Philly Gym Rat (The Perry “QM” McMullin Story)

[PointGuard]

Game #15: Jan. 11, 2022; Washington State Cougars (9-5, 2-1) at Utah Utes (6-8, 2-1)

Utah lost their first five games this season (including losses to #1 Florida and #7 Kentucky), but appears to have righted the ship. All of their guards are freshman. Although they all have very good potential, I’m hoping we can put pressure on them to force some turnovers and freshman mistakes.

We took an early 2 point lead, but then the Utes took command and held us at arms’ length in the first half, finishing with a 34-27 advantage.

Then early in the 2nd half, they expanded their lead to 14 points. We chipped away at their lead but could never over take them.

Final Score: Utah-66, Washington State-58. Washington State season record: 9-6; Pac-12 record: 2-2 (4th place tie).

Scoring leaders: Lewis-13.

Rebound leaders: Lewis-5.

Assist leaders: Bond-5.

Player of the Game: Utah’s SG Jerry Joseph-16 pts, 3 reb, 4 assists, 2 steals.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: C Gareth Lewis-13 pts, 5 reb.

Other notes: Our late comeback brought our shooting to 45%, the same as Utah’s. Utah’s starting guards turned the ball over 10 times, but as a team we had 20 turnovers to Utah’s 18. We out-rebounded the Utes 27-24. The big difference in this game was that Utah got to the foul line 12 more times and scored 12 more points there than did we.

After our loss, Matt Jones vented his frustrations by complaining about Scott Robinson being given more playing time. I don’t mind a guy being frustrated by a loss, but whining about his teammates sucks. And he’s averaging over 20 mpg and has started in place of Shane Dix in half of our games. I call him in and chew him out, but decide to take no further action.

[PointGuard]

Game #16: Jan. 15, 2022; Washington Huskies (3-13, 1-3) at Washington State Cougars (9-6, 2-2)

Washington is led by SF Josh Jackson who is averaging 15.8 ppg. The Huskies are our big rivals so a big crowd is certain.

In the first half Washington outshot us 44% to 39% and got to the line 7 more times and scored 5 more points on free throws than us. We left the court trailing 40-37. D. J. Asbury scored 12 and Scott Robinson added 10 for us. We just talked defense during the intermission.

In the 2nd half a combination of poor shooting by Washington and a rock solid defense by us allowed us to quickly pull away to as much as an 18 point lead.

Final Score: Washington State71, Washington-56. Washington State season record: 10-6; Pac-12 record: 3-2 (3rd place tie).

Scoring leaders: Robinson-17, Asbury-16, Bond-10.

Rebound leaders: Bond-8, Asbury-7, Lewis-5.

Assist leaders: Jones-3.

Player of the Game: PF D.J. Asbury-16 pts, 7 reb, 1 assist, 1 steal.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: PG Scott Robinson-16 pts, 4 reb, 1 assist, 1 steal.

Other notes: We finished the game by hitting 40% of our shots, but held Washington’s shooting to 33%. But we dominated the boards 38-28 and held a 17-11 turnover advantage.

During warmups, Nigel Seabrook pulled a muscle in his back which is causing severe back spasms. He likely will miss next week’s games.

In the 2nd half, D. J. Asbury hurt his back and we sat him the final 10 minutes as a precautionary measure. He’s expected to be ready for our next game.

[PointGuard]

Game #17: Jan. 18, 2022; Colorado Buffaloes (6-10, 2-3) at Washington State Cougars (10-6, 3-2)

Colorado has played 4 ranked teams, beating Central Florida and New Mexico, but losing to Memphis and Oregon. Their top scorer, SG Jeff Russell, has an injured calf. While he likely will play, his playing time may be limited. But his replacement, Del Green, has shot and scored well.

The refs called 5 fouls against us in the first 2-1/2 minutes of play. We took a 14-4 lead though. But the refs constant whistles against both teams totally disrupted the flow of the game and sent several of our players to the bench. That allowed the Buffaloes to narrow the gap to 31-28 at the half. We shot poorly (32%) but held a 10-4 turnover advantage. Gareth Lewis scored 14 points to lead us offensively.

