WSU hoops notebook: Dane Erikstrup to return for CBC tournament, plus other nuggets
PULLMAN – As it turns out, Dane Erikstrup has not played his final game at Washington State.
The senior forward is expected to return from injury for WSU’s College Basketball Crown opener against Georgetown, set for 8 p.m. Monday in Las Vegas, coach David Riley said this week.
“That’s the plan,” Riley said.
In his final season of eligibility, Erikstrup played only nine minutes in WSU’s loss to San Francisco in the West Coast Conference Tournament earlier this month before exiting with what appeared to be a head injury. Erikstrup, who is averaging 12.1 points and 4.3 rebounds on 49% shooting from the field, will get at least one more game at the college level.
It’s a welcome development for WSU, especially considering that Georgetown will be shorthanded for Monday’s first-round game. Freshman big man Thomas Sorber started 23 games for the Hoyas before going down with a season-ending foot injury. Also, 6-foot-11 sophomore forward Drew Fielder has entered the transfer portal.
With the absence of that pair, the Hoyas will be down 21.6 points and 13.9 rebounds for the matchup with Washington State, which has often struggled with rebounding this season. It creates a void the Cougars could exploit – but with the transfer portal opening Monday, Riley is are taking a cautious approach to gameplanning.
“We’re kind out waiting and seeing,” Riley said. “I’m gonna give it a few days before we really dive into the exact game plan, because the fluidity of all this. There’s, like, 1,000 people in the portal already, so we’ll see what that looks like. I’m sure there’ll be pros and cons to that. We better get ready for some presses in different ways. They’re gonna try to pressure us. Think it’ll be a fun game.”
The two Cougars who have entered the portal, guards Nate Calmese and Isaiah Watts, will not play in the tournament. Asked about their decisions to enter the portal, Riley wished them well, saying he “loves the hell out of them, and excited for their futures.”
Younger Cougs set for more action
Calmese and Watts’ absences likely creates more opportunities for younger players on WSU’s roster.
That includes redshirt freshman guard Parker Gerrits, freshman wings Kase Wynott and Tomas Thrastarson, and transfer wing Ri Vavers.
Gerrits is averaging less than 10 minutes per game, and Wynott averages 13.3 minutes. Vavers scored three points in WSU’s loss to San Francisco in Las Vegas, but he recorded double-digit scoring outings in each of the two prior games, seemingly putting him in line for more shots against Georgetown.
As far as freshmen go, Thrastarson’s potential retention looms particularly large for WSU, which has the opportunity to help him develop into a player with more tools in his repertoire than 3-point shooting and defense.
“I think everyone’s gonna have to take a step up with some of the minutes,” Riley said. “For us, it’s a great opportunity to get some of these young guys some experience. Looking back at their season, they’ve been thrown into the fire at times where they’ve gained some valuable minutes, and now it’s time for that to show, and for them to start looking like sophomores and juniors.”
“Individually, I’m excited because I get to compete,” Gerrits said, “and that might be more minutes because of the guys that entered the portal, or it might not be.
“But whatever I’m giving, I’ll be very excited for it. Gonna take full opportunity of it, and excited to continue to represent Washington State and play a little bit more freely than I have.”