WSU, Eastern Washington men’s hoops agree to three-year series

Washington State men’s coach David Riley will be seeing more of his old club over the next few years.

WSU and Eastern Washington have agreed to a three-year series in what the programs have dubbed the 509 Classic, according to a Friday release, with the first meeting scheduled for Dec. 17 at the Spokane Arena. Each game will take place at the Arena.

“We’re excited to participate in the 509 Classic and bring Cougar basketball to Spokane again,” Riley said via release. “We’ve said we want to play everyone in Washington, and this event gives the Cougs and the Eagles a chance to continue a historic series that dates back over 100 years.”

Dating back to the beginning of the series, which began in 1907 with Washington State College squaring off with Cheney Normal School, the Cougars own a 59-13 advantage. That includes an 8-2 record in the last 10 meetings, including WSU’s 96-81 victory last year, also in Spokane.

The Eagles’ two wins in that span came in the 2022 NIT, when they knocked off the Cougs in Pullman, and in a 2021 regular-season game. EWU logged both wins under Riley, who coached the Eagles from 2021-24.

WSU’s neutral-site contest against EWU is the second known nonconference game on the Cougars’ 2025-26 schedule, joining their Nov. 14 home game against rival Washington, part of those teams’ home-and-home, which began last season in Seattle. It’s likely the full slate won’t come to fruition until around August.

WSU is in the middle of a roster makeover, reeling in four transfers so far: Boise State wing Emmanuel Ugbo, Texas Tech wing Eemeli Yalaho, Morehead State guard Jerone Morton and High Point forward Simon Hildebrandt.

That group will help Riley replace losses from last year’s team, including Cedric Coward (Duke/NBA draft), LeJuan Watts (Texas Tech), Nate Calmese (Wake Forest), Isaiah Watts (Maryland), Marcus Wilson (UC Davis) and outgoing senior fowards Ethan Price and Dane Erikstrup.

The Cougs are set to return forward ND Okafor, wing Ri Vavers and guards Tomas Thrastarson, Kase Wynott and Parker Gerrits.