Cougs Look to Cap Off the Regular Season with a Historic Win
BERKELEY, Calif. – The Washington State women's basketball team looks to cap off one of the best seasons in program history with a record-setting win at California Sunday, Feb. 26. Tip-off against the Golden Bears is set for 12 p.m. PT from Haas Pavilion and will air live on Pac-12 Network Bay Area.
WASHINGTON STATE (RV) (18-9, 10-6 Pac-12) at California (12-11, 2-9 Pac-12) | Saturday, Feb. 26 | 12 p.m. PT | Berkeley, Calif. (Haas Pavilion)
Live Stats | Click Here
Watch | Pac-12 Network (Elise Woodward and Julie Rousseau)
Listen | WSU Learfield Radio Network (Steve Grubbs)
Game Notes | Click Here
STARTING FIVE
>> Washington State is looking to make program history this Saturday in the Bay Area. WSU is currently tied for second in the Pac-12 heading into the final game of the regular season. The Cougars are 10-6 in Pac-12 play and 18-9 overall. With a win over Cal, Washington State will set the program record for most Pac-12 wins in a season and most overall wins in a season in the NCAA era.
>> WSU heads into the week tied with Oregon for second place in the Pac-12 standings with two games left to play. With a win, Washington State can secure either the No. 2 or No. 2 seed in the Pac-12 Tournament for the first time in program history. WSU is currently the No. 3 seed in the tournament, as Oregon holds the tiebreaker with the Cougars thanks to the Ducks' win in Pullman earlier this month.
>> Saturday's matchup between Washington State and California will be the 74th all-time meeting between the two schools. WSU has won three-straight games over the Golden Bears, which includes a 69-42 win at Beasley Coliseum back on Dec. 31. Cal leads the all-time series 48-26.
>> With a win this week, Washington State will secure a winning road record for the 2021-22 season. WSU is currently 6-6 in true road games this season and 7-7 away from Beasley Coliseum. The last time WSU won eight-or-more games in a season outside of Pullman came in 2014-15 when the Cougars collected 10 wins in away or neutral contests.
>> Head coach Kamie Ethridge has once again put Washington State up against some of the nation's best teams this season. The Cougars head into the week having played the fifth toughest schedule in NCAA Division I this season according to the Massey Ratings. Washington State also holds an RPI of 34 according to HerHoopStats.com.
Looking for a Historic Win
Washington State heads into this weekend needing one win to set the program record for most Pac-12 wins in a season and the most wins in a season in the NCAA era. The Cougars are currently have collected 18 wins overall this season and 10 Pac-12 victories. Both marks are tied with the 1990-91 team. The WSU all-time record for most wins in a season is 21, which came during the 1978-79 campaign.
Playing The Defending National Champions Close
Washington State was handed a 61-54 loss at No. 2 Stanford Thursday, Feb. 24, to open the final road trip of the 2021-22 season. The seven-point loss is the Cougars' closest margin to the Cardinal since the 1999-00 season, when WSU lost to Stanford, 68-63, at Maples Pavilion. The seven-point margin is the second-closest margin of victory for the defending National Champions on its home court this season.
Charlisse's Redemption
After being held to single-digit points in back-to-back games against Stanford last season, sophomore Charlisse Leger-Walker has made amends this season. The Kiwi guard averaged 16.0 points per game this season against the Cardinal. Leger-Walker scored a game-high 17 points at Stanford Thursday. It was the 15th time this season that Leger-Walker has led the Cougs in scoring in a game.
NET Ranking
WSU heads into the weekend with a NET ranking of 59. The NET is an evaluation tool used by the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee to determine at-large bids and tournament seeding.
Scouting the Golden Bears
California heads into Saturday at 12-11 overall on the year and 2-9 in Pac-12 play. One of the two conference wins for the Golden Bears this season came via a forfeit. Cal is coming off a 61-60 loss to Washington at Haas Pavilion. California is 9-5 at home this season.
Freshman Jayda Curry leads the Golden Bears in scoring at 18.7 points per game. Curry has scored double-digits in all by one game this season. She scored has scored 20-or-more points in eight games. Junior Jazlen Green (9.7 ppg), junior Evelien Lutje Schipholt (9.2 ppg) and sophomore Dalayah Daniels (8.1 ppg) average between 9.7 and 8.0 points per game for California. Lutje Schipholt also averages a team-best 7.2 rebounds per game.
The Golden Bears are averaging 68.9 points per game, while they are shooting 39.8 percent from the field. Defensively, California is giving up 66.1 points per contest, while foes are hitting 32.9 percent of their attempts from the field.
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