vs Utah (6-2, 1-0) | Sunday, Dec. 4 | 1 pm PT | Beasley Coliseum
  Live Stats | StatBroadcast
  Watch | ESPNU (Eric Rothman & Dan Dickau)
  Listen | WSU Learfield Radio Network (Matt Chazanow & Craig Ehlo)

OPENING FIVE
1. The Cougars play host to Utah in the conference home opener, Sunday, Dec. 4 at 1 p.m. inside Beasley Coliseum with coverage on ESPNU. WSU has won two-straight against the Runnin' Utes, while Utah holds a 27-6 advantage in the all-time series. Last season in Pullman Andrej Jakimovski and Tyrell Roberts scored 15 points apiece and WSU used a 22-3 run in the second half to beat Utah 71-54.
2. Last time out, WSU traveled to Eugene for the first Pac-12 game of the year, falling to Oregon 74-60. Mouhamed Gueye led the Cougs with 19 points and Bamba added 14. Oregon's N'Faly Dante guided the Ducks to the win with 22 points. WSU was without starting guard Jabe Mullins as the Cougs shot a season-low 3-of-14 from beyond the arc and committed a season-high 17 turnovers.
3. TJ Bamba has scored in double figures for five-straight games, including a career-high 24 points against Boise State, Nov. 12 - the first 20-point game of his career. Bamba is averaging a team-best 15.7 points per game on 50% shooting, including 54.2% from beyond the arc.
4. WSU is shooting lights out from deep, ranking seventh in the country and top in the Pac-12 with a 42.1% clip from 3-point range. The Cougs are averaging 9.8 made 3-pointers per game, best in the Conference and 35th in the country. Against Detroit Mercy, Nov. 25 WSU set a school record with 19 made 3-pointers. Individually, Jabe Mullins leads WSU with the fourth-best 3-point percentage in the country at 56.7% (17-of-30).
5. The Cougars have been short-handed since preseason, when Dishon Jackson and Myles Rice were announced out indefinitely for medical issues. Since the season-opener, WSU has been without Andrej Jakimovski (foot), while Dylan Darling, Jabe Mullins, DJ Rodman, and Carlos Rosario have all missed a game of action at different times.

COUGARS VS RUNNIN' UTES
The Cougars play host to Utah in the conference home opener, Sunday, Dec. 4 at 1 p.m. inside Beasley Coliseum with coverage on ESPNU. WSU has won two-straight against the Runnin' Utes, while Utah holds a 27-6 advantage in the all-time series. Last season in Pullman Andrej Jakimovski and Tyrell Roberts scored 15 points apiece and WSU used a 22-3 run in the second half to beat Utah 71-54.

LAST TIME OUT – AT OREGON
WSU 60 - ORE 74 | DEC. 1, 2022 | EUGENE, ORE.
Mouhamed Gueye scored 19 points for Washington State (4-4), which came in averaging 11 3-pointers but finished 3 of 14 behind the arc. Bamba added 14 points, but he missed his only 3, coming in at 56.5%. Jabe Mullins, a 57% shooter from distance, missed the game with a knee issue. The first half ended deadlocked at 32 with nine ties and five lead changes. Almost every statistic was a tie, but Gueye poured in 17 points for Washington State on 7-of-9 shooting. No other Cougar had more than four points.

NEXT UP
WSU returns to its nonconference schedule, hosting Northern Kentucky in its last nonconference home game of the season, Wednesday, Dec. 7. Tipoff from Beasley Coliseum is scheduled for 6 p.m. with coverage on Pac-12 Networks. The matchup will be the first all-time meeting between the Cougars and the Norse.

BOMBS AWAY
Washington State is shooting lights out from deep this season, ranking seventh in the country and top in the Pac-12 with a 42.1% clip from 3-point range. The Cougs are averaging 9.8 made 3-pointers per game, best in the Conference and 35th in Division I.  Individually, Jabe Mullins leads WSU with the fourth-best 3-point percentage in the country at 56.7% (17-of-30) followed by TJ Bamba with a .542 clip (13-of-24). 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.

BAMBA'S BACK
TJ Bamba has scored in double figures for five-consecutive games, including a career-high 24 points against Boise State, Nov. 12 - the first 20-point game of his career. Bamba is averaging a team-best 15.7 points per game on 50% shooting, including 54.2% from beyond the arc. He 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).

POWELL'S PERFECT PASSING
Junior transfer Justin Powell is averaging 5.2 assists per game, fifth in the Pac-12 and 51st in the country. Powell also takes care of the rock, with the 3rd-best assist to turnover ratio in Division I (5.17). 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. Against Eastern Washington, Nov. 21,Powell tallied seven assists without a turnover, 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.

MULLINS MAGIC
Junior transfer Jabe Mullins has 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. He leads WSU with the fourth-best 3-point percentage in the country at 56.7% (17-of-30). 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 third-most by any player in Division I this season and the most by a high-major team. 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.

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. In addition, Darling, Mullins, Rodman, and Rosario have each missed a game at different times due to illness or injury. WSU has been without Jakimovski (foot) since preseason.

PAC-12 HOME OPENERS
The Cougars have not won a conference home opener under Kyle Smith (0-3). The last time WSU won a Pac-12 home opener was in the 2018-19 season, defeating Cal, 82-59, Jan. 17, 2019.