Washington St. @ San Diego St. preview
Titan Gym
Last Meeting ( Dec 21, 2006 ) San Diego St. 54, Washington St. 64
The Pac-12 has had a history of success in the Wooden Legacy tournament, winning three of the last five championships and four of 10 overall. Washington State will try to add to that Sunday night when it faces San Diego State in the title game in Fullerton, Calif.
After rallying to clip St. Joseph’s 75-71 in the quarterfinals, the Cougars used some hot shooting – 58.9 percent from the field for the game, 62.1 percent in the second half – to upend 21st-ranked Saint Mary’s 84-79 in Friday’s semifinals. With the win, Washington State improved to 5-0, marking the program’s first such start since 2010-11 when the Cougars finished 22-13 – the school’s best finish in the last decade. “We continue to grow up a little bit with each challenge,” Washington State coach Ernie Kent said Friday in his post-game news conference. “We’re already better than when we got on the plane to come here. The bigger the challenge, the bigger the stage, the more they rise up.” San Diego State also has risen to the challenge in Fullerton, routing Sacramento State (89-52) and then outdueling Georgia (75-68) in the semifinals to reach the championship game.
TV: 11:59 p.m. ET, ESPN2
ABOUT WASHINGTON STATE (5-0): The Cougars had needed second-half rallies to erase halftime deficits in three of its first four games but took a 42-40 edge into the break against an experienced Saint Mary’s squad and then won the second half (42-39) as well for the fifth time in five games this season. Guard Malachi Flynn, who hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with five seconds remaining Thursday against St. Joseph’s, carried the momentum into Friday’s semifinal, scoring a game- and season-high 26 points while grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out four assists. Flynn is now averaging 16.4 points per game, joining forward Robert Franks (17.8) and guard Carter Skaggs (10.6) in double figures for Washington State, which ranks among the national leaders with 13 made 3-pointers per game.
ABOUT SAN DIEGO STATE (5-1): Guard Devin Watson scored a team-high 16 points against Georgia to up his season average to 12.3 – joining fellow starters Malik Pope (13.8), Trey Kell (12.7) and Matt Mitchell (11.0) in double digits. Pope, though, saw his minutes limited after drawing a technical foul in the first half Friday and finished with nine points – his second straight game in single digits after reaching double figures in his seven previous outings. Defensively, the Aztecs have been strong so far, allowing only 62.8 points on 37.5-percent shooting, including 26.6 percent from 3-point range, and forcing 15.8 turnovers per game.
TIP-INS
1. San Diego State is looking for its second Wooden Legacy title, having won the 2013 crown behind tournament MVP Xavier Thames.
2. Washington State has won all five meetings in the series, but Sunday’s game will be first meeting since Dec. 21, 2006.
3. Franks, a 6-foot-7 forward, is also averaging a team-most 7.0 rebounds for the Cougars and has scored at least 15 points in four of five games so far after reaching that standard only twice in his first two seasons.
PREDICTION: San Diego State 75, Washington State 72