The refs continued to exercise their whistles in the 2nd half. At the midpoint of the half, Colorado tied us at 47-47. Scott Robinson responded with 6 straight points to put us back ahead 53-47. Colorado hit a 3 to cut our lead to 62-60 with 2 minutes to play. Scott Robinson drove along the baseline and rolled in a shot to give us a 64-60 lead with 47 seconds remaining.

Colorado’s Jess Russell hit a 3 from the corner to make the score 64-63 with 25 seconds to go. Scott Robinson was fouled but made only 1 of his 2 shots to make it 65-63 at the 0:23 mark. The refs called Robinson for a foul and Colorado made both shots to tie the game. The refs called Colorado for a foul with 10 seconds to go. Scott Robinson sunk both shots. The Buffaloes got the ball into the forecourt quickly but our defense forced their center to take a last second 3 point attempt from the corner and it clanked off the iron. We escaped with yet another squeaker of a win at home.

Final Score: Washington State-67, Colorado-65. Washington State season record: 11-6; Pac-12 record: 4-2 (3rd place tie).

Scoring leaders: Robinson-22, Lewis-14, Dix-13, Asbury-12.

Rebound leaders: Lewis-6.

Assist leaders: Four players with 2 each.

Player of the Game: PG Scott Robinson-22 pts, 1 reb, 2 assists, 1 steal.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: SG Shane Dix-13 pts, 3 reb, 2 assists.

Other notes: We connected on just 38% of our shots, while Colorado hit 47% of theirs. We held a 26-25 rebounding advantage and more importantly a 17-9 turnover advantage. But we got to the line 18 more times and scored 13 more points on free throws than Colorado did. Colorado’s Jess Russell scored 18 points, hitting 7 of 11 from the field (including 4 of 7 three-pointers).

[PointGuard]

Interview by Spider Webb, sports announcer at KHQ TV in Spokane, Washington:

S: Tonight we’re talking with the new head basketball coach at WSU, QM McMullin. QM, you’ve had success building programs at Cal State Bakersfield and New Hampshire. Do you feel that’s going to be easier or more difficult with the Cougars?

Q. It comes down to getting the right recruits. I think being in a Pac-12 program certainly makes it easier to get good high school recruits to consider us, but it also means competing with some well-established strong programs for those same good recruits. Most of these programs have much bigger budgets, so we have to be more aggressive and smarter in how we go after and sign players who we need to improve basketball at WSU.

S: QM, it seems that you’re creating renewed excitement about basketball at WSU. How has that been possible in such a short time?

Q: Yes, Spider, we are seeing growing crowds at our games and the enthusiasm of our fans is really helping. I think the core of the program I inherited is sound. The players understand that since there are some great players on other teams in the Pac-12, we need to work together, go full out, and play as a team. We’ve been focusing on each game as it comes along rather than looking down the schedule at future competitors.

S: You’ve been getting good production from Gareth Lewis, Scott Robinson, and D.J. Asbury. Any surprises there?

Q. Well, I’m very happy with how that trio has played, but they’re getting good support from the other starters and some key bench players as well. While not scoring as much as the guys you mentioned, Darius Dunn can score, rebound, dish out assists, and play great defense at the 3 position and has anchored the middle of our lineup. As to surprises, I guess everything is a surprise to me since I really didn’t know what to expect this year. Starting a freshman at the 5 position was a bit scary, but Gareth Lewis showed great promise in our pre-season practices and immediately made an impact once our season began. A kid who can come in right out of high school and score, rebound and play solid defense is a huge bonus.

S: Where do you realistically feel you will place in the Pac-12 standings this year?

Q. [laughing] It’s way too early to be thinking about that. We just want to play as well as we possibly can each game we play. I’ll let the chips then fall where they may with respect to how that fits into the standings. We have a particularly tough patch of the schedule coming up with 3 straight road games against some strong competition. The road has not been our friend thus far, so the guys are going to have to play their very best in each of those games.

S: What do you feel is your biggest need to be able to move up into Pac-12 hierarchy?

Q. I don’t think there is one specific part of the puzzle that is needed. We need to develop the players we have and add some depth. Hopefully we can begin that process with the recruits we land this year. We’ve already received commitments from two good-looking high school players. Now it’s up to me and my staff to land 2 more strong recruits for next year’s Cougars’ squad.

S: Are you going to get the Cougars into the Big Dance this year?

