OMAHA, Neb. — The Washington State men's basketball team will start their journey for a NCAA national title this week with a first round game against Drake.
The Cougs earned a #7 seed and will open the March Madness Tournament against #10 Drake (28-6). The game will be played at the CHI Health Center Arena in Omaha, Nebraska on Thursday.
Wazzu finished the year with a loss in the Pac-12 tournament semi-finals against Colorado (58-52). Despite not winning the conference tournament, WSU had their best season in over a decade.
Drake is located in Des Moines, Iowa. The Bulldogs won the Missouri Valley Conference to guarantee their spot in the Big Dance. The team went 28-6 overall and 15-4 in conference. This will be their seventh time in the NCAA Tournament with this being their third appearance within the past four years.
Game time, channel, and how to watch
For those wondering what channel the Washington St.-Drake game is on, here are the details.
The #7 Washington St. Cougars vs. the #10 Drake Bulldogs NCAA Tournament basketball game tips off at 7:05 p.m. on Thursday, March 21. The game will be played at the CHI Health Center Arena in Omaha, Nebraska.
The game will air nationally on truTV. The game will also stream online via the truTV. According to their website viewers can, "Watch for free on your phone, tablet, and television with your cable subscription." Streaming of all games is also available through NCAA.com, but a cable subscription may be required.
Cougars vs Bulldogs
Thursday’s matchup between Washington St. and Drake will be the second time the two teams have played each other in basketball. The first time was back in December 1935, WSU won by one point, 28-27.
Washington State's leading scorer is Isaac Jones who averages over 15 points per game. In addition to Jones, Myles Rice, Jaylen Wells and Andrej Jakimovski all average double digit points for Wazzu.
Drake's leading scorer is Tucker DeVries who averages nearly 22 points per game. DeVries is the unquestioned leader of the Drake basketball team, even winning the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year Award for the 2023-2024 season. In addition to DeVries, the Bulldogs have Atin Wright, Kevin Overton and Darnell Brodie who average double digit points per game.
The Bulldogs average just over 80 points per game while giving up around 66 points per game. WSU averages over 74 points per game while giving up just about 67 points per game. It will be key for Washington St. to slow down Tucker DeVries in order to beat Drake.
WATCH RELATED: Myles Rice: The heart and soul of WSU men's basketball
Washington State men’s basketball schedule
- Nov. 6: Washington St. vs. Idaho (W 84-59)
- Nov. 10: Washington St. vs. Prairie View A&M (W 83-65)
- Nov. 18: Washington St. vs. Mississippi St. (L 76-64)
- Nov. 19: Washington St. vs. Rhode Island (W 78-57)
- Nov. 24: Washington St. vs. Utah Tech (W 93-53)
- Nov. 27: Washington St. vs. Eastern Washington (W 82-72)
- Dec. 2: Washington St. vs. Portland St. (W 71-61)
- Dec. 6: Washington St. vs. UC Riverside (W 86-49)
- Dec. 10: Washington St. vs. Grambling St. (W 83-65)
- Dec. 16: Washington St. vs. Santa Clara (L 61-69)
- Dec. 21: Washington St. vs. Boise St. (W 66-61)
- Dec. 29: Washington St. at Utah (L 80-58)
- Dec. 31: Washington St. at Colorado (L 74-67)
- Jan. 4: Washington St. vs. Oregon St. (W 65-58)
- Jan. 6: Washington St. vs. Oregon (L 89-84)
- Jan. 10: Washington St. at USC (W 72-64)
- Jan. 13: Washington St. vs #8 Arizona (W 73-70)
- Jan. 18: Washington St. at Stanford (W 89-75)
- Jan. 20: Washington St. at California (L 81-75 OT)
- Jan. 24: Washington St. vs Utah (W 79-57)
- Jan. 27: Washington St. vs. Colorado (W 78-69)
- Feb. 3: Washington St. at Washington (W 90-87 OT)
- Feb. 8: Washington St. at Oregon St. (W 62-56)
- Feb 10: Washington St. vs. Oregon (W 62-56)
- Feb. 15: Washington St. vs. California (W 84-65)
- Feb. 17: Washington St. vs. Stanford (W 72-59)
- Feb. 22: #21 Washington St. at #4 Arizona (W 72-59)
- Feb. 24: #21 Washington St. at Arizona St. (L 73-61)
- Feb. 29: #19 Washington St. vs. USC (W 75-72)
- Mar. 2: #19 Washington St. vs. UCLA (W 77-65)
- Mar. 7: #18 Washington St. vs. Washington (L 74-68)
- Mar. 14: Washington St. vs. Stanford (W 79-62)
- Mar. 15: Washington St. vs Colorado (L 58-52)
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