AROUND THE ‘NET: Cougs get some love from the national media

After games, we’ll work to post links to each of the game stories from the local papers. We’ll also try to pass along any extra coverage we find, including that from the national media.

So, for your reading pleasure, we’ve got a couple of national hoops writers checking in from the Palouse.

First, Andy Katz of ESPN.com — the best college basketball writer around, in my estimation — says the Cougars’ remarkable turnaround in the last five years doesn’t get enough recognition. Katz knows what he’s talking about on this one, as he was one of the first to recognize what the Cougars were doing last year and was on that story throughout the tournament. We’ll know we can always count on Katz to give us some love.

Meanwhile, one of the biggest WSU doubters from last year, SI.com’s Seth Davis, checks in with this piece from Pullman. I generally regard Davis as a bit of an East Coast blowhard* who gets off more on being chummy with players and coaches than actually being knowledgeable about what’s going on on the floor — check out the intro to the story for a great example — but this is a solid piece. Sounds like he’s still not sold on the Cougs as a Top 10 team, still clinging to the “they don’t have a lot of talent, but boy they sure work hard and play well together” theme of the national media:

“As I watched Washington State throttle Lewis-Clark State in an exhibition game by 38 points Sunday afternoon, it occurred to me this team does not have a single sure-fire NBA player on the roster. … If ever there was an example of a team’s whole being greater than the sum of its parts, this is it. I’d be shocked if Washington State didn’t go back to the NCAA tournament, but I would be a little surprised if they made a real deep run once they got there.”

I’d bet my next month’s wages that both Low and Weaver will be on NBA rosters at this time next year, but that’s just me, I guess. Or maybe the fact that they both made the Pan-Am games roster ahead of preseason All-Americans should tell us something.

And here are the gamers from this morning: The Seattle Times, The News Tribune, and Seattle P-I. We’d link to The Spokesman-Review’s stories, but they’ve made their site accessible only to print subscribers, unless you click the links through their SportsLink blog. Feel free to go there if you like, and there’s some good stuff there daily. But in the age of free flowing information — and when all your competitors are giving away content for free — I find it highly annoying.

* I know Davis lives in L.A., but he’s really an East Coast guy — born in Connecticut, grew up in Maryland, went to Duke, cut his chops at East Coast papers … you get the picture.

No. 10 Cougs get off to flying start by dominating EWU

So, it’s never great to make a mistake on your second post. That said, while I was mad at myself for saying the game wasn’t on TV — it was, outside of the Seattle area and on FCS — my anger was far outweighed by my happiness that I got to watch my boys in their season opener.

And what a show it was.

It certainly wasn’t perfect, and it wasn’t the kind of performance that’s going to make the national pundits sit up and take notice — after all, as I’m writing this at 9 a.m., there is no mention of the game on ESPN.com’s college hoops page. But it was the kind of game that should leave Coug fans absolutely beaming.

First off, there’s only so much you can read into the first game of the season against a terrible opponent. And Eastern is TERRIBLE. But there were some very, very positive signs for a team that is going to spend most of its season as the hunted.

At least for the first game, the No. 10 Cougs clearly have resumed their take-nothing-for-granted mentality. They were focused from the tip and played their game throughout. Although the offense sputtered at times in the first half, the defense looked to be in midseason form already. The Eagles were harassed all game, could get absolutely no penetration whatsoever, and settled for 3s — a bad strategy for a bad shooting team, but really all they were left with.

It might have just been because it was opening night, but if the Cougs can maintain that kind of intensity throughout the nonconference schedule they’ll cakewalk through the bevy of overmatched foes.

I also noticed was how great Aron Baynes looked. I always cringe when I hear reports of a guy “looking better than he ever has” or “coming to camp lighter” because it rarely lives up to the hype, but they weren’t kidding about Baynes. I saw him at the Cougar Country Drive-In about a month ago when I was in town for homecoming and I couldn’t tell it there, but the guy looks like he’s lost about four inches off his waist and transferred it to his chest and biceps.

Beyond that, he looks like he’s ready to become a consistent force on the offensive end. Granted, Eastern had nobody who could even come close to matching him, but he is going to be a load to keep off the block for just about everyone in the conference. He’s still a little slow on the pick and roll, his hands still are a bit suspect, and he still missed a couple of gimmes, but he more than made up for it with a couple of moves. On one, he finished with a little left-handed half-hook. On another, he made a strong dropstep, cleared out with a savvy little chicken wing, and dunked. Great footwork on both.

Will he be able to stay on the floor more than he did last year, though? That remains to be seen. I saw a lot of the same kind of reaches and and overzealous block attempts that got him into trouble last year, which concerns me a bit. Some of the stuff he got away with will be fouls in the Pac-10.

Other stuff I noticed:

• I read in a story that Derrick Low hit the weight room, too, and that shows as well. (Seriously, check out the pipes above.) That will help him perhaps finish even better around the basket on teams that want to close out on his 3-point shots with abandon.
• Whenever anyone talks about the Cougs’ awesome backcourt, it’s always Low and Weaver. But Taylor Rochestie looks like he’s picked up right where he left off. I’m not sure there’s a team in the country that can match up adequately with that threesome.
• I can see why coaches are high on Thomas Abercrombie, but I can also see why he redshirted last year. He is far from a finished product, as he looks like he’s still growing into that lanky body. There also was one play during garbage time where his hustle was less than stellar getting back on defense as the Cougs gave up a layup. It was only garbage time, but that’s not the kind of thing that flies with Tony Bennett. He’s got some work to do.
• Every time Nikola Koprivica touches the ball, something good happens. He doesn’t look full speed yet, but man — the dude just gets basketball. His game reminds me of Manu Ginobili the way he just seems to make the smart play and finish strong around the bucket. I will always wonder if he might have made a difference last year, as Low and Weaver wore down late in the season.