Washington State Cougars basketball
| Washington State Cougars men's basketball | ||||
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| University | Washington State University | |||
| Head coach | Ernie Kent (4th season) | |||
| Conference | Pac-12 | |||
| Location | Pullman, Washington | |||
| Arena |
Beasley Coliseum (Capacity: 11,566) |
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| Nickname | Cougars | |||
| Colors | Crimson and Gray |
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| Uniforms | ||||
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| Pre-tournament Premo-Porretta champions | ||||
| 1917 | ||||
| Pre-tournament Helms champions | ||||
| 1917 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament runner-up | ||||
| 1941 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament Final Four | ||||
| 1941 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament Elite Eight | ||||
| 1941 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen | ||||
| 2008 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament Round of 32 | ||||
| 1983, 2007, 2008 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament appearances | ||||
| 1941, 1980, 1983, 1994, 2007, 2008 | ||||
| Conference regular season champions | ||||
| 1917, 1941 | ||||
The Washington State Cougars men's basketball team represents Washington State University and competes in the Pac-12 Conference (Pac-12) of NCAA Division I. The Cougars play their home games on campus in Pullman at Beasley Coliseum, which has a capacity of 11,566.
Washington State began varsity intercollegiate competition in men's basketball in 1902. The Cougars were retroactively awarded the 1917 National Championship by the Helms Athletic Foundation and the Premo-Porretta Power Poll. The team played to large crowds in the late-1970s when George Raveling was head coach.
For the better part of seven decades, the Cougars were a consistent contender in the Pac-10 and its predecessor, the Pacific Coast Conference. After a dark period in the late 1990s and early 2000s, there was the beginning of a resurgence under coach Dick Bennett. The 2004-05 season saw a large increase in student support as the team finished within a few wins of a .500 record (along with a stunning upset win against Arizona, an eventual Elite Eight team). Bennett retired at the end of the 2005-06 season and was replaced by his son, Tony.
Tony Bennett tied the all-time WSU record for wins (26) in two of his three seasons as head coach before leaving for Virginia Cavaliers in 2009. Washington State had recently cancelled a trip to the 2009 Final Four for Bennett and his staff, and was considering dropping chartered recruiting trips which had just been started one year prior at Bennett's request.
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