Washington coach Danny Sprinkle doesn’t remember anything about the first time he was in Pullman, Wash.
That’s because he was born at Washington State’s hospital.
Sprinkle will make a return to the Palouse on Friday night as his Huskies (2-1) visit the Cougars (1-2) in the basketball version of the Apple Cup for state bragging rights.
“It’s a rivalry game, it’ll be fun. Their fans are great,” Sprinkle said. “They obviously don’t like the Huskies and we don’t like them, but that’s what makes rivalries fun.
“It’ll be a great environment and we’re going to have to play well. I’ve coached against Coach (David) Riley a long time and he’s tremendous.”
After winning their first two games of the season at home, the Huskies suffered a 78-69 loss Sunday at Baylor.
Guard Zoom Diallo, one of only two returnees for the Huskies, scored 13 of his team-high 15 points after the intermission. Freshman Hannes Steinbach notched his second consecutive double-double with 10 points and 15 rebounds.
Washington couldn’t overcome 3-of-20 shooting from beyond the 3-point arc and a 10-of-15 effort at the free-throw line.
“I thought we played hard, but we just couldn’t make a shot,” Sprinkle said.
The Cougars lost their first two games before an 81-71 victory against the visiting St. Thomas Tommies on Monday night.
Guard Tomas Thrastarson, a native of Iceland who was a West Coast Conference all-freshman selection last season, led WSU with a career-high 19 points and seven rebounds. He was 4-for-7 from beyond the 3-point arc.
The Cougars got a boost from senior Adria Rodriguez from Spain, who had nine points, five rebounds and four assists after totaling just three points over his first two collegiate games.
“That’s perfect for us,” Boise State transfer Emmanuel Ugbo, who had 12 points, said of Rodriguez. “He is the head of the snake on the defensive end and on the offensive end, he’s such a smart player.
“So if he’s aggressive, and he can make reads off going downhill, I feel like we have such a good offense. It just spreads the offense out and gets him and gets me going.”
The Huskies have won the past two meetings with WSU, including an 89-73 decision last season in Seattle.