The Washington State Cougars rebounded nicely from their first loss of the season by putting together one of the best defensive efforts in Pac-12 history, holding the Arizona State Sun Devils under 30 points to walk out of Tempe with a 51-29 victory.
The defense had been a bit of an enigma this for the Cougs (6-1 overall, 1-0 Pac-12), who coughed up a 19-point first half lead to Eastern Washington on Saturday to end their unbeaten run to start the season. It was a bit of a puzzling development, given the emphasis coach Kyle Smith generally puts on that side of the ball.