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Washington State hopes to end home woes

Feb 9, 2008 - 11:36 AM USC (15-7) at No. 17 Washington St (17-5) 3:30 pm EST

PULLMAN, Washington (Ticker) - No. 17 Washington State looks to salvage the last game of a four-game homestand when it hosts Southern California in a Pac-10 Conference matchup Saturday.

After starting 11-0 at home, the Cougars (17-5, 5-5 Pac-10) have dropped three straight home games, including a 67-59 setback to fourth-ranked UCLA on Thursday.

With the skid, Washington State, which was ranked as high as high as fourth in the nation on January 12, has dropped to fifth place in the conference and possibly on its way out of the top 25.

Kyle Weaver led the way with 13 points in Thursday's loss and is just two away from becoming the 29th player in Cougars history to score 1,000 for his career.

The Trojans (15-7, 6-4), meanwhile, seem to enjoy playing on the road.

USC - which has lost four straight to Washington State - has won four straight games away from home - including a victory at UCLA on January 19.

Behind freshman O.J. Mayo, the Trojans won at Washington, 73-59, on Thursday. Mayo had 29 points on 11-of-22 shooting.

The freshman guard scored 22 in the first contest between the two teams this season, a 73-58 win for the Cougars, who improved to 14-0 at home at that time.