Sun Devils Scorch Struggling Cougs WSU’s Poor Shooting Paves Way To Sixth Consecutive Defeat

As an assistant basketball coach at Washington State from 1987-92, Don Newman helped Kelvin Sampson build the program into a postseason contender.

Newman, now the interim head coach at Arizona State, felt a twinge of sadness Thursday after his surging Sun Devils handed the Cougars their sixth straight defeat, an 82-68 pounding before 6,032 fans in the University Activity Center.

“When you look at the Cougars, I’ve got a lot of pride,” Newman said. “I got my graduate degree from there. I spent 5-1/2 years on that staff, helped them build that program and we saw it go to another level.”

Through a variety of circumstances, the Cougars have fallen on hard times under fourth-year coach Kevin Eastman. WSU is 8-13 overall and 1-9 in the Pacific-10 Conference - the program’s worst conference mark since the ‘90 team went 1-17.

WSU’s struggles could not have been more evident than they were on Thursday, although Saturday’s visit to No. 4 Arizona has serious potential. Against ASU, the Cougars shot a season-low 36.2 percent and committed 20 turnovers.

Steve Slotemaker and Blake Pengelly combined to make just 2 of 17 field goals.

“We couldn’t make shots,” Eastman said. “I thought we had some of our best looks of the year, especially in the first half. If teams are going to double-team Carlos (Daniel), then we’ve got to be able to hit open shots. That’s all there is to it.”

Daniel led the Cougars with 13 points, 12 rebounds, two blocked shots and two steals. But the senior forward committed four turnovers.

Daniel’s frustration peaked early in the second half, when he dribbled the ball off his face and out of bounds. That inglorious bit of symbolism came during the game’s pivotal sequence, a 5-minute stretch that saw the Sun Devils outscore the Cougars 14-0, stretching their lead to 55-38 with 12:10 remaining.

Jeremy Veal’s 3-pointer continued the onslaught, and ASU’s lead ultimately reached 72-47.

With victories over Cincinnati and Stanford, ASU may be college basketball’s biggest surprise this season - Dean Smith’s retirement notwithstanding.

The program was in turmoil when coach Bill Frieder resigned in the wake of a gambling scandal in September, but Newman has guided the Sun Devils (15-8, 5-5) into postseason contention. Saturday’s game against Washington (13-6, 6-4) almost qualifies as a showdown.

Preseason polls picked ASU last in the Pac-10.

“It is a good feeling, because the expectations were very minimal or even non-existent and the feeling was that the program was in disarray,” Newman said. “What you try to do is put your signature on it.”

Newman’s signature probably won’t show up on a contract extension at ASU, no matter how strong the Sun Devils finish. For that, Newman can thank his 20-114 record in five years at Sacramento State, in addition to an apathetic public that demands a big name.

But he’ll wind up somewhere. The Arizona media have mentioned WSU as a possibility, even if Eastman might not be going anywhere soon. The speculation intensifies every time the Cougars lose.

“You hear so much out here,” Newman said. “The only thing is, the day that coaches start wishing bad on other coaches, it’s going to be a sad day in the profession.

“I think Kevin is a class guy and we’ve been very classy to each other,” Newman added. “And like I say, other than the times that I gotta play Washington State, I pull for the Cougars.

“A lot of my life has been spent on the Palouse. I’ve got a lot of friends. So I know how the people feel and how the coaches feel if the program is not winning. Part of you goes out to them.”

Arizona St. 82, Washington St. 68

Washington St. (8-13) - Daniel 5-10 3-5 13, Slotemaker 1-9 0-0 2, Nelson 3-9 3-4 9, Pengelly 1-8 4-5 6, Kazadi 5-8 3-5 14, Hutchens 1-2 0-0 2, Mensah-Bonzu 2-6 2-4 6, Crosby 5-12 0-0 12, Stewart 2-5 0-0 4. Totals: 25-69 15-23 68.

Arizona St. (15-8) - Lazor 2-5 6-9 10, House 5-10 0-0 11, Veal 5-13 8-8 20, Batiste 6-10 2-5 12, Lewis 3-7 2-2 10, DuBois 1-1 0-0 2, Patton 3-6 0-0 6, Smith 0-0 1-2 1, Kelly 3-6 1-2 7. Totals: 28-58 20-28 82.

Halftime-Arizona St. 34, Washington St. 30. 3-Point Goals- Washington St. 3-14 (Crosby 2-4, Kazadi 1-2, Slotemaker 0-4, Pengelly 0-4); Arizona St. 6-16 (Veal 2-4, Lewis 2-4, DuBois 1-1, House 1-5, Patton 0-1, Kelly 0-1). Fouled Out-None. Rebounds- Washington St. (46 (Daniel 12); Arizona St. 36 (Batiste 12). Assists-Washington St. 14 (Pengelly 7). Arizona St. 19 (Lewis 10). Total Fouls-Washington St. 21; Arizona St. 17. A-6,032.

, DataTimes