Motum is joined by eight other Pac-12 men’s basketball student-athletes in the tournament; Larry Drew II of UCLA, Carrick Felix of Arizona State, Abdul Gaddy and Aziz N’Diaye of Washington, Arsalan Kazemi, E.J. Singler and Tony Woods of Oregon and Mark Lyons of Arizona. Motum’s team is sponsored by Mike Duman Auto Sales and coached by Max Gillespie, Jerry Hasty and Ruben Patterson. He is joined on his team by N’Diaye, forward Richard Howell of North Carolina State, forward Robert Covington of Tennessee State, forward Dwayne Davis of Southern Mississippi, guard Rodney McGruder of Kansas State, guard Vincent Council of Providence and guard Kenny Boynton of Florida.

Motum (Brisbane, Australia), a 6-foot-10 forward finished his season leading the Pac-12 in scoring for the second-straight year with 18.7 points per game, while ranking fourth in the league in conference games only with 17.4 points per league game. He scored at least 11 points in all 32 games this season and reached double-figure scoring in 32-straight games. With 6.3 rebounds per game, Motum ranks 16th in the conference, while he’s fifth in minutes played with 35.3 minutes per game. He had 5 double-doubles this season, including in two in his three final games.

In WSU’s final regular season game, Motum moved into fifth on the WSU all-time career scoring list and finished his career with 1,530 points. Motum’s 597 points this season ranks sixth on the single-season list. This season Motum also became just the 12th Cougar to score 1,000 points and grab 500 rebounds in his career as he has 539 career rebounds. Motum was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week both Dec. 10 and March 11.

Last season Motum was named the Pac-12 Most Improved Player and first team All-Pac-12. This year he became the ninth Cougar to earn second team all-conference honors as it marked the 14th time a WSU student-athlete has earned the accolades. He joined Jim McKean, Don Collins and Kyle Weaver as the four Cougars to earn both first team and second team all-conference honors in their careers. WSU has had a representative on one of the first two all-conference teams each of the last seven seasons. Motum was also named to the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) and National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) All-District Teams in March.

Each year for 60 years, the P.I.T. has invited 64 of the best college basketball seniors from across the nation to participate in a four-day, 12 game tournament in front of representatives from every NBA team. The tournament drew the attention of NBA Scouts and General Managers in the mid-70′s when players like Dave Cowens, John Lucas, Walt Szczerbiak and Bobby Cremins went to Portsmouth to play. Today scouts from numerous international leagues have joined in on the annual April pilgrimage to Portsmouth.

The P.I.T. has always claimed to be “more than a basketball tournament.” Each year it contributes back to the community by awarding five $4,000 scholarships to student-athletes from Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk and Virginia Beach. In addition to the scholarships, approximately $11,500 from the tournament proceeds is presented to local non-profit organizations and charities to help them make a difference in the local community, creating a grand total of over $31,500 given back to the community each year.

Motum’s team will open up action against the Portsmouth Partnership, Wednesday, April 10 at 6 p.m. PT.

But the Cougars got 20 points and 11 rebounds from Brock Motum and shocked the Bruins 73-61 on Wednesday night.

The win by the last-place Cougars broke a 19-game home losing streak to the Bruins that extended to 1993.

Royce Woolridge added 19 points for Washington State (12-18, 3-14 Pac-12), which also broke a nine-game losing streak that had put coach Ken Bone on the hot seat.

“It’s nice to see these guys rewarded with a win,” said Bone, whose team has repeatedly lost games in the second half this season. “It’s a huge confidence builder.”

Jordan Adams scored 18 points for UCLA (22-8, 12-5), which had won four straight games and came into Wednesday tied with Oregon for first place in the Pac-12.

“We didn’t come out with the emotion and intensity that we needed,” UCLA coach Ben Howland said. “We didn’t have the sense of urgency when so much was riding on the line for us.”

Shabazz Muhammad added 14 points for UCLA on 4-of-19 shooting.

Washington State had lost its last eight games against the Bruins, who were coming off a win over No. 18 Arizona.