Q: We definitely are an underdog to get that far this year, but it’s certainly a goal of ours and is a possibility. I think we need to develop and gel a bit more as a team for that to become a reality this year, though. And without great depth, our players need to stay healthy.

S: Are you happy to be coaching at WSU?

Q. Of course I am, Spider. It’s a great campus. The administration is supportive. My assistant coaches have done a great job and the players are working hard. The students, alumni, and fans are enthusiastic. And Pullman has its own charm. The recent snow and cold spell has been a bit of a test, but fortunately I just came from New Hampshire, so I’m used to winter weather.

S: Good luck the rest of this year, QM.

Q: Thanks, Spider. If your viewers want to see some spirited basketball, they need to get to Pullman and check us out.

[PointGuard]

Game #18: Jan. 21, 2022; Washington State Cougars (11-6, 4-2) at #10 Oregon Ducks (14-3, 5-1)

We begin a 3 game road trip by taking on the first place and 10th ranked Oregon Ducks. Oregon has beaten #5 Duke, #6 Louisville, and #10 Syracuse but lost to #4 Indiana. They presently have a 4-game win streak and are 10-0 at home. Even though their leading scorer, SG Steve Simpson, is scoring just 12.0 ppg, they have a lot of very highly-rated players. Four other players who are averaging between 8.0 and 10.4 ppg.

We stayed with Oregon and trailed just 20-16 midway through the first half. But then Oregon clamped down defensively and rapidly pulled away. By the end of the half we trailed 44-25. Oregon hit 64% of their shots to our37% shooting. They out-rebounded us 17-9 and had a 7-3 turnover advantage. Our leading scorer was D. J. Asbury with 12 points.

We played even with the Ducks in the 2nd half but were never able to make a serious enough dent in their lead to cause them any worry.

Final Score: Oregon-72, Washington State-54. Washington State season record: 11-7; Pac-12 record: 4-3 (3rd place tie).

Scoring leaders: Asbury-23, Lewis-8.

Rebound leaders: Lewis-8, Asbury-5.

Assist leaders: Robinson-4.

Player of the Game: Oregon’s C Kedric Willis-18 pts, 9 reb, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: PF D.J. Asbury-23 pts, 5 reb.

Other notes: We were schooled by the disciplined play of the Ducks. They were in control the entire game. They hit 52% of their FG attempts, we only hit 37% of ours. We were out-rebounded 32-26 and we had 14 turnovers while Oregon only had 6.

[PointGuard]

Game #19: Jan. 25, 2022; Washington State Cougars (11-7, 4-3) at Oregon State Beavers (5-13, 3-4)

OK, the Beavers season record looks awful, but 8 of their 11 pre-conference games were on the road. And they’ve done fairly well in conference play including a big win at home against conference-leader Oregon. Their SG Clinton Curly is averaging 15.5 ppg and Kenny Wallace and Justin Russell, their two PG’s, are averaging 7.4 ppg and 7.2 ppg respectively.

We took a 12-5 lead but then got sloppy hanging onto the ball, and Oregon State not only caught up but took a 5 point lead with about 7 minutes to go in the first half. Our shooting which was great all the way through the half moved us back ahead and we took a 41-36 lead to the locker room. We hit 68% of our FG attempts and had a 15-10 rebounding advantage. But we turned the ball over 10 times while OSU had just 6 turnovers. D.J. Asbury socred 14 and Scott Robinson added 12 for us.

We opened a 10 point lead in the first 3 minutes of the 2nd half. Oregon State chipped away at our lead midway through the half and tied us at 63-63 with 8-1/2 minutes to go, then took a 1 point lead with 7 minutes left. We fought back to retake the lead but then the lead began flip-flopping. The Beavers tied the game 73-73 with 2:34 remaining. OSU hit a 3 and then stole the ball and drove down for a dunk to put them ahead 78-73 with just 1:15 to go. D.J. Asbury hit a shot from the head of the key to make it 78-75 with 1 minute left. With 39 seconds left, the Beavers’ Justin Campbell put in an offensive rebound and was fouled on the effort. He missed the free throw, but Oregon State rebounded. We fouled quickly. OSU dropped in both free throws putting the game out of reach.

Final Score: Oregon State-82, Washington State-75. Washington State season record: 11-8; Pac-12 record: 4-4 (5th place tie).

