No. 8 Seed Cougs Enter WCC Champs Friday

Friday, March 6

Las Vegas, Nev.

6 p.m.

Washington State University

Portland

Photo by: Ashley Davis

March 05, 2026 | Men's Basketball

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By: WSU Athletic Communications

WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS (12-19, 7-11) vs PEPPERDINE WAVES or PORTLAND PILOTS

FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 2026
6:32 p.m. PT
Las Vegas, Nevada
Orleans Arena
Capacity: 7,471

COUGAR SPORTS NETWORK
Seattle 770AM & 94.5FM
Spokane 920AM & 100.7FM
Pullman 104.3FM | Tri-Cities 610AM
Chris King & Craig Ehlo

TV & STREAMING
ESPN+ & ESPN App
Play-by-Play: Roxy Bernstein
Analyst: Dan Dickau
Sideline: Mariluz Cook

SERIES HISTORY
All-Time vs Portland: 16-2
This Season vs Portland: 2-0
All-Time vs Pepperdine: 7-4
This Season vs Pepperdine: 1-1

OPENING TIPS
1. The Cougars begin the Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Championships, Friday, March 6, entering in the second round to face the winner of Portland-Pepperdine. WSU will tip off at 6 p.m. from Orleans Arena in Las Vegas with coverage on ESPN+. WSU concluded the season with a loss at Pepperdine, splitting the regular season, while sweeping Portland in the two meetings.
2. True freshman Ace Glass earned All-WCC Freshman Team and Second Team honors, leading the Cougs with 16.3 points per game. Glass broke the WSU freshman single-game scoring record with 40 points vs ASU. The Rialto native ranks fourth in the WCC in scoring, best by a freshman, and top-20 nationally for a freshman.
3. ND Okafor earned All-WCC Honorable Mention after leading WSU in shooting efficiency and blocks. The Irishman shoots at 58.8% from the floor and averages 5.6 rebounds per game, 11th in the WCC. Okafor is second in the WCC in blocks with 46 rejections. The Irishman has scored 10+ points in 10 of the last 12 games, including his second career double-double at Pepperdine.
4. Since returning from a two-game injury, Rihards Vavers has dominated the Cougar offense, averaging a team-best 15.4 points per game over the 11-game stretch, including 24 points against Seattle U and 21 against Pacific. Vavers is a lethal outside shooter, delivering 36 threes on 49% shooting over 11 games.
5. Eemeli Yalaho averages 10.1 points per game and team-best 5.7 rebounds per game, 10th in WCC. Against LMU, the Finn grabbed a team-high nine rebounds and has led the Cougs in rebounding 13 times with three double-doubles.

LAST TIME OUT
WSU dropped an 88-79 decision to Pepperdine in the regular season finale at Firestone Fieldhouse. The Cougars scored 51 second-half points after just 28 first-half points and Ace Glass led four double-digit Cougar scorers with a team-high 22 points. ND Okafor posted his second-career double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, grabbing 10 rebounds for the second time this season. Rihards Vavers added 13 points on 3-of-8 shooting from three, marking his 11th-straight game in double figures. Wazzu made 28 field goals with 16 assists, while attempting a season-high 71 field goals.
UP NEXT
WSU's season hinges on the outcome of each individual game. With a defeat, the Cougars' 2025-26 season will come to a close. With a win, the Cougs would survive and advance along a path that would see them play five games in five days, facing increasingly higher seeds from the WCC each day. Saturday's third round matchup is slated against Oregon State with the winner facing San Francisco in Sunday's quarterfinals.

PICK YOUR POISON
Four Cougars average 10+ points per game, 10 different players have scored in double figures, and six Cougs have delivered 20-point performances at least once this season, including Glass, Okafor, Thrastarson, Ugbo, Vavers, and Yalaho. Both Okafor and Yalaho have each recorded multiple double-doubles.

HOME SWEET HOME & ROCKY ROAD
The Cougars hold a 9-6 record at home, where 75% of their wins have come. In contrast, WSU has won just one true road game, at Portland to begin conference play, December 28. The Cougs picked up a pair of neutral site wins in Spokane and Maui.

AARON ACING ROOKIE SEASON
True freshman Aaron "Ace" Glass has stepped into a leading roll for the Cougars, averaging a team-best 16.3 points per game, breaking the WSU freshman single-game scoring record with 40 points versus Arizona State, while earning All-WCC Freshman Team and All-WCC Second Team honors as the Conference's freshman leading scorer. The Rialto, California kid ranks fourth overall in the West Coast Conference in scoring and top-20 nationally by a rookie. Glass scored 22 points in the loss at Pepperdine, delivering his 10th 20-point performance, and has scored in double figures 26 times. Against Portland, Glass delivered a career-high seven assists and sits third on the team with 70 total assists.

