WASHINGTON STATE (6-6 1-0 WCC) VS PEPPERDINE (5-5, 0-1 WCC)
Saturday, Dec. 28 // 12 p.m. PT
Pullman, Wash. // Beasley Coliseum
Watch | ESPN+
Listen | Pullman Radio KQQQ, 1150 AM (Steve Grubbs pXp)
Live Stats | Statsbroadcast


The Cougars are back in Pullman after the holiday break to continue WCC play, hosting Pepperdine on Saturday, Dec. 28 at 12 p.m. noon. The game will be live on ESPN+.

NEXT UP
The Cougars are back on the road to play at Pacific on Monday, Dec. 30 at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

ABOUT WASHINGTON STATE
WSU is 6-6 to start the 2024-25 season after a 1-0 start to WCC play last week at San Diego. Through the strong 11-game non-conference schedule, the Cougs tallied home wins over Eastern Washington, Idaho and Saint Martin's, and a pair of wins in Puerto Rico over Norfolk State and Virginia. The Cougars have been impressive defensively and elite in blocking as the team ranks second in the nation with 7.3 blocks per game. Offensively, the Cougs are shooting .417 from the field and .306 from deep while averaging 66.1 points per game.

RECORD BOOK CLIMBERS AND MILESTONE CHASERS
>> Tara Wallack has 1,019 career points, ranking 21st in program history.
>> Wallack ranks sixth all-time at WSU with 125 career blocks.
>> Wallack has played 3,228 career minutes, 37 away from entering the WSU all-time top-10 list.
>> Wallack is also 732 minutes away from matching the most in program history.
>> Alex Covill has 83 career blocks, 10 away from entering the WSU all-time top-10 list.
>> Head Coach Kamie Ethridge has 183 career wins as a head coach, 17 away from 200.

SERIES HISTORY
This will be the fourth-ever meeting between Washington State and Pepperdine, with WSU leading the all-time series, 2-0. PU is looking for their first-ever win over the Cougars in Pullman, with WSU winning 85-48 in their last meeting in 2019. Pepperdine's lone win came in 1983, a 78-75 win in Malibu.

STACKING BLOCKS
WSU has been one of the top blocking teams in the nation, ranking second in blocks per game (7.3) behind only Kentucky (8.3 bkpg). Their 87 total blocks rank fourth in the nation behind Kansas State (92), TCU (92) and Kentucky (91). The team's 87 blocks leads the WCC by a margin of 30 blocks over Pacific (57), and its 7.3 blocks per game is 2.5 blocks ahead of the second-highest number of 4.8 per game, also held by Pacific.

NEW FACES, NEW PLACES
WSU has six players this season earning minutes for the first time in a Cougar uniform as junior transfer Jean Chiu, redshirt freshman Candace Kpetikou, and true freshmen Charlotte Abraham, Marta Alsina, Alice Dart and Dayana Mendes have all made an impact already in 2024-25. Of these new faces, Abraham and Mendes have accrued the most minutes thus far, averaging 18.8 and 15.5 minutes, respectively. Abraham is shooting 36.5 percent from the floor and 34.2 percent from deep, while Mendes is averaging 7.8 points and 4.0 rebounds per game while shooting at a 41.5 percent clip from the floor. Kpetikou has seen an increase of playing time as the season has gone on and recorded her first career double-double against Saint Martin's, shooting 44.1 percent from the floor in 11 minutes per game. Alsina and Dart have also made their presence known. Alsina is a plus defender with 10 steals and seven blocks at 12.3 minutes per game, and Dart is averaging 2.4 points over 7.2 minutes per game.

COUGS IN THE RANKINGS
The Cougs look to climb back into the rankings this season after having been ranked as high as number 21 last year. Washington State was voted to the Preseason Associated Press Top-25 Poll for the first time in program history, appearing at No. 24 in the preseason poll. WSU was picked to finish second by the WCC coaches and media, the best preseason pick in program history after being picked fifth ahead of the 2023-24 (Pac-12) and 1991-92 (Pac-10) seasons.

ETHRIDGE INKS EXTENSION
WSU Director of Athletics Anne McCoy announced this past April that Ethridge has signed a one-year contract extension keeping her in Pullman through the 2029-30 season. "Since her arrival in 2018, Kamie has solidified Washington State women's basketball as a destination where student-athletes can receive a world-class education while competing at the highest levels," said McCoy. "Her leadership has resulted in historic seasons for WSU, including this most recent campaign when WSU reached the postseason for the fourth-consecutive year, marking another program first. We are thrilled Kamie shares the same love and passion for Washington State that so many of us do and excited she will be leading our program for many years to come." Coach Ethridge has continued to raise the bar every season she has been on the Palouse. The Hall of Famer has brought her winning ways to Pullman, quickly elevating the WSU women's basketball program into the upper echelon of the college women's basketball landscape. Ethridge has guided Washington State to four straight postseason tournament appearances, and its first back-to-back 20-win seasons.

Fans wishing to purchase tickets for the 2024-25 women's basketball season can click on the link HERE, visit wsucougars.com to order online, or call the WSU Athletics Ticket Office at 1-800-GO-COUGS.

For all the latest WSU women's basketball news, photos and videos, like the team on Facebook (facebook.com/WSUCougarWBB), or follow on Twitter (@WSUCougarWBB) and Instagram (@wsucougarwbb).