“This is the first time in 19 years we beat them here,” Motum said. “I was happy individually to have beaten UCLA for the first time.”

Washington State played without Mike Ladd (knee injury) and DaVonte Lacy (knee injury), their second- and third-leading scorers. Bone said Lacy is out for the rest of the season.

It didn’t seem to matter, as the Cougars sliced up the Bruins inside for easy layups much of the game.

“We set good screens,” Motum said. “Our guys were wide open for baskets.”

Washington State, which jumped to a big early lead and never trailed, held the Bruins 15 points below their scoring average, and outrebounded them 46-23. The Bruins shot just 38 percent in the game, compared to 49 percent for WSU.

“For us to have 21 offensive rebounds and them to have 23 total rebounds, that was very impressive,” Bone said.

“We showed we can compete with anyone,” said WSU’s Dexter Kernich-Drew, who had 11 points and 11 rebounds in a rare start because of the injuries.

The Bruins, who also got 10 points from Norman Powell, were outscored 44-20 in the paint, and were 8 of 29 from 3-point range.

“We came out defensively very poor,” Howland said. “I did not have my guys ready to play or fearful enough of losing this game.”

“They kept getting layups and easy shots,” Howland said. “At the other end, we missed some shots early in the game, in the first half, and it snowballed.”

Washington State scored the first seven points of the game, and then made four straight layups to build a 15-2 lead. The Bruins made only one of their first 10 shots.

The Bruins did not score their second field goal until there was 10:26 left in the first half and they trailed 19-4.

Washington State extended the lead to 25-4 with 8:28 left. The Cougars made 10 of their first 18 shots.

Muhammad made a 3-pointer to get the Bruins into double figures at 25-12, but Woolridge replied with a 3 for WSU.

Adams scored the last five points of the first half for the Bruins, on two free throws and a 3-pointer, but Washington State led 35-24. The Cougars shot 48 percent in the first while holding UCLA to 30 percent.

Muhammad’s 3-pointer cut WSU’s lead to 37-31 early in the second. D.J. Shelton scored three straight baskets for WSU to push the lead back to 43-33.

Layups by Woolridge and Motum gave WSU a 56-42 lead with 7 minutes left.

Two 3-pointers helped the Bruins cut WSU’s lead to 60-52, but the Cougars made their free throws to stay ahead.

“I thought our guys were good with their composure,” Bone said.

D.J. Shelton added 13 points and four assists for the Cougars.

UCLA averages 76 points per game to lead the Pac-12.

The Bruins hold a 102-15 lead in the all-time series.

Brock Motum and Royce Woolridge added 14 points each and DaVonte Lacy and D.J Shelton 10 apiece for the Cougars (10-7, 1-3 Pac-12), who snapped a three-game losing streak.

Brandon Taylor had 13 points and Justin Seymour 11 for the Utes (8-9, 0-5).

Utah fought back from a 16-point deficit with the help of back-to-back three-point plays by Seymour to get within 47-41 with just under 10 minutes to play.

But Motum, who went scoreless in the first half, hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key and added a layup off a steal to help push the Cougars to a 60-46 advantage with six minutes remaining.

Utah got back within 10 on 3-pointer from Jarred DuBois with 3:46 left but got no closer. The Utes shot 46 percent (23 of 50) for the game.

Washington State scored 28 points off 17 Utah turnovers.

PULLMAN, Wash. (AP) – DaVonte Lacy scored 19 points, Brock Motum added 15 and Washington State used a big second half run to escape with a 65-54 victory over Buffalo on Friday night.

Buffalo led 49-48 with 7:02 left before the Cougars used a 13-1 run to pull away. The Bulls went nearly six minutes without a field goal during Washington State’s run.

Lacy tied his career high with five 3-pointers for Washington State (8-4), which has won three straight and six of seven. Motum had eight of his 15 points in the second half for the Cougars and Dexter Kernich-Drew added 10.

