Washington State begins stretch of ‘meaningful, pressure-filled games’ at No. 13 UCLA

PULLMAN – Washington State was dealt three losses and absorbed a big blow to its postseason prospects during a taxing, five-day swing.

But with another grueling stretch beginning , there’s been no time to dwell. WSU plays the first of five games in 12 days at 8 p.m. Thursday, when it travels to No. 13 UCLA.

“These are meaningful, pressure-filled games,” coach Kyle Smith said Tuesday on his weekly coach’s show. “Being in the hunt, it’s part of it. You want to get to the other side, but there are lessons to be learned.”

The Cougars (14-10, 7-6 Pac-12) sit at sixth in the conference standings after back-to-back, three-point losses to Arizona State and Oregon on Saturday and Monday, respectively. WSU fell off the NCAA Tournament bubble with those defeats, but still has a chance to climb back into the conversation.

Three days after visiting UCLA, which controls the fourth spot in the conference, the Cougars take on the USC Trojans, who rank 17th nationally and second in the Pac-12.

“It’s a run here,” Smith said after the Oregon game. “We’ve got to fight our way out of it.”

Coronavirus-related issues in WSU’s program earlier this season forced a couple of postponements and caused a crowded late-season slate. Smith compared the perpetually quick turnarounds to “an NBA schedule.”

The team returned from Eugene on Monday night and spent Tuesday catching up on classwork, watching film and “getting our minds right” before hopping aboard a plane bound for L.A. on Wednesday.

“We’ve got more things to juggle than NBA guys – academics and stuff like that – so it’s a challenge, but I think our guys are up for it,” Smith said.

WSU will compete – that seems a safe enough bet. The Cougars’ worst loss this season came by 12 points against No. 3 Arizona last week in a game that was back-and-forth until about midway through the second half. Otherwise, WSU’s widest margin of defeat is six points.

College hoops statistician Ken Pomeroy considers the Cougars No. 3 among the least-lucky Division I team. The “luck” metric measures the deviation in winning percentage between a team’s expected and actual results. Teams that squander sizable leads or consistently fall in close games, for instance, are deemed unlucky.

“We played hard in two of our last three games. … Arizona State was tough, too,” Smith said. “We gotta toughen up and see what we’re made of, find a way to snag a win.

“We gotta be able to play hard all the time,” he told host Matt Chazanow on the coach’s show. “We do – we have. Now, next is ‘execute,’ make some shots. You gotta put the ball in the basket if you want to expect to win.”

Shooting inefficiency has been an aggravating trend for the Cougars and a fan base that has come to expect at least one extended dry spell per game. WSU went 1 of 15 from the field over the last 10 minutes of the first half in its upset loss at home to ASU and shot 4 of 27 over the final 13 minutes versus Oregon.

The Cougars matched a season-worst shooting mark against ASU (18 of 59), then broke it again at Oregon, shooting 22 of 73 (30.1%) – including a dozen missed layups.

Still, they had an opportunity to force overtime at the buzzer in both contests.

Guard Michael Flowers missed a late 3 against the Sun Devils and Noah Williams committed a game-ending turnover on an inbounds pass.

Flowers drained two 3s in 13 seconds to trim the Ducks’ nine-point lead to three with 12 seconds to go. Oregon missed what would have been a clinching free throw, but survived when 3-point tries from Flowers and Williams went off the mark.

“We really competed. Proud of our guys. Unfortunately, we have to play better offensively. We gotta make more shots, but we kept competing,” Smith said Saturday. “We got some really good looks at 3s that you just gotta be able to make to win those games.

“To be in the hunt, there’s certain things you gotta do every night,” he added Tuesday. “You gotta be able to make those tough shots with pressure.”

By Pomeroy’s metrics, WSU has the No. 21 defense in the nation. The unit ranks atop the Pac-12 in scoring defense (62.5 ppg) and 3-point defense (30.7%), and is one of the conference’s three best in field-goal defense and takeaways. Defensive rebounding has been an ongoing issue, but the Cougars lead the Pac-12 with 12.7 offensive boards per game. They totaled a season-best 22 against Oregon.

“We defended well, took care of the ball and rebounded,” Smith said after the game. “We’ve just got to execute and make shots to win on the road.”

Sometimes the shots seem to rattle out despite clean looks. In other instances, the Cougars appear motionless and heave up an attempt late in the shot clock. Whatever the case, they’ve had fits on offense for the majority of this season.

UCLA (17-5, 9-4), which brought back every key player from last season’s Final Four team, features a solid offense. The Bruins and their star-studded backcourt are second behind Arizona in Pac-12 scoring offense.

“They’re really experienced. They’ve got postseason success,” Smith said. “They play really well together. We’re trying to get there.

“It’s all about dealing with expectations.”

For the sake of its postseason outlook, WSU is hoping it caught the Bruins at the right time. UCLA has dropped three of its past four games, including a triple-overtime stunner at Arizona State on Feb. 5.

Smith indicated on his coach’s show that center Dishon Jackson is questionable to play with an eye injury that has kept him sidelined for the past nine games.

Stat update

Flowers has established himself as the Cougars’ most reliable scoring option and go-to guy in crunch time. The senior South Alabama transfer is averaging team highs in minutes (32.1), points (13.9) and assists (3.04) while leading all guards in shooting percentage from the field (40.2) and distance (37.6).

He has surpassed 20 points in three of his past five games, logging a season-best 23 in conference play against Oregon. Flowers was coming off his toughest game of the year – a six-point, six-turnover effort versus ASU.

Williams, the Cougars’ top returning scorer this season, had seemingly shaken a long-term funk when he entered halftime of Saturday’s game with 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting. But he was limited to one point in the second half and shot 0 for 10.

Flowers and Williams had 23 points combined on 10 of 18 from the field in the first half against the Ducks. The two totaled seven points in the second half on 1 of 16 before Flowers’ two 3s in the final 25 seconds.

Williams is averaging 10.4 ppg on 33.9% this season. He’s been an offensive liability at times, but the Cougars need his defense. Williams held the Ducks’ Will Richardson, a pro prospect, to seven points on 3-of-7 shooting.

The Cougars’ other double-figures scorer, guard Tyrell Roberts (10.7 ppg), is in a 9-of-37 slump over his past three games.

WSU is 18 of 66 from 3-point range in its past three games. The Cougars top the Pac-12 in 3-point attempts by more than 50, and they’re eighth in the conference in percentage from deep (33.3).