Cougars are no longer the laughing stock of the Pacific-10 Conference

By Brooks Hatch
Gazette-Times reporter

There was a time when a road trip to Pullman, Wash., meant relatively easy pickings for an Oregon State men’s basketball team.

The Beavers have 11 Pacific-10 Conference road wins since the start of the 2000 season, with four of them coming at Washington State. Jay John-coached teams prevailed on the Palouse in 2004 and 2006, and the embattled mentor is 6-4 against the Cougars through his first five seasons in Corvallis.

The sneaker is on the other foot tonight, however, when the Beavers (6-10, 0-4) begin their four-day Washington road trip at WSU. The Cougars (14-1, 4-1) are ranked eighth in both national top 25 polls and have expanded on the remarkable renaissance they began in 2006 with a surprising trip to the NCAA tournament in Tony Bennett’s first season as their coach.

“Dick Bennett (Tony’s father and WSU predecessor) is one of the few coaching geniuses out there, and Tony is a product” of the elder Bennett’s precise offensive and defensive systems, John said. “It’s something they know inside-out, it’s a mentality.

“You’re getting their best on every possession and this team, they’ve been together so long, they’re really good at it. All five guys all have the ability score and the subs, the same thing.

“They’re not going to make mistakes, they shoot well and you’re not going to get anything easy. If you crack, that’s where they make their run. It’s just a very good team. They are going to play one way, it’s been successful for them. You have to match their will.”

Games at Friel Court used to be cozy affairs involving friends, family and a smattering of WSU students. The Cougars drew just 2,004 on Feb. 22, 2003, in John’s first appearance there with the Beavers,

All that has changed, however, with the Cougars’ rise to national prominence and tonight a rowdy, capacity crowd of more than 11,600 - approximately a quarter of the entire population of isolated Whitman County - will jam Beasley Coliseum to help power WSU to its sixth consecutive home victory over the past two seasons.

“Their students do a wonderful job, they get there early and they harass the kids,” John said. “The kids come back (after warmups) and they’re kind of chuckling about some of the things they get called.

“(The students) are there and they’re ready to go, college kids on campus on a Thursday night.”

OSU sophomore guard Josh Tarver said it reminds him of his days at Jesuit High, where he and younger brother Seth were regularly taunted by students at Beaverton, Central Catholic and the other Metro League venues.

“I’m used to guys saying derogatory stuff, anything they can do to get in your head,” Tarver said. “I love that kind of atmosphere. It’s all students, I love that.”

Senior forward Marcel Jones said WSU’s deliberate pace might actually play in the Beavers’ favor, given their terrible shooting.

“Obviously we want to be a more up-tempo team but its hard doing that without putting shots in the basket,” Jones said. “To make sure every possession is a valued one will be easier for us.

“We have to get confidence through our defense. If that’s what’s what we can hang our hat on, then that’s what we have to do.

“We played in front of 14,000 at Arizona. It’s a good atmosphere (at WSU), we played well for about 35 minutes last year before they took control, Hopefully we’ll go up there and give a 40-minute effort.”