2023–24 Washington State Cougars women's basketball team

2023–24 Washington State Cougars women's basketball
2023–24 Washington State Cougars women's basketball
WBIT, Semifinals
Conference	Pac-12 Conference
Record	21–15 (7–11 Pac-12)
Head coach	Kamie Ethridge (6th season);
Assistant coaches	Laurie Koehn; Camille Williams; Matt Smith;
Home arena	Beasley Coliseum
	Seasons ← 2022–23 2024–25 →

2023–24 Pac-12 Conference women's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
No. 9 Stanford	15	–	3	.833	30	–	6	.833
No. 5 USC †	13	–	5	.722	29	–	6	.829
No. 10 UCLA	13	–	5	.722	27	–	7	.794
No. 8 Oregon State	12	–	6	.667	27	–	8	.771
No. 15 Colorado	11	–	7	.611	24	–	10	.706
No. 22 Utah	11	–	7	.611	23	–	11	.676
Arizona	8	–	10	.444	18	–	16	.529
California	7	–	11	.389	19	–	15	.559
Washington State	7	–	11	.389	21	–	15	.583
Washington	6	–	12	.333	16	–	15	.516
Arizona State	3	–	15	.167	11	–	20	.355
Oregon	2	–	16	.111	11	–	21	.344

† 2024 Pac-12 tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

The 2023–24 Washington State Cougars women's basketball team represented Washington State University during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Cougars were led by sixth-year head coach Kamie Ethridge and they played their home games at Beasley Coliseum as members of the Pac-12 Conference. They were invited to compete in the inaugural 2024 WBIT as a number one seeded team.^[1] This would be final season as Pac-12 member as they will join West Coast Conference as affiliate member for the next two years.

Previous season[edit]

The Cougars 23–11, 9–9 in Pac-12 play to finish in a seventh place. They defeated California, Utah, Colorado and UCLA to win their first ever Pac-12 women's tournament to receive an automatic bid to the NCAA women's tournament. They received the number 5 seed in the Greenville Regional 2. They were upset in the first round by number 12 seed Florida Gulf Coast.

Offseason[edit]

Departures[edit]

Washington State Departures
Name	Num	Pos.	Height	Year	Hometown	Reason for Departure
Kaia Woods	0	G	5'3"	Sophomore	Tiffin, OH	Transferred to Akron
Emma Nankervis	3	G	6'3"	Senior	Mount Eliza, Australia	Graduated
Ula Motuga	15	F	6'0"	GS Senior	Logan, Australia	Graduated
Grace Sarver	20	G	5'8"	Senior	Seattle, WA	Graduated
Lauren Glazier	25	F/C	6'4"	Freshman	North Bend, WA	Transferred to Pacific

Incoming[edit]

Washington State Incoming Transfers
Name	Num	Pos.	Height	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Beyonce Bea	25	G/F	6'1"	GS Senior	Washougal, WA	Idaho

Recruiting[edit]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight
Jenna Villa G	Arlington, WA	Arlington High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	N/A
Jenna Villa G	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 93
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2023 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on January 18, 2023.

Roster[edit]

2023–24 Washington State Cougars women's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	1	Tara Wallack	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	Jr	Semiahmoo Secondary	South Surrey, BC
C	3	Candace Kpetikou	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	Fr	Saint Joseph HS	Niamey, Niger
G	5	Charlisse Leger-Walker	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	Sr	St. Peter's School	Waikato, New Zealand
G	10	Eleonora Villa	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	Fr	Costa Masnaga	Lissone, Italy
G	11	Astera Tuhina	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	So	Deportivo Promete	Pristina, Kosovo
G	12	Kyra Gardner	5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)	So	Raymond HS	Raymond, WA
C	14	Jessica Clarke	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	Sr	St. Thomas Aquinas	North Vancouver, BC
G	21	Johanna Teder	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	GS	Audentese spordigümnaasium South Plains College	Tartu, Estonia
G/F	25	Beyonce Bea	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	GS	Washougal HS Idaho	Washougal, WA
C	33	Alex Covill	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	Fr	Hellgate HS	Missoula, MT
G	34	Jenna Villa	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	Fr	Arlington HS	Arlington, WA
G	45	Cia Eklöf	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	RS Fr	Mäkelänrinteen Lukio	Helsinki, Finland
C	55	Bella Murekatete	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	GS	Genesis Prep Academy	Ngoma Huye, Nigeria

Head coach

Kamie Ethridge (Texas)

Assistant coach(es)

Laurie Koehn (Kansas State)
Camille Williams (Wisconsin)
Matt Smith

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Schedule[edit]

