 |
| Ken Bone |
Cougar Chats, Copyright 2012, Washington State University Athletics. All rights reserved.
2012-13 Men's Basketball Schedule |
Buy Basketball Tickets
Chat with Washington State men's basketball head coach Ken Bone on Wednesday, Dec. 12 at Noon PT.
|
 |
| Moderator: Good afternoon Cougars and welcome to this afternoon's chat with men's basketball coach Ken Bone. The Cougars are wrapping up the non-conference portion of their schedule with three games before the new year. They return to action tomorrow night hosting Jackson State at Beasley Coliseum. Tip is at 7 p.m. The Cougars then go to the west side for the Cougar Hardwood Classic vs. Buffalo, Friday, Dec. 21 at KeyArena in Seattle. Tip is at 7:30 p.m. The final non-conference game is against Idaho State at Kennewick, Saturday, Dec. 29 for a 3 p.m. tip. The Pac-12 opener is versus Washington in Pullman, Saturday, Jan. 5 at 6:30 p.m. For ticket information click on the Basketball Tickets link at the top of this page.
Coach, thank you for joining us today. |
 |
 |
Ken Bone: Great to be here. Looking forward to answering your questions. Let's get to it. |
|
|
| Ron (Centralia): Coach Bone - how is the overall health of the team compared to last year? |
|
|
Ken Bone: Ron, at this time the overall heath is pretty good, with the exception of Will DiIorio, who sprained his ankle against Gonzaga and is out another 1-2 weeks. At this time last year, Abe Lodwick still had three more weeks before he could play his first game of the season, Faisal Aden was out with a concussion, and a few other guys had some nagging injuries. So all in all, we are in much better shape than we were at this moment last year. |
|
|
| Steve (Spokane): Has anything about Brock's play surprised you or has it been what you expected? |
|
|
Ken Bone: Steve, after what Brock was able to accomplish last season, I'm not surprised he's taken off this year and continued to score. I like the fact that he has become a better defender. |
|
|
| Jenny (Lewiston): Coach, what do you need to work on these last three non-conference games before you enter Pac-12 play. |
|
|
Ken Bone: Jenny, I like the things we've been doing on defense, yet we still need to tidy things up in that area. We need to finish off every possession with a great presence on the defensive boards. I also like to see us improve the execution of our motion offense. |
|
|
| Rick (Spokane): Wha are Brock's chances of a career in the NBA? |
|
|
Ken Bone: Rick, I see you're from Spokane. Come on down for the game Thursday and get a first-hand look at what Brock can do! On the serious side, I believe Brock is making a case for himself the way he continues to score against almost any defense. It sure would be nice to see another Coug in the NBA alongside Klay Thompson. |
|
|
| Benji (Pullman): I want to compliment your team on their involvement in the community. They seem to be extremely approachable and outgoing, we loved the Free Clinic! |
|
|
Ken Bone: Thank you for the comments. It's great to see and I do appreciate our guys willingness to be involved in the community. It's an important part of our program in which guys can be educated outside the classroom of 1) giving back to the community and 2) how blessed they are to be playing college basketball. |
|
|
| Vancouver: When will you play the University of Portland (or Portland State) in Portland again? Vancouver Cougs want to see the team again. |
|
|
Ken Bone: It was great to get to Portland last year to play the Pilots. We've had discussions with Portland State about playing there sometime in the near future. |
|
|
| Lew (Los Angeles): Coach, do you anticipate rotating just a couple of guys in once Pac-12 games begin or has some of your young guys impressed? |
|
|
Ken Bone: Lew, our two freshman, Brett Boese and Junior Longrus, have been playing the most minutes and have done a good job so far. We will continue to watch them, along with Bryce Leavitt a walk-on from Kennewick, as we get into Pac-12 play. |
|
|
| James (Spokane): Can you talk about the future of the program? Seems like you signed an tremendous recruiting class this fall! Great incoming talent! |
|
|
Ken Bone: James, I am excited about the kids we signed in the fall. Unfortunately, I've not had an opportunity to get out and see them play so far this year. I do know that Josh Hawkinson had a big night last night statistically and Ike Iroegbu and Tanner Lancona continue to play well for their prospective teams. |
|
|
| Jason (Yakima): Coach, what a great atmosphere at Beasley for the Gonzaga game. When Beasley is packed like that is it like having a sixth man on the floor? |
|
|
Ken Bone: Jason, it was a fun and exciting atmosphere and one which we benefited from because of the energy in Beasley Coliseum. It's always a huge advantage when our students and supporters come out for our games and show the type of enthusiasm that they showed last Wednesday night. We obviously would love to have that type of atmosphere every game because our players feed off of that energy in a positive way. |
|
| Moderator: Okay that's all the time we have. Coach, thank you for joining us once again. |
|
|
Ken Bone: Thank you for your questions. I want to wish all Cougar s a Happy Holiday season. I would love to see you in Pullman tomorrow night vs. Jackson State, in Seattle next Friday, and Kennewick on Dec. 29. Thanks again. Go Cougs! |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