Motum had two put-backs to ignite the run, including one after a missed free throw. Kernich-Drew hit a 3-pointer to make it 56-50 with 4:53 remaining in the game.

Tony Watson scored 18 points to lead Buffalo (4-8), which had won two in a row, and Auraum Nuiriankh added 13.

New, unwrapped toys will be collected outside the arena from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., and all donations will go to local families in need.

Washington State returns seven lettermen in 2012-13, headlined by All-Pac-12 First Team and  Pac-12 Most Improved Player Brock Motum. Head coach Ken Bone’s team finished 2011-12 as the runner up in the College Basketball Invitational, falling just short to tournament champion Pittsburgh to end the year with 19 wins.

Buffalo returns nine players, including three with starting experience, highlighted by All-Mid-American Conference First Team selection Javon McCrea. The forward was just the third sophomore in the last 10 years to be named to the conference’s first team. McCrea is the former MAC Freshman of the Year and increased his numbers to 14.9 points and 7.1 rebounds during his second season under head coach Reggie Witherspoon.

WSU is 3-0 all-time versus Buffalo with this year’s game marking the first time the two schools have faced each other since December 16, 1950 when the Cougars beat the Bulls 70-49.

Tickets for this year’s game begin at just $16 and will be available at the KeyArena box office, Ticketmaster.com, and all Ticketmaster outlets.

THE LAST MEETING

ABOUT THE COUGAR HARDWOOD CLASSIC:
• This year marks the eighth annual Cougar Hardwood Classic held at Seattle’s KeyArena…it’s hosted by Idol Sports & Entertainment.
• Seven of the eight CHCs have occurred in December, 2010 year was the only exception when it was held Nov. 23.
• The Cougars are 7-0 all-time in the Cougar Hardwood Classic having defeated Utah (2005), San Diego State (2006), The Citadel (2007), Montana State (2008), LSU (2009), Portland (2010) and Pepperdine (2011).
• Klay Thompson set the record for points scored in 2010 when he put up 35 as WSU defeated Portland, 84-68.
• Last season, the Cougars defeated Pepperdine, 67-56, Thursday, Dec. 22 at KeyArena as part of the Cougar Hardwood Classic.
• DaVonté Lacy tied his then-career high with 3 3-pointers made…he finished with 15 points, his first time in double figures since scoring 10 against Grambling State, Nov. 30…his 15 points tied his then-career high.
• Faisal Aden finished with 17 points, his most since scoring 25 against New Mexico, Nov. 25.
• Brock Motum returned to double figures with 11 points.
• The Cougar bench outscored the Waves’ bench 25-11…got 22 points off 11 Pepperdine turnovers.
• WSU’s 10 turnovers marked a season low.
• Pepperdine scored a WSU opponent season low 15 points in the first half…Grambling scored 17 Nov. 30.

COUGARS VS. BULLS, THE MAC:
• Friday marks just the third all-time meeting between Washington State and Buffalo and the first since the 1950-51 season.
• WSU leads the all-time series, 2-0, winning both games at Buffalo.
• The Cougars defeated the Bulls, 70-49, Dec. 16, 1950 and 56-44, Dec. 17, 1949.
• Jack Friel was head coach of the Cougars during both those seasons…in 1949-50, WSU finished with a 19-13 record, and in 1950-51, 17-15.
• WSU is 5-1 all-time against current members of the Mid-American Conference (MAC).
• Aside from Buffalo, the Cougars have also faced Akron (1-0), Eastern Michigan (1-1) and Ohio (1-0).
• The last time WSU faced a current member of the MAC was Eastern Michigan, Dec. 3, 1994, an 82-78 loss.