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 29, 2023* 12:00 p.m.	No. 24	Montana Western	W 92–51		17 – Leger-Walker	11 – Murekatete	7 – Leger-Walker	Beasley Coliseum Pullman, WA
Regular Season
November 7, 2023* 4:00 p.m.	No. 24	Cal Poly	W 78–61	1–0	18 – Murekatete	9 – Bea	9 – Leger-Walker	Beasley Coliseum (468) Pullman, WA
November 9, 2023* 7:00 p.m.	No. 24	Gonzaga	W 77–72 ^OT	2–0	26 – Leger-Walker	11 – Bea	4 – Leger-Walker	Beasley Coliseum (1,587) Pullman, WA
November 12, 2023* 2:30 p.m.	No. 24	Idaho State	W 64–47	3–0	16 – Murekatete	8 – Covill	5 – Wallack	Beasley Coliseum (924) Pullman, WA
November 14, 2023* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+	No. 24	at Montana	W 61–49	4–0	22 – Murekatete	11 – Murekatete	3 – Tied	Dahlberg Arena (2,359) Missoula, MT
November 19, 2023* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+	No. 24	at Prairie View A&M	W 81–43	5–0	17 – Leger-Walker	9 – Murekatete	4 – Tuhina	William J. Nicks Building (426) Prairie View, TX
November 23, 2023* 8:00 a.m., FloHoops	No. 23	vs. Maryland Cancún Challenge Mayan Division	W 87–67	6–0	17 – Murekatete	15 – Leger-Walker	13 – Leger-Walker	Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort (150) Cancún, Mexico
November 24, 2023* 8:00 a.m., FloHoops	No. 23	vs. UMass Cancún Challenge Mayan Division	W 90–48	7–0	15 – E. Villa	9 – Leger-Walker	10 – Tuhina	Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort (71) Cancún, Mexico
November 25, 2023* 10:30 a.m., FloHoops	No. 23	vs. Green Bay Cancún Challenge Mayan Division	L 48–59	7–1	17 – Leger-Walker	6 – Tied	3 – Tied	Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort (136) Cancún, Mexico
November 29, 2023* 7:00 p.m.		Texas A&M–Commerce	W 111–50	8–1	22 – Murekatete	18 – Murekatete	13 – Tuhina	Beasley Coliseum (805) Pullman, WA
December 1, 2023* 4:00 p.m.		UC Davis	W 77–52	9–1	19 – Tuhina	10 – Leger-Walker	4 – Tied	Beasley Coliseum (840) Pullman, WA
December 5, 2023* 4:00 p.m., Midco	No. 21	at South Dakota State	W 69–64	10–1	18 – Tuhina	7 – Murekatete	4 – Leger-Walker	Frost Arena (1,827) Brookings, SD
December 10, 2023 1:00 p.m., P12N	No. 21	Washington	L 55–60	10–2 (0–1)	19 – Murekatete	6 – Murekatete	5 – Tuhina	Beasley Coliseum (1,455) Pullman, WA
December 17, 2023* 2:00 p.m., P12N		Houston	W 95–48	11–2	21 – Wallack	14 – Murekatete	11 – Leger-Walker	Beasley Coliseum (956) Pullman, WA
December 20, 2023* 12:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+		at Auburn	L 62–69	11–3	15 – Tuhina	9 – Leger-Walker	10 – Leger-Walker	Neville Arena (2,341) Auburn, AL
January 5, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N		at No. 8 Stanford	L 65–74	11–4 (0–2)	22 – Leger-Walker	9 – Tied	4 – Tied	Maples Pavilion (3,084) Stanford, CA
January 7, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N		at California	L 72–73 ^OT	11–5 (0–3)	20 – Leger-Walker	8 – Murekatete	5 – Wallack	Haas Pavilion (1,249) Berkeley, CA
January 14, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N		at Washington	W 72–59	12–5 (1–3)	16 – E. Villa	10 – Bea	5 – Leger-Walker	Alaska Airlines Arena (4,104) Seattle, WA
January 19, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N		Arizona State	W 79–64	13–5 (2–3)	16 – Tied	7 – Tied	4 – Tied	Beasley Coliseum (1,042) Pullman, WA
January 21, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N		Arizona	W 78–57	14–5 (3–3)	20 – Wallack	11 – Murekatete	11 – Leger-Walker	Beasley Coliseum (1,232) Pullman, WA
January 26, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N		at No. 11 USC	L 62–70	14–6 (3–4)	21 – Wallack	7 – Murekatete	7 – Leger-Walker	Galen Center (2,671) Los Angeles, CA
January 28, 2024 1:00 p.m., P12N		at No. 2 UCLA	W 85–82	15–6 (4–4)	20 – Murekatete	7 – Murekatete	4 – Murekatete	Pauley Pavilion (7,241) Los Angeles, CA
