What They're Saying: Cougs vs. Zags Edition

REGGIE MOORE said he thinks some of the Cougs thought they had it wrapped up. Mark Few dubbed his team's big comeback Wednesday "courageous." Klay Thompson said he's never had such an atrocious night. And that's just a taste of the post-mortem on the donnybrook of a game Washington State and No. 17 Gonzaga waged Wednesday. The Cougs led big, but couldn't convert when it mattered most.

Here's what they're saying following the 74-69 nailbiter in Spokane ...

"I thought our guys really battled hard and competed ... for a young group they were composed and dealt with the situation extremely well. The last six or seven minutes we didn't handle the adversity the way we needed to to win a game like this. But we're young ..."
-- Ken Bone, WSU coach.

“I think some of us thought the game was won.”
– WSU guard Reggie Moore

“Call it the tale of two halves. The Cougars completely dominated the first half, the Zags the second. In the first, the Cougs were balanced and aggressive, getting contributions from everyone and dominating on the glass, 24-12. Casto played big. In the second, the Zags started chipping away and Matt Bouldin lit a torch. For the Cougs, it was turnovers, missed shots under the hoop and too many missed free throws. The good news for this young WSU team is that in a hostile environment against a very good team, they almost pulled it off -- even on a bad night for Klay Thompson.”
– CF.C Columnist Emeritus Steve Witter

“Though this Washington State team has picked up the pace offensively, the Cougars stayed in the game thanks to their defense. But the Zags started picking it apart in the second half …”
– Jim Meehan, Spokesman-Review

THOMPSON, SACRE SQUARE OFF

For the longest time, the 17th-ranked team in the nation played like the 17th-ranked team in the state. Bad shots. Bad passes. Bad defense. Bad rebounding. For once, the Gonzaga Bulldogs looked vulnerable at the McCarthey Athletic Center. Extremely vulnerable.And then, almost magically, the Bulldogs got it together when it mattered most.”
– Howie Stalwick, Kitsap Sun

“The WSU Cougars had the biggest win on the season in their grasp, but Gonzaga guard Matt Bouldin’s big night shut the door on WSU’s upset bid.”
– Braulio Perez, The Daily Evergreen

“Klay Thompson scored 15 points to lead Washington State (6-1), but that was 13 points below the season average for the nation's leading scorer. He was just 6 of 21 from the field.”
– Nick Geranios, AP

“I haven’t missed that many in my life.”
-- WSU guard Klay Thompson

"That was one of the most courageous performances I have seen in this building."
-- Gonzaga coach Masrk Few

"I don't think Klay had an easy shot all night."
– Gonzaga star Matt Bouldin

"You can't really get a more hostile crowd than Gonzaga. Their fans are terrible. They yell allkinds of stuff. They go into your personal life ... it's crazy."
-- WSU forward DeAngelo Casto.

WSU, 6-1, NOW TRAVELS TO KANSAS STATE THIS WEEKEND.