ABOUT THE COUGARS:
• The Cougars won five of their six games during their last homestand, including the last two games, and are currently 7-4 on the season.
• WSU is 7-1 at home (wins: Eastern Washington – Nov. 10, Utah Valley – Nov. 14, Arkansas-Pine Bluff – Nov. 24, Idaho – Nov. 28, Portland – Dec. 5, Fresno State – Dec. 9 and Jackson State – Dec. 13, and loss: No. 10 Gonzaga – Dec. 5), 0-1 on the road (at Pepperdine – Nov. 16) and 0-2 at neutral-sites (vs. No. 12 Kansas – Nov. 19 and vs. Texas A&M – Nov. 20, both at the CBE Hall of Fame Classic in Kansas City, Kan.).
• Three of WSU’s four losses have come by 2 points or less and a total of five points…those include a 2-point loss to No. 10 Gonzaga.
• Brock Motum leads the team with 20.4 points per game and 6.9 rebounds…he’s averaged 25.6 points per game in the last five games.
• Motum ranks second in the conference and 18th in the nation in scoring and has scored 23 or more points in each of the last five games…he’s reached double figures in every game this season.
• After missing four games due to a knee injury suffered in the first five minutes against Kansas, Nov. 19, DaVonté Lacy is now averaging 10.1 points in six games.
• After a WSU career-high 19 points against his former team, Fresno State, Mike Ladd is third on the team with 8.5 points per game…the 6-5 guard is adding a team third-best 5.5 rebounds a game.
• Royce Woolridge is adding 7.7 points per game, Dexter Kernich-Drew 7.5 points, and D.J. Shelton 6.1 points and a team second-best 5.9 rebounds a game.
• Will DiIorio has missed two games since spraining his ankle against Gonzaga (Dec. 5) and is expected to miss one-two weeks as of Dec. 11.

LAST OUTING:
• In their second-straight under-60 scoring output, the Cougars defeated Jackson State, 52-41, Thursday, Dec. 13 at Beasley Coliseum.
• Brock Motum finished with 27 points…he has scored at least 23 points in each of the last five games…he’s averaging 25.6 points per game in each of the last five games.
• Motum passed Steve Harriel and Vince Hanson to move into 19th on WSU’s career scoring list.
• Junior Longrus had a career-high 4 assists, 3 of them in the first half…his previous high was 2 done twice, last against Fresno State…all 4 of his assists went to Brock Motum.
• Dexter Kernich-Drew had a career-high 8 rebounds…his previous best was 5 achieved last season against Eastern Washington.
• DaVonté Lacy scored in double figures for the second time in three games, finishing with 11…he made all three of WSU’s 3-pointers as he was 3-for-8 and the rest of the team was 0-for-11 from beyond the 3-point arc.
• Jackson State’s 41 points are tied for the 22nd fewest by a WSU opponent in the post-shot clock era.
• Washington State’s 52 points are the fewest in a victory since winning 43-38 last season at USC, March 3.

MOTUM NAMED PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
• For the second time in his career, Brock Motum was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 3-9.
• Motum led the Cougars with 23.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game as WSU fell to No. 10 Gonzaga, 71-69, Dec. 5, and defeated Fresno State, 59-50, Dec. 9.
• He shot .552 (16-for-29) from the field, including a .700 clip (7-for-10) from 3-point range.
• Against Gonzaga, Motum had 23 points and made a career-high 5 3-pointers, going 5-for-7 from beyond the arc…he tied his career high with 3 blocked shots. • He also scored 23 points against Fresno State, adding a team-high 8 rebounds and 2 assists.
• Motum’s honor is the 26th Player of the Week nod in WSU history as he became the sixth Cougar to earn the award multiple times in his career (also earned it Dec. 12, 2011).

MOTUM SCORES 1,000TH POINT:
• Brock Motum became the 33rd Washington State men’s basketball student-athlete to score 1,000 career points with 14 points against Kansas, Monday, Nov. 19.
• He is the third Cougar in the last four seasons to reach 1,000 career-points…Klay Thompson scored his 1,000th point during the 2009-10 season and Reggie Moore reached 1,000 points in the Cougs second-to-last game of the 2011-12 season.
• With 1,157 points, Motum holds the 19th best career scoring mark in WSU history…he is just 5 points away from Kyle Weaver in 18th with 1,162 points and 12 from Terry Ball in 17th with 1,169 points.

