Arizona St.-Washington St. Preview

Arizona State's chances of winning its first Pac-10 title took a significant hit earlier this week. Another defeat would almost certainly knock the 14th-ranked Sun Devils from the race.

The Sun Devils look to keep their slim conference title hopes alive and avenge an earlier loss to Washington State on Saturday when they visit the Cougars, who are coming off a couple of impressive victories.

In a matchup featuring the Pac-10's top two teams, Arizona State's five-game winning streak was snapped Thursday with a 73-70 overtime loss at No. 21 Washington.

With the defeat, the Sun Devils (21-6, 10-5) dropped into a three-way tie for second in the conference with No. 22 UCLA and California. The Huskies extended their conference lead to 1 1/2 games with two Pac-10 games remaining -- one fewer than each of the three second-place teams.

"It's going to hurt us tonight definitely, but tomorrow is a new day and we'll prepare for Washington State," said Arizona State guard James Harden, who had 19 points before fouling out early in the overtime.

Arizona State also needs some help from rival Arizona, which visits Washington on Saturday, to stay alive for its first conference title in 30 years in the Pac-10.

First, though, the Sun Devils need to navigate their way through their own difficult schedule. After playing Washington State (15-13, 7-9), Arizona State closes the regular season at home against Stanford on Thursday and California next Saturday.

Although the Cougars are eighth in the Pac-10, the Sun Devils won't take them lightly.

Arizona State has lost five straight games to Washington State, including a 66-55 home defeat Jan. 29. The Sun Devils have also lost their last five visits to Pullman since an 87-54 win Feb. 6, 2003.

Harden, who leads the Pac-10 in scoring (21.1), had 26 points against the Cougars last month, but no other Arizona State player had more than eight. The sophomore guard is averaging 20.3 points in three career games versus Washington State.

To end their losing streak against the Cougars, the Sun Devils need Jeff Pendergraph to help Harden carry the offense.

The 6-foot-9 forward, who averages 14.1 points, had 24 and 13 rebounds while shooting 10 of 16 against the Huskies on Thursday. Pendergraph, though, was held to only eight last month against Washington State -- one of two Pac-10 games this season in which he's finished in single digits.

The Cougars likely need to win the Pac-10 tournament to receive a NCAA tournament berth, but they've been playing some of their best basketball lately.

After defeating then-No. 20 UCLA 82-81 at Pauley Pavilion last Saturday, Washington State beat Arizona 69-53 on Thursday to win its second straight after losing five of its previous six.

"We're just trying to play good ball," Cougars coach Tony Bennett said. "We've been close all year. It's nice to finish a couple of games against some high-level opponents."

Senior Taylor Rochestie led Washington State with 17 points Thursday after finishing with a career-high 33 against the Bruins.

Freshman Kyle Thompson, who had 16 points while shooting 4-for-7 from beyond the arc against the Wildcats, had his best game against the Sun Devils, finishing with a career-high 28 points and shooting 8 of 10 from 3-point range.

While the Cougars have won at UCLA and Arizona State, they have lost all three of their home games against Top 25 opponents this season, and five straight at Friel Court versus ranked opponents since an 88-86 double-overtime victory over then-No. 23 USC on March 3, 2007.