG BITES EARLY
The Cougs have been short-handed since the start of the season due to injury. Prior to the season starting, the Cougars announced they will be without junior Dishon Jackson or redshirt freshman Myles Rice. Both are out indefinitely due to medical issues. Rice announced publicly in October he has been diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma and is undergoing treatment. Jackson did not disclose his medical issue and asked for privacy. WSU was also without Jakimovski (foot) for the first 10 games of the season, before making his return against George Washington, Dec. 22. Junior transfer Jabe Mullins, one of the hottest shooting guards in the country, missed four games with a knee injury. In addition, Darling, Diongue, Rodman, and Rosario have each missed at least one game at different times due to illness or injury.

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