OKAFOR BLOCKS MORE
ND Okafor is the Cougars' leading rim protector, having led the Cougs 20 times in single-game blocks, totalling 46 on the season, second in WCC, and earning the Irishman All-WCC Honorable Mention. Okafor registered multiple blocks in five of the last eight games. Okafor's average scoring and rebounding have doubled since last season. The junior also has the best shooting percentage on the team, making 58.8% of his 240 field goal attempts.

ROAD WARRIORS
The Cougs have played the 66th toughest schedule in the country according to NCAA NET rankings. With its arrival to Las Vegas, WSU has traveled over 24,000 commercial airlines miles and played games in four time zones.

LINE IN THE SAND
As a team, Washington State is shooting the ball at 47.0%. When the Cougars shoot over 45% they have won 11 times, but just once when held under 45% shooting. The Cougs also have 11 wins when scoring 70+ points, however when held under 70 points, WSU is just 1-12. The Cougars have scored 90+ points seven times this year, but hold just a 4-3 record in those games.

CONTROL THE ROCK
Washington State has struggled to control the ball in several key areas including assist-to-turnover ratio, turnovers forced, steals per game, turnover margin, and three-point defense. The Cougars assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.03 ranks 289th national. WSU is forcing just 10.1 turnovers per game, 313th in Division-I, with 5.6 steals per game (300th). WSU ranks 350th nationally with a negative turnover margin of -3.1, while sitting 281st in defensive 3-point percentage allowing opponents to shoot 35.3% from beyond the arc.

EFFICIENCY IS THE KEY
In contrast to the previous note, the Cougars have steadily improved their overall field goal percentage, three-point field goal percentage, rebounding margin, and effective field goal percentage. Nationally, WSU ranks in the top-75 with a 47.0% field goal percentage (75th), a 37.2 three-point field goal percentage (34th). The Cougars also make 9.5 three-pointers per game (t-61st) and hold the 43rd-best effective field goal percentage at 55.3%.

GO YALAHO GO
Junior Texas Tech transfer Eemeli Yalaho has quietly become a double-double threat, delivering three this season. The Finn scored a career-best 26 points against Portland, January 31, and is averaging 10.1 points per game and team-best 5.7 rebounds per game, 10th in the WCC. Twice this season Yalaho has pulled down a career-high 11 rebounds and scored 10+ points on 17 occasions.

RIHARDS RETURNS TO ACTION
Junior Rihards Vavers returned to action, January 21, at San Diego after suffering a head injury that sidelined him for two games. Over the 11-game stretch since returning, Vavers has scored in double figures every game, averaging 15.3 points per game, including a 24-point performance in the win over Seattle U and 21-point game against Pacific. The Latvian laser is also shooting the ball at a 48% clip from beyond the arc, 36-of-72, since returning to the hardwood.

MORTON MOJO
Morehead State transfer Jerone Morton has found his footing, sharing ballhandling responsibilities through 28 starts in 31 games and dished 79 assists, second-most on the team. Morton is averaging 7.6 points per game, 2.5 assists per game, and 1.9 rebounds per game. In the Cougs' loss at No. 12 Gonzaga, February 10, Morton scored 15 points, including a perfect 5-of-5 at the free throw line. The Kentucky kid dished a career-high nine assists against Saint Mary's in the first meeting, January 10.

ECLIPSING THE CENTURY MARK
In the January 31st win over Portland, the Cougars scored 104 points in regulation, its the first time in triple digits since scoring 100 points against Portland State in Coach Riley's WSU debut, November 4, 2024. The 104 points against the Pilots marked the most points scored by the Cougs at Beasley Coliseum since scoring 108 points versus Oregon in overtime, January 15, 2015. The last time the Cougars scored as many points in a regulation game at home came against CSUN with 106 points, January 25, 1995.

COMEBACK KIDS
Washington State is the only Division-I team in the country since the start of last season to play multiple games in which both team held a 17-point lead. WSU won two of the three contests. Against Chaminade, November 24, the Cougars trailed by as many 20 points before rallying to victory. In David Riley's first game as Cougar head coach in 2024-25, WSU rallied from a 17-point deficit against Portland State, to secure victory. In the Cougars' loss to Oregon State, WSU spoiled a 17-point second-half lead, becoming the only D-I team on both sides of a 17-point comeback this season.

UNFORCED ERRORS
In non-steal turnovers, the Cougars rank 309th nationally, according to KenPom. In other terms, the majority of the Cougars turnovers as unforced errors and not caused by the opponent defense with an 8.4 non-steal turnover percentage.

ADRIA DISHES SPANISH FLARE
Incoming senior Adria Rodriguez, a member of Spanish second-division club Alicante, has shown his floor general prowess as the Cougs leading assister in 16 games. The Catalonia kid is averaging a team-best 3.4 assists per game, 12th in the West Coast Conference. Adria has led the team in steals 13 times and pulled down a career-high eight rebounds against No. 9 Gonzaga, January 15. Against Portland he delivered a season-high nine assists and has increased his field goal percentage by six points from nonconference to WCC play, shooting over 43% since the start of conference action.

