Cougs long skid lands them in Pac-10 cellar

TEMPE, Ariz. – Not the knowledge that this was Dick Bennett’s final regular-season game as a head coach, not the sparse and docile road crowd, not even the struggling Arizona State team on the other bench could change one simple fact Saturday night.

Washington State is a last-place Pac-10 Conference basketball team.

The Cougars proved it by losing 68-55 to the Sun Devils, cementing their spot all alone at the bottom of the Pac-10 with a first-round conference tournament game against Oregon waiting for them on Wednesday.

“I clearly think we have earned that,” Bennett said. “Take all the close games you want and throw them out the window. When we needed to perform, we were unable to.”

WSU (11-16, 4-14) could have earned ninth place with a win, but it took care of those chances with an avalanche of turnovers – 11 in the first half, 19 overall – and indifferent play that allowed the Sun Devils (11-16, 5-13) to take advantage.

“We were kind of dull. No life,” said WSU guard Kyle Weaver. “It’s hard to explain. It’s kind of rough on Coach and it’s kind of rough on us, too.”

Arizona State, too, was probably playing its last regular-season game under coach Rob Evans, who is expected to be let go following the conference tournament. After the game, Bennett and Evans shared a prolonged embrace at center court.

“We’re good friends. Dick Bennett’s a class guy,” Evans said. “I told him, ‘Good luck in retirement. Of all the people I know, you deserve it. You’re a class individual. You’re the best.’ “

The Cougars used a late first-half burst to pull within four, but a Weaver technical foul 10 seconds into the second half seemed to be an indication of things to come. ASU coasted to 40 points after the break and never seemed to be in any trouble once it got a double-digit lead.

Bennett, having watched his young team turn a 9-3 record into disaster with 13 losses in 15 games, said he wondered if his team was still taking lessons from his coaching. Saturday’s defeat extended the losing streak to six, WSU’s second slide of that length.

“It’s been a real disappointing experience with this group,” Bennett said. “They seem to have tuned me out a long time ago because anyone that knows what I think is important, knows how I regard taking care of the ball and playing smart basketball. And we do neither.

“They have done this all year. They have slowly eroded to the point where at the end of the year we’re possibly playing our worst basketball.”

Kevin Kruger led the Sun Devils with 20 points and six assists, helping lead the dissection of the Cougars. Three other Sun Devils had double figures while only one Cougar – Caleb Forrest with a career-high 11 – could do the same.

“I don’t like to be losing so much. I’m sure that kills Coach Bennett a lot, too,” WSU point guard Derrick Low said. “We just need to go out and show him how much we’ve improved and how much we’ve learned from him. Show him that this whole season wasn’t a waste.”

Notes

Wells Fargo Arena was mostly empty, despite an announced attendance of 6,245. … Serge Angounou had 16 rebounds for the winners. … Kyle Weaver’s technical foul was the first called on WSU this season. … WSU’s Robbie Cowgill got into serious foul trouble for a second straight game, picking up his fourth foul with 13:07 left. Both he and Weaver were limited to 8 minutes apiece in the first half because of fouls. … WSU is going directly from Phoenix to Los Angeles today instead of making the return trip to Pullman.

Arizona St. 68, WSU 55

Percentages: FG .429, FT .636. 3-Point Goals: 6-17, .353 (Matthews 2-5, Forrest 1-1, Clark 1-2, Low 1-3, Green 1-3, Akognon 0-3). Team Rebounds: 1. Blocked Shots: 4 (Forrest, Akognon, Henry, Cowgill). Turnovers: 19 (Weaver, Akognon, Henry 3). Steals: 4 (Cowgill 2). Technical Fouls: None.

Percentages: FG .444, FT .857. 3-Point Goals: 8-17, .471 (Kruger 4-9, Jackson 2-2, Krueger 2-5, Seay 0-1). Team Rebounds: 2. Blocked Shots: 1 (Jackson). Turnovers: 16 (Krueger 4). Steals: 9 (Kruger 4). Technical Fouls: None.

Halftime–Arizona St. 28, Washington St. 24. A–6,245.