Scoring leaders: Asbury-24, Robinson-18, Lewis-12.

Rebound leaders: Robinson-7, Bond-5.

Assist leaders: Robinson-5, Bond-4, Jones-4, Asbury-3.

Player of the Game: Oregon State’s PG Kenny Wallace-19 pts, 6 reb, 3 assists.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: PF D. J. Asbury-24 pts, 3 reb, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block.

Other notes: We hit 60% of our shots compared to the Beavers’ 47% shooting. We out-rebounded Oregon State 29-27, but turned the ball over 18 times while OSU had only 11 turnovers. The Beavers also got to the free throw line 13 more times and scored 8 more points there than did we. A disappointing loss in a road game we had a good chance to win.

But to show how difficult it is to win on the road in the Pac-12, Oregon lost on Washington’s home court tonight.

[PointGuard]

Game #20: Jan. 28, 2022; Washington State Cougars (11-8, 4-4) at Stanford Cardinal(12-7, 5-3)

Our 3rd straight road game. Two of Stanford’s losses have been to Top 10 teams. Any of Stanford’s starts can lead their scoring, but for the season, SF Mike Whitehead tops them with 13.9 ppg.

After a couple good games coming off the bench, Cory Malone will get his chance to start at SG for us tonight.

Gareth Lewis scored 6 points of the first 40 seconds to give us a 6-0 lead. We played an outstanding first 10 minutes taking a 28-10 lead, hitting 58% of our shots, holding Stanford’s shooting to 20%, and posting solid advantages in both turnovers and rebounds. We finish what I think was our best-played half of the entire year with a 46-22 lead. We hit 50% of our shots, but more impressively held Stanford’s shooting to 19%. We dominated the boards 22-12. We held a 7-3 turnover advantage. Scott Robinson led our scoring with 13 points, but Gareth Lewis scored 10 points and grabbed 9 rebounds.

We couldn’t emulate our success of the first half in the 2nd half, but maintained about a 20 point lead through most of the half. Fouls against us and some late game shooting success by Stanford trimmed our lead, but never below a double digit difference.

Final Score: Washington State-68, Stanford-58. Washington State season record: 12-8; Pac-12 record: 5-4 (4th place tie).

Scoring leaders: Lewis-14, Robinson-13, Asbury-12, Bond-10.

Rebound leaders: Lewis-12, Asbury-8, Robinson-6.

Assist leaders: Bond-6.

Player of the Game: C Gareth Lewis-14 pts, 12 reb, 1 assist, 1 steal.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: SF Darius Bond-10 pts, 6 assists.

Other notes: We outshot Stanford 43% to 31% and controlled the boards 36-28. After making just 3 turnovers in the first half, we got sloppy in the 2nd half, so both teams made 13 turnovers. Gareth Lewis had an impressive double-double (14 points and 12 rebounds).

This was a tremendous win for us on the road against a very good team.

[PointGuard]

Game #21: Feb. 1, 2022; Arizona State Sun Devils (8-12, 4-5) at Washington State Cougars (12-8, 5-4)

Arizona State’s scores well inside with PF Dan Booker averaging 12.1 ppg and C Gene Hayes adding 10.3 ppg.

Our defense put the Sun Devils on their heels in the first half. We held Arizona State’s shooting to 30% and forced them to turn the ball over 12 times. We came off the floor at the half with a 39-19 lead. D.J. Asbury tossed in 9 points to lead us offensively.

Although we let up some defensively in the 2nd half, we expanded our lead to as much as 30 points. We gave up some of our lead late in the half when we were playing the long end of our bench but kept control of the game the entire way.

Final Score: Washington State-72, Arizona State-56. Washington State season record: 13-8; Pac-12 record: 6-4 (3rd place tie).

Scoring leaders: Robinson-15, Lewis-14, Asbury-13, Bond-10.

Rebound leaders: Thomas-7.

Assist leaders: Jones-6, Bond-4, Dix-4, Robinson-3.

Player of the Game: PG Scott Robinson-15 pts, 3 reb, 3 assists, 2 steals.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: PF Troy Thomas-4 pts, 7 reb, 1 block.