TOMAS TURNS UP
Tomas Thrastarson returned to the court for the first time in 2026 against Saint Mary's, February 21, after suffering a stress fracture in his foot, December 30, which forced him to miss 50 days and 12 games. Thrastarson turned heads with his offseason development after being named to the 2024-25 WCC All-Freshman Team, playing in 31 games with 11 starts, averaging 4.5 ppg, 3.1 rpg, and 19 blocks. Thrastarson has matched or bested his career-high three times, including a 20-point game versus Nevada. In the opener against Idaho, Thrastarson finished 11-of-12 from the charity stripe.

UNITED NATIONS OF COUGS
WSU boasts players from eight different countries across North America and Europe. WSU has six Americans and eight international student-athletes. The West Coast Conference men's basketball teams have the greatest percentage of international student-athletes of any Division I conference with 39.3 percent of rosters made of international student-athletes.

HONORING GEORGE RAVELING
In partnership with Nike, Washington State wore custom pre-game shooting shirts and Book2 shoes to honor former WSU Head Coach George Raveling. The shoes, with custom 'RAV' typography on them, were provided to all schools the former Coug coached or played at, including USC, Iowa, Howard, Villanova, Georgetown, and WSU. Raveling, the first Black coach in the Pac-8 Conference, elevated the Cougar men's basketball program to national prominence during his time in Pullman. Raveling guided the Cougars from 1972-1983. During his 11 years in Pullman, Raveling led WSU to two NCAA tournaments in 1980 and 1983. WSU's 1980 NCAA appearance was the first for the Cougars since finishing national runner-up in 1941.

THE CLOCKTOWER COLLECTION
In January, Washington State introduced the "Clock Tower Collection," a limited-edition retro uniform and retail merchandise, which was worn Saturday, February 7, against Santa Clara. The Cougars auctioned off the game-worn jerseys to support the WSU student-athlete NIL fund. WSU's alternate white uniforms feature a Crimson arch across the chest, emblazoned with 'Cougars' in large print above the player number. The matching shorts feature skyline iconography encompassing WSU's Bryan Hall Clock Tower. The uniform is finished with a thick Crimson trim around the color and sleeves.

SPOKANE ARENA HISTORY
Washington State hosted Oregon State at Numerica Veterans Arena in Spokane, January 4, improving to 24-19 all-time at Spokane Arena dating back to 1995. The Cougars are 4-1 all-time in conference games at Veterans Arena and improved to 4-0 against OSU in the Lilac City.

RILEY RUNS IT BACK
David Riley began his second season at WSU after finishing his first season on the Palouse 19-15 with a postseason berth to the inaugural College Basketball Crown. The selection marked a third postseason in four seasons for Coach Riley, and fourth-consecutive postseason for the Cougs.

COUGARS PICKED SIXTH IN WCC
Entering the 2025-26 season as an affiliate member of the West Coast Conference, Wazzu was selected sixth in the preseason coaches poll. The Cougars did not receive an honoree on the conference preseason team.

COUGS BOND IN EUROPEAN TRIP
The Cougars took an international tour this summer, visiting England and Spain. WSU played three exhibition games over 10 days, while sightseeing London, Malaga, and Barcelona. The Cougs say the London Eye, Big Ben, La Sagrada Familia, and excursioned around the Mediterranean Sea in southern Spain.

BRAYDEN KYMAN INKS DEAL
Class of 2026 senior Brayden Kyman, a 6-8 power forward from Rancho Santa Margarita, California, signed a financial aid agreement to play basketball at Washington State beginning next season. The versatile forward can score at all three levels with a deep range and length to work inside.

OFFENSIVE FIREPOWER
During Riley's first season the Cougs set school records in shots made (968) and assists (574), more than any previous team in school history. The Cougs finished ninth in the country in field goal percentage, 19th in assists, and 20th in blocks.

NEW PAC-12 ON THE HORIZON
The revitalized Pac-12 Conference is set to launch July 1, 2026 with a strong slate of men's basketball programs including Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Gonzaga, Oregon State, San Diego State, Texas State, and Utah State.

COWARD JOINS THE ASSOCIATION
Cedric Coward, a 2024 WCC All-Preseason selection, and graduate of WSU, was drafted No. 11 in the 2025 NBA Draft, joining the Memphis Grizzlies after a trade. Coward, who played just six games last season prior to suffering a season-ending injury, linked up with 2024 WSU Draftee, Jaylen Wells. There are currently five Cougars playing in the NBA — Cedric Coward, Mouhamed Gueye, Isaac Jones, Klay Thompson, and Jaylen Wells.