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Non-Con closing with a tilt versus Boise State in Spokane

Dec 20, 2021

vs Boise State (8-4) | Wed., Dec. 22 | 5 pm | Spokane Arena
  Live Stats | StatBroadcast
  Watch | Pac-12 Networks (Greg Heister & Dan Dickau)
  Listen | WSU Learfield Radio Network (Matt Chazanow & Craig Ehlo)

OPENING FIVE
> WSU finishes non-con play against a Boise State team that enters the week having won five-straight. The Cougs hold a 4-2 edge in the all-time series including winning the last two back in 2006 and 2007 with the 2006 edition of the series taking place in Spokane.
> The Cougs are 18-18 all-time at the Spokane Arena after dropping their first game on a buzzer-beater from South Dakota State Dec. 11.
> DJ Rodman posted a career game against UNC with his first double-double going for 21&10. He leads the way with an offensive rating of 141.4 (9th in DI basketball)
> The Cougs are among the elite in Free Throw shooting in 2021 having hit 193 of 253 attempts (76.3%). WSU ranks 11th in the country in made free throws and 36th in FT% - led by Tyrell Roberts who is a perfect 24-for-24 to start his career while Noah Williams is 3rd in the Pac-12 having made 40 FT (40-of-51, 78.4%)
> WSU's NET rating sits at 50, improving nine spots after the UNC game but down from the high of 37 earlier in the month.

GAME INFORMATION - vs BOISE STATE
The Cougs head back up to Spokane for the second time in the month as the WSU meets Boise State at the Spokane Arena to close out non-conference play. WSU dropped its first game at the Arena against South Dakota State falling on a buzzer-beating three. All-time the Cougs and the Broncos have played six times with WSU taking four of the six including winning the last two in 2006 and 2007. The 2006 matchup pitted the two teams against one another at the Spokane Arena with WSU winning 65-63. The Broncos are 8-4 on the year having won their last five games, four of which were played in Boise. 

NEXT UP
Pac-12 begins in full for the league as the Cougs begin conference play with rivalry week as WSU hosts Washington in the Boeing Apple Cup Series Dec. 29 on ESPNU. In four games under head coach Kyle Smith the Cougs have won three times against their rivals, however, the Huskies took the last meeting, stunning the Cougs in Pullman on a last second shot in February of last season. The Huskies play Utah Valley Tuesday night looking to finish the first half of the schedule 6-4 if they pick up a win. UW missed three games earlier in the month due to Covid-19, postponing their game against Arizona and forfeiting their contest against UCLA while cancelling a contest against Gonzaga.

LAST TIME OUT - vs NORTHERN COLORADO
WSU 82 - UNC 56 | DEC. 18, 2021 | PULLMAN, WASH.
DJ Rodman got loose coming off the bench and scored a career-high 21 points on 6-for-11 shooting from 3-point range and Washington State beat Northern Colorado 82-56 on Saturday.
Rodman, a 6-foot-6 junior, also snagged a career-high 10 rebounds for his first career double-double. He entered the contest having reached double digits in the scoring column just once this season and averaging 5.3 points per game.

SPOKANE ARENA
Returning to the Spokane Arena for the second time in the month the Cougs are looking to get back on track after dropping a heartbreaker, 77-74, to South Dakota State Dec. 11. The loss dropped the Cougs record to 18-18 all-time at the arena. The Cougs have been playing in Spokane since 1995, playing every year until the Covid-19 shortened 2020-21 season.
Against SDSU, Michael Flowers put on a show as the fifth-year guard scored 24 points, tying for the 4th most points scored by a Coug at the Arena while the 74 points scored by the Cougs was the 6th most in the 36 total games played in Spokane.

RODMAN COMING INTO HIS OWN
Always efficient and one of the Cougs' best +/- players in his first two years, junior DJ Rodman has taken the next step forward coming off the bench for WSU as a super sub. Rodman leads the team in offensive rating at 141.4 (9th best in DI for all usage players). That rating is bolstered by the fact he does not turn the ball over posting a turnover rate of just 6.7  (30th in the country).
Rodman is coming off a career outing in which he posted 21 points and 10 rebounds for his first double-double. He is shooting nearly 50% from the field at 49.1% while hitting 35% from deep (12-of-34).
Averaging 3.9 rebounds, Rodman leads the team on the offensive end with 25 o-rebs grabbing a team-best 12.4% of the chances (96th in the country).

~ Complete Release ~ (PDF)

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