Other notes: We hit 47% of our shots and Arizona State scored on 39% of their FG attempts. The Sun Devils out-rebounded us 32-29, but we held a 19-9 advantage in turnovers.

[PointGuard]

Game #22: Feb. 4, 2022; California Golden Bears (14-9, 6-4) at Washington State Cougars (13-8, 6-4)

Like us, California’s success thus far has been a surprise to many. They were 2nd in the Hawaiian Shootout at the beginning of the season, then beat #14 Oklahoma State and #24 Auburn but lost to #7 Kansas and #10 Oregon. Arizona State has 7 players averaging between 7.2 and 10.9 ppg, but their leading scorer, Booker Bryant (10.9 ppg), is one of three players on their squad that is academically ineligible.

California controlled the game throughout most of the first half, holding a 3-8 point lead, but late in the half they had some turnovers as our defense strengthened and we tied California 31-31 with 1:48 remaining in the half. Then we stole a pass and scored on a driving layup as time expired and we took a 38-37 advantage into the locker room. Both teams hit 54% of their shots. Gareth Lewis led our scoring with 9 points.

We fell behind by 8 points midway through the 2nd half as we shot poorly and turned the ball over frequently, but late in the half made a run that cut the Golden Bears’ lead to 57-56 with 3 minutes to play. Gareth Lewis fouled out on the ensuing possession. California quickly stretched their lead back to 8 points with 1 minute left. We cut into their lead but it was too much to overcome.

Final Score: California-68, Washington State-63. Washington State season record: 13-9; Pac-12 record: 6-5 (5th place tie).

Scoring leaders: Robinson-17, Lewis-12, Asbury-10, Bond-10,

Rebound leaders: Lewis-7, Bond-5.

Assist leaders: Jones-3, Dix-3, Robinson-3.

Player of the Game: California’s C Doylan Freymond-16 pts, 9 reb, 1 block.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: C Gareth Lewis-12 pts, 7 reb, 2 assists.

Other notes: Our shooting dropped to 45% for the game. California hit 46% of their shots. But the Golden Bears held a 28-27 rebounding advantage and an 18-17 turnover advantage…just enough to edge us out.

[PointGuard]

Game #23: Feb. 8, 2022; Arizona Wildcats (11-11, 4-7) at Washington State Cougars (13-9, 6-5)

Arizona has had an up and down year all season, but they’ve won their last 2 games after enduring a 6 game losing streak. PF Winston Flanigan is still the rock of their lineup, scoring 11.9 ppg and pulling down 7.9 rpg.

After 9 minutes of play, the refs had 4 of our players benched with 2 fouls apiece. By the end of the half we had 7 players with 2 fouls each while Arizona had been called for just 6 team fouls. That together with a 21-11 rebounding advantage resulted in a 38-31 lead for the Wildcats at the intermission. Corey Malone was our leading scorer with 6 points.

Gareth Lewis was charged with his 3rd personal 36 seconds into the 2nd half. Scott Robinson picked up his 3rd at the 17:15 mark. Scott Robinson hit a 3 with 12 seconds to go to cut Arizona’s lead to 69-66, but we had to foul immediately and Arizona hit both shots putting the game out of touch. Robinson hit another 3, but time expired with us 2 points short.

Final Score: Arizona-71, Washington State-69. Washington State season record: 13-10; Pac-12 record: 6-6 (6th place tie).

Scoring leaders: Robinson-15, Malone-12, Lewis-11, Asbury-10.

Rebound leaders: Lewis-6, Asbury-5.

Assist leaders: Dix-3.

Player of the Game: Arizona’s C Roby Hardy-24 pts, 11 reb, 2 assists, 1 steal.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: PF D.J. Asbury-10 pts, 5 reb, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block.

Other notes: The refs were just too much for us in this game. They called 25 fouls against us giving Arizona 36 free throws of which they scored on 22. We only got 19 free throw attempts but hit 16. The 6 point differential negated our shooting advantage. Arizona had two players with double-doubles: Roby Hardy (24 points and 11 rebounds) and Winston Flanigan (15 points and 14 rebounds).

Not only was this our 2nd straight loss at home, but Darius Bond strained an abdominal muscle and will miss 2 or 3 games.

I'm not sure if the team is tiring out at the end of the season or letting down and not focusing, but losing 2 straight games at home is a killer.