WASHINGTON STATE (8-6 3-0 WCC) VS SANTA CLARA (7-7, 1-3 WCC)
Thursday, Jan. 2 // 6 p.m. PT
Pullman, Calif. // Beasley Coliseum
Watch | ESPN+
Listen | Pullman Radio KQQQ, 1150 AM (Steve Grubbs pXp)
Live Stats | Statbroadcast


Washington State women's basketball is back in Beasley to host Santa Clara on Thursday, Jan. 2 at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

NEXT UP
The Cougs remain in Pullman to host Oregon State on Saturday, Jan. 4 at 12 p.m. noon. This game will also be broadcast live on ESPN+ with Ann Schatz and Mary Murphy on the call.

ABOUT WASHINGTON STATE
The top-blocking team in the nation, WSU is 8-6 to start the 2024-25 season after a 3-0 start to WCC play with wins over San Diego, Pepperdine and Pacific. 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 leads the nation with 101 total blocks and ranks second in the nation with 7.2 blocks per game. Offensively, the Cougs are shooting .424 from the field and .321 from deep while averaging 66.7 points per game.

RECORD BOOK CLIMBERS AND MILESTONE CHASERS
>> Tara Wallack has 1,039 career points, ranking 20th in program history.
>> Wallack ranks sixth all-time at WSU with 128 career blocks.
>> Wallack has played 3,294 career minutes, 10th all-time at WSU.
>> Wallack is also 666 minutes away from matching the most in program history.
>> Alex Covill has 85 career blocks, eight away from entering the WSU all-time top-10 list.
>> Head Coach Kamie Ethridge has 186 career wins as a head coach, 14 away from 200.

SERIES HISTORY
Santa Clara and Washington State are 4-4 over their eight all-time meetings, with WSU winning the most recent game last March in the WBIT. Last year's meeting was their first since 2007, with the Cougs earning their first win over the Broncos since 1985.

STACKING BLOCKS
WSU has been one of the top blocking teams in the nation, leading all of NCAA DI with 101 total blocks and ranking second in blocks per game (7.2) behind only Kentucky (7.8). The team's 101 blocks leads the WCC by a margin of 38 blocks over Portland (63), and its 7.2 blocks per game is 2.5 blocks ahead of the second-highest number of 4.7 per game, held by San Francisco.

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 17.6 and 14.7 minutes, respectively. Abraham is shooting 39.4 percent from the floor and 40.0 percent from deep, while Mendes is averaging 6.6 points and 3.7 rebounds per game while shooting at a 38.7 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. She is shooting 42.5 percent from the floor in 11.3 minutes per game. Alsina and Dart have also made their presence known. Alsina is a plus defender with 12 steals and seven blocks at 11.6 minutes per game, and Dart is averaging 2.3 points over 7.3 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).