COUGARS GO `DOWN UNDER’:
• The Cougars spent two weeks in Australia, Aug. 3-16, 2012, as part of an NCAA approved international tour.
• The team made stops in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane/Gold Coast and Cairns, playing five games in all.
• WSU went 2-3 in those games, three of them against teams of the NBL (National Basketball League), Australia’s highest professional league.
• Brock Motum averaged 27.2 points in the five games, including a 41-point output against the Cairns Taipans in the final game of the tour.
• Reggie Moore averaged 13.0, Dexter Kernich-Drew 8.4 and Mike Ladd 6.4 points per game.
• The Cougar roster contains three Aussies; Motum (Brisbane), Kernich-Drew (Melbourne) and James Hunter (Sydney).

QUICK HITS:
• MOTUM A CANDIDATE FOR THE WOODEN AWARD: Senior Brock Motum is one of 50 preseason candidates for the 2012-13 John R. Wooden Award. He is the second Cougar in three seasons to make the list, as Klay Thompson was named to the preseason top-50 prior to the 2010-11 season. Thompson went on to make the midseason top-30 cut in 2010-11, as did Low in 2007-08. Three other Pac-12 student-athletes were named to the list: André Roberson (Colorado), Allen Crabbe (California), and Solomon Hill (Arizona).
• PERFECT AT FRIEL IN NOVEMBER: With its win over Idaho, Nov. 28, WSU improved to 46-0 all-time in the month of November at Friel Court. The Cougars have won 46-straight November games in Pullman and are 47-1 (the loss came before the Cougars moved into Beasley Coliseum).
• COUGARS MAKE 12TH POSTSEASON APPEARANCE: Washington State competed in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) in 2011-12, marking the first CBI and 12th overall postseason appearance in school history.
• MOTUM JOINS ELITE COMPANY: Brock Motum grabbed his 200th rebound of the 2011-12 season March 7 in the Pac-12 Tournament and had 613 points and 216 rebounds last season. He joined two other Cougars, Steve Puidokas and Larry Beck as the only WSU players to reach 500 points and 200 boards in a season.
• COUGARS RETURN TWO STARTERS: The team boasts two returning starters, including 2011-12 Pac-12 leading scorer, Brock Motum. Joining Motum and sophomore DaVonté Lacy are six more returning letterwinners and two returning squad members. Among the returning letterwinners are senior guard Mike Ladd, junior forward Will DiIorio, redshirt sophomore guard Dexter Kernich-Drew and redshirt junior forward D.J. Shelton, along with squad members sophomore Royce Woolridge and freshman Dominic Ballard, both whom redshirted last season. Joining this year’s squad are four transfers and three true freshmen.

A native of Brisbane, Australia, Motum led the Cougars with 23.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game as WSU fell to No. 10 Gonzaga, 71-69, Dec. 5 and defeated Fresno State, 59-50, Dec. 9. He shot .552 (16-for-29) from the field, including a .700 clip (7-for-10) from 3-point range.

In Washington State’s loss to No. 10 Gonzaga, Motum had a career-high 5 3-pointers, going 5-for-7 (.714) from beyond the 3-point arc, while finishing with 23 points. He tied his career high and had a season-high 3 blocked shots in that game as well and finished shooting .615 (8-for-13) from the field. Sunday, in WSU’s matinee with Fresno State, Motum once again scored 23 points while going 2-for-3 (.667) from the 3-point arc. He added a team-best 8 rebounds and 2 assists in the victory.

Motum has scored at least 23 points in each of the last four games, averaging 25.3 points in those games and now is scoring 19.7 points per game on the season, good for third in the Pac-12 and 34th in the nation. He has scored in double figures in all 10 games this season. In WSU’s first seven games, Motum was just 2-for-19 from beyond the 3-point arc (.105), but in the last three games, he has gone 9-for-13 from 3-point range for a .692 clip.

