Play of the Game: With the Cougars up by 10 points, with six minutes left in the first half Klay Thompson blocked a shot by a driving Landon Tatum, recovered the ball and threw a half court pass out in front of Faisal Aden. Aden sprinted past Idaho's Kyle Barone to grab the ball and throw down a two-handed slam. Though the 6-4 guard is known for his dead-eye shooting, he showed Cougar Nation he's not afraid to get up.

Stat of the Game: One of the first things your mother always teaches you is to share with friends. That is exactly what the Cougars did Tuesday, finishing with 21 total assists. WSU notched nine more than it did in the season-opener against Southern while only scoring four more points. Klay Thompson led the team with nine, Marcus Capers, DeAngelo Casto and Faisal Aden each contributed three. Thompson's nine marks a career-high.

Player of the Game: Though he did not lead the Cougars in scoring, Klay Thompson showed his improvement as a distributor. The junior out of Ladera Ranch, Calif., finished with 23 points, nine assists and four rebounds. Although he struggled from beyond the arc (2-for-9), Thompson found other ways to score, converting 7-of-9 free throws and converting 5-of-8 two-point field goals.

Honorable Mention: Faisal Aden was the leading scorer for the Cougars with 26 points, going 10-for-16 from the field.

After picking up three fouls in less than a minute, Patrick Simon came back to finish with 12 points in 13 minutes of action, nailing 5-of-7 from the field.

Turning Point: The Cougars jumped out to a 15-point lead early, but the Vandals were able to cut it down to five by halftime. Idaho kept its intensity up to start the second half and brought the deficit down to two points, four minutes into the second period. The Cougar lead expanded quickly after that as Faisal Aden nailed a mid-range jumper, followed by a 3-pointer from Patrick Simon after an Idaho turnover. The exchange sparked a 15-0 run to give the Cougars a 17-point lead with 11 minutes remaining in the game.

WSU will be back in action Tuesday when it travels to Seattle to take on the University of Portland in the Cougar Hardwood Classic at KeyArena.

Until then, Go Cougs!

Casey Johnson