PULLMAN – Many of Washington State’s opponents have fallen into the same trap this season. They play their best basketball in the first half, enter the break feeling good about the lead they’ve established, then wilt in the second half as soon as the Cougars decide to come to life.
In that case, WSU had Saturday’s foe in a good spot. The Cougars were lethargic for the first 20 minutes and trailed UC Davis by 17 points when the buzzer sounded on the first half.
And indeed, there was more spark to the Cougars in the second half – this time it just didn’t coincide with a letdown from the opponent.