The WSU men’s basketball team looks to split their Oregon road trip on Saturday as they face Oregon State in Corvallis, Ore.
The Beavers and Cougars both come in to Saturday’s matchup with 1-5 conference records, ranking 10th and 11th in the Pac-12, respectively.
While both teams enter the game with equal conference records, the two teams faired much differently in their previous matchups on Wednesday night. After going winless in their first five conference games, the Beavers beat the Huskies 74-66 on Wednesday while the Cougars fell to No. 16 Oregon 68-61.
After taking a 10-point lead into halftime against Oregon, the Cougars could not keep up with the high-flying Ducks in the second half. The loss also marked the second single-digit loss to a ranked team by the Cougars this season.
One bright spot for the Cougars on Wednesday night was the stellar 19-point performance by senior Mike Ladd. While the Cougars’ leading scorer senior Brock Motum has struggled in Pac-12 play, Ladd has filled the void -– averaging double-digit scoring during the last six games.
After nearly beating the conference’s top team, the Cougars will face the 10th-ranked Beavers. Despite the relief in matchup, redshirt sophomore guard Royce Woolridge said he knows every team in the Pac-12 is a threat.
“They’re two opposites, but they’re both really good teams,” he said. “There’ll be battles when we go down there, but I feel like we can go down there and make a statement -- the Pac-12 is wide open.”
The 2 p.m. tip will air on the Pac-12 Networks and IMG Radio Networks.
