vs No. 11/8 UCLA (11-2, 2-0) | Friday, Dec. 30 | 8 pm PT | Beasley Colisum (Pullman, Wash.)
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OPENING FIVE
1. Washington State returns to conference play and the friendly confines of Beasley Coliseum for a tipoff against No. 11 UCLA, Friday, Dec. 30 at 8 p.m. PT with coverage on Pac-12 Network. Last year the Cougs and Bruins met twice with UCLA winning in Los Angeles and in the last meeting, a 75-65 victory in the Pac-12 Tournament. The Cougars have not lost to UCLA in Pullman since Jan. 30, 2019, having won the previous two Palouse meetings.
2. Last time out, Utah State beat Washington State, 82-73, in the third-place game of the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu, Dec. 25. Mouhamed Gueye tallied his fifth double-double of the year, TJ Bamba scored 19 points, and Justin Powell added 10, but the Cougs could not overcome hot shooting from the Aggies, who finished over 60% from the floor and 11-of-17 (64.7%) from 3-point range.
3. TJ Bamba has emerged as Washington State's leading scorer at 16.8 points per game (sixth in the Pac-12), while shooting an efficient 45.3% from the floor. Bamba has scored in double figures for 12-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 8.2 made 3-point field goals per game, more than any team in the Pac-12. The Cougs have two players in the Pac-12's top-10 of 3-point shooters. Individually, Jabe Mullins is third in the Pac-12 with a 47.9% (23-of-48) clip from beyond the arc, followed by TJ Bamba at ninth in the Conference with a .417 clip (25-of-60). Against Detroit Mercy (Nov. 25), the Cougars set a school record with 19 made 3s.
5. Mouhamed Gueye has quietly turned into a double-double machine, with five double-doubles this season. The sophomore scored a career-high 22 points against Utah State to go with 12 rebounds. Gueye had back-to-back double-doubles for the first time in his career against Utah and Northern Kentucky.

COUGARS VS BRUINS
Washington State returns to conference play to face the nationally-ranked UCLA Bruins at Beasley Coliseum, Friday, Dec. 30 at 8 p.m. PT with coverage on Pac-12 Network. Last year the Cougs and Bruins met twice, with UCLA winning in Los Angeles and in the second meeting, a 75-65 victory in the Pac-12 Tournament. The Cougars have not lost to UCLA in Pullman since Jan. 30, 2019, having won the previous two Palouse meetings.

LAST TIME OUT – VS UTAH STATE
WSU 73 - UTAH ST 82 | DEC. 25, 2022 | HONOLULU, HAWAI'I
Utah State made 11 3-pointers in a balanced attack that led the Aggies to an 82-73 win over Washington State in the third-place game of the Diamond Head Classic on Sunday. Mouhamed Gueye scored 22 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the Cougars (5-8), while TJ Bamba was 10 of 12 from the foul line and scored 19 points. Justin Powell added 10 points. Washington State was 2 of 17 (12%) from 3-point range and shot 24 of 54 (48%) overall but was 23 of 26 from the foul line.

NEXT UP
WSU hosts USC in a New Year's Day special at noon, Jan. 1 from Beasley Coliseum with coverage on Pac-12 Networks, Pac-12 Los Angeles, and Pac-12 Washington. Last year the Cougs and Trojans met twice, as USC escaped with a pair of 2-point victories. In the first meeting, Dec. 4, 2021, WSU nearly pulled off the win in Pullman, but the Trojans escaped with a 63-61 victory, followed by a 62-60 win in Los Angeles, Feb. 20, 2022.

BAMBA'S BACK
TJ Bamba has emerged as Washington State's leading scorer at 16.8 points per game (sixth in the Pac-12), while shooting an efficient 45.3% from the floor. Bamba has scored in double figures for 12-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 25 made 3-pointers this season on 41.7% shooting (ninth in the Pac-12). 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 8.2 3-point field goals per game, more than any team in the Pac-12. Washington State attempts the second-most 3-pointers in the Conference (23.2) and shoots at a 35.2% clip (106-of-301). The Cougs have two players in the Pac-12's top-10 of 3-point shooters. Individually, Jabe Mullins leads WSU with a 47.9% (23-of-48) clip from beyond the arc (third in Conference), followed by TJ Bamba with a 41.7 clip (25-of-60). Junior transfer Justin Powell isn't far behind at 29-of-76 (38.2%). 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 two double-doubles over four days in Hawaii, bringing his season total to five double-doubles. Against Utah State, Sunday, Gueye poured in a season-high 22 points to go with 12 rebounds, after a 21-point, 10-rebound double-double versus George Washington. The sophomore registered back-to-back double-doubles versus Utah (Dec. 4) and Northern Kentucky (Dec. 7) for the first time in his career, including 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 nine times, with 19 double-digit performances in his young career. He has led WSU in rebounding 10 times this year.

POWELL'S PERFECT PASSING
Junior transfer Justin Powell has been taking care of the rock all season, sitting at fourth in the Conference with a 2.5 assist-to-turnover ratio (57th in Division I). Powell is averaging 3.3 assists per game, ninth 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 14th in the Conference as a 3-point shooter at 38.2% (29-of-76). Four times this season Powell has committed zero turnovers.

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 third in the Pac-12 Conference with a 47.9% (23-of-48) 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.

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 a trip to Hawaii. Since the start of the season, WSU has flown over 13,797 aeronautical miles.

RODMAN RETURNING VETERAN
As the Cougars' veteran senior, Rodman leads the Cougars this season with 13 charges drawn, more than double any teammate. On the offensive glass, Rodman has pulled in 22 offensive rebounds, most by any backcourt Coug, and is second on the team with 5.3 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 experience, they hold a +5.8 rebounding margin this season (fifth 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.

WINNING BIG
Four of the Cougars' five victories this season have come by at least 20+ points. Washington State's smallest margin of victory came against George Washington, Dec. 22, in a 66-64 nailbiter. It was the smallest margin of victory by a WSU team since a 67-65 win over Arizona State, Jan. 29, 2020.