February 2, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N		No. 6 Colorado	L 57–63	15–7 (4–5)	19 – Wallack	10 – Murekatete	3 – Murekatete	Beasley Coliseum (1,154) Pullman, WA
February 4, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N		No. 20 Utah	L 61–73	15–8 (4–6)	15 – Tied	10 – Wallack	3 – Tied	Beasley Coliseum (1,700) Pullman, WA
February 9, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N		California	L 59–66	15–9 (4–7)	17 – E. Villa	6 – Bea	4 – Bea	Beasley Coliseum (1,023) Pullman, WA
February 11, 2024 1:00 p.m., P12N		No. 6 Stanford	L 58–73	15–10 (4–8)	16 – E. Villa	7 – Bea	3 – Wallack	Beasley Coliseum (1,304) Pullman, WA
February 16, 2024 5:00 p.m., P12N		at Arizona	L 45–64	15–11 (4–9)	16 – E. Villa	9 – Bea	3 – Wallack	McKale Center (7,383) Tucson, AZ
February 18, 2024 11:00 a.m., P12N		at Arizona State	W 73–46	16–11 (5–9)	23 – Wallack	13 – Bea	5 – Tuhina	Desert Financial Arena (2,021) Tempe, AZ
February 23, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N		No. 9 Oregon State	L 52–65	16–12 (5–10)	14 – Murekatete	8 – Murekatete	5 – Tuhina	Beasley Coliseum (1,853) Pullman, WA
February 25, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N		Oregon	W 71–61	17–12 (6–10)	24 – Tuhina	9 – Murekatete	5 – Tuhina	Beasley Coliseum (1,331) Pullman, WA
February 29, 2024 2:00 p.m., P12N		at No. 18 Utah	L 67–82	17–13 (6–11)	14 – Murekatete	4 – Tied	4 – E. Villa	Jon M. Huntsman Center (4,691) Salt Lake City, UT
March 2, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N		at No. 13 Colorado	W 72–63	18–13 (7–11)	20 – E. Villa	7 – Bea	5 – Wallack	CU Events Center (7,491) Boulder, CO
Pac-12 Women's Tournament
March 6, 2024 2:30 p.m., P12N	(9)	vs. (8) California First Round	L 44–65	18–14	17 – Villa	9 – Bea	3 – Tuhina	MGM Grand Garden Arena Paradise, NV
WBIT
March 21, 2024* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+	(1)	Lamar First round	W 66–46	19–14	15 – Wallack	10 – Bea	6 – Tuhina	Beasley Coliseum (490) Pullman, WA
March 24, 2024* 1:00 p.m., ESPN+	(1)	(4) Santa Clara Second round	W 73–47	20–14	14 – Tuhina	11 – Bea	4 – Tied	Beasley Coliseum (674) Pullman, WA
March 28, 2024* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+	(1)	(2) Toledo Quarterfinals	W 63–61	21–14	15 – Villa	12 – Bea	4 – Villa	Beasley Coliseum (901) Pullman, WA
April 1, 2024* 2:00 p.m., ESPNU	(1)	vs. (4) Illinois Semifinals	L 58–81	21–15	20 – Tuhina	9 – Murekatete	3 – Tied	Hinkle Fieldhouse (1,748) Indianapolis, IN
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time.

Source:^[2]

Rankings[edit]

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	Final
AP	24	24	23	RV	21	RV	RV	RV	—	—	—	RV	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released
Coaches	RV	RV	25	RV	22	RV	RV	—	—	—	—	—	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

References[edit]

^ Matt Newton (March 17, 2024). "Complete 2024 WBIT Bracket - Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament". Fan Nation - Part of the Sports Illustrated Media Group. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
^ "2023–24 Women's Basketball Schedule". WSUCougars.com. Washington State University Athletics. Retrieved November 10, 2023.

[1] Matt Newton (March 17, 2024). "Complete 2024 WBIT Bracket - Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament". Fan Nation - Part of the Sports Illustrated Media Group. Retrieved March 18, 2024.

[2] "2023–24 Women's Basketball Schedule". WSUCougars.com. Washington State University Athletics. Retrieved November 10, 2023.

[1]

[2]

v t e Washington State Cougars women's basketball
Venues	Bohler Gymnasium (1970–1973) Beasley Coliseum (1973–present)
Rivalries	Idaho Washington
Culture & lore	Butch T. Cougar
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24