PULLMAN, Wash. - In a game of surges, Washington State had the last one as the Cougars held off Idaho 62-55 in a non-conference men's basketball game at Friel Court Saturday afternoon.
Only moments before the final buzzer sounded, the Vandals (2-6) were looking at a possible tie. But Dandrick Jones' 3-point attempt missed by the narrowest of margins and the final point spread climbed to seven with four successive Cougar free throws.
"I was extremely proud of our kids," UI coach Leonard Perry said. "If you had told me at halftime our kids were going to shoot 58 percent (in the second half) and we were going to hold them to 40 (percent), I would have told you we would win."
Yet, that wasn't the case as, as happened in the first half, the Vandals battled momentum woes as the period unfolded. Twice they trailed by nine points before regaining their footing and turning the game into a back-and-forth tussle that didn't end until the final buzzer sounded.
"Our kids really competed," Perry said. "We got down in the second half and we showed a lot of willpower and grit and determination to get back in it and put ourselves in position to tie the game."
The final shot at a tie began when Armend Kahrimanovic scooped in a missed Marcus Moore field goal under Washington State's basket. The plan, Perry said, was to work for the best possible shot.
"That was as good a look as we were going to get," he said.
When Jones' shot missed its mark, the Vandals were called for an intentional foul when Ezenwa Ukeagu rebounded the ball. He made both and Randy Green made the most of his chance to extend the Cougars' lead to seven when he was fouled on the in-bounds pass.
The game opened with a slow start by the Vandals. The Cougars scored the game's first five points. Almost five minutes had elapsed before Tanoris Shepard scored with a 3-pointer for the Vandals. That set them in motion and on a 12-0 run - fueled largely by the determined play of senior Tyrone Hayes.
"We got some great looks in the first half," Perry said. "It just didn't go down. But our kids stayed with it. I thought we executed - during stretches in the second half - as good as any team I've been associated with."
The Cougars (6-2) led 32-26 at the half and twice in the first five minutes of the second period led by nine points. The Vandals rallied to take a 46-45 lead with 7:53 to play but the Cougars responded with a final 12-3 run to put UI back in catch-up mode.
"I am really, really proud of the progress we've made," Perry said. "Our team is getting better. Our record doesn't indicate that but this team is getting better."
Hayes led the Vandals with 17 points and Dwayne Williams added 10. Hayes and Jones had five rebounds each in a rugged battle of the boards, which the Cougars won 30-26 behind the eight of Ukeagu. WSU's Marcus Moore had 22 points to lead all scorers.