The 6-foot-10 forward has 1,130 career points and is just 17 shy of reaching Steve Harriel in 20th in WSU’s career scoring record book. Motum became the 33rd Cougar to score 1,000 career points Nov. 19 of this season against No. 12 Kansas in Kansas City, Mo. He is the third Cougar in the last four seasons to reach 1,000 career points as Klay Thompson scored his 1,000 point during the 2009-10 season and Reggie Moore reached 1,000 in the Cougars’ second-to-last game of the 2011-12 campaign.

This is the second honor for Motum, who received Pac-12 Player of the Week last season during the same week, Dec. 5-11. Last year, Motum became the first Cougar not named Klay Thompson to earn conference player of the week since Taylor Rochestie picked up the honor, Feb. 23, 2009. WSU had two accolades last season as Faisal Adenwas also named conference player of the week, Jan. 23. Motum’s honor is the 26th all-time player of the week for Washington State as he becomes the sixth Cougar to earn the award multiple times in his career.

The Cougars take on Jackson State, Thursday, Dec. 13 at 7 p.m. at Beasley Coliseum. Tickets are still available by calling 1-800-GO-COUGS or by visiting www.wsucougars.com.

2012-13 Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Player of the Week
Nov. 12 – Ahmad Starks, Jr., G, Oregon State
Nov. 19 – Askia Booker, So., G, Colorado
Nov. 26 – Justin Cobbs, Jr., G, California
Dec. 3 – Carrick Felix, Sr., F, Arizona State
Dec. 10 – Brock Motum, Jr. F, Washington State

All members of the WSU student section will be eligible for several in-game promotions. Copies of the critically acclaimed video game Halo 4 will be given away for every three-point basket made by the Cougars during the game and one lucky fan will receive an Xbox 360 during the game.

Tickets for this year’s game between the Cougars and Bulls at Seattle’s KeyArena on Dec. 15 begin at just $16 and will be available at the KeyArena box office, Ticketmaster.com, and all Ticketmaster outlets.

Washington State returns seven lettermen in 2012-13, headlined by All-Pac-12 First Team and  Pac-12 Most Improved Player Brock Motum. Head coach Ken Bone’s team finished 2011-12 as the runner up in the College Basketball Invitational, falling just short to tournament champion Pittsburgh to end the year with 19 wins.

Buffalo returns nine players, including three with starting experience, highlighted by All-Mid-American Conference First Team selection Javon McCrea. The forward was just the third sophomore in the last 10 years to be named to the conference’s first team. McCrea is the former MAC Freshman of the Year and increased his numbers to 14.9 points and 7.1 rebounds during his second season under head coach Reggie Witherspoon.

WSU is 3-0 all-time versus Buffalo with this year’s game marking the first time the two schools have faced each other since December 16, 1950 when the Cougars beat the Bulls 70-49.

# # #

About the Cougar Hardwood Classic

Now in its eighth year, the Cougar Hardwood Classic, presented by State Farm, is the annual showcase event for the Washington State University men’s basketball team in Western Washington and is perennially one of the highest attended events at Seattle’s KeyArena.

Washington State is 7-0 all time in Cougar Harwood Classics games, having previously defeated Utah, San Diego State, The Citadel, Montana State, LSU, Portland and Pepperdine, which WSU dispatched last year, 67-56, behind Faisal Aden’s 17 points in front of 9,831 fans.

For more information about this year’s Cougar Hardwood Classic, including ticket and lodging information, go to www.cougarsinseattle.com.

The Cougars (6-4) led 48-47 with 4:43 to play. Motum made two layups and Ladd scored on another and Washington State was up 54-48. Royce Woolridge, who scored 11 points, made five of his six free-throw attempts to wrap up the win. The final score matched Washington State’s largest lead.

Jerry Brown scored 12 points while Robert Upshaw and Allen Huddleston each scored 10 for Fresno State (5-4). Upshaw also had seven rebounds and six blocked shots.

The Bulldogs trailed most of the first half, but ended it on an 11-5 run to lead 25-24 at the half.

Fresno State shot only 26 percent in the second half and 30 percent for the game. Washington State shot 47.8 percent in the second half and 40 percent overall.

Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press