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# Unlikely Source Helps Redhawks Offense Come Alive in Bounce Back Win vs. Cougars
- URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/seattle-redhawks-bounce-back-win-washington-state-cougars/
- Published: 2025-12-31T09:02:55.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-08T06:16:35.000Z
- Author: Hayden Wysup
- Tags: Analysis, Game Day, Redhawks, Chris Victor, Jojo Murphy, Brayden Maldonado, Junseok Yeo

\[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="1080"\]

![  Seattle Redhawks guard Jojo Murphy celebrates after knocking down a three point shot against the Washington State Cougars. Credit: Seattle U Men's Basketball/Instagram  ](https://storage.ghost.io/c/1d/f2/1df2f77b-83dd-4bc0-a6d2-6d1bb5df89a3/content/images/2026/10/608766209_18554809462031365_3542641029489178385_n-format-original-2.jpg)

Seattle Redhawks guard Jojo Murphy celebrates after knocking down a three point shot against the Washington State Cougars. Credit: Seattle U Men's Basketball/Instagram \[/caption\]

SEATTLE, Wash. - Following a disappointing 67-59 loss to San Francisco Dons to open WCC play on Sunday night, backed by a far better evening on offense, the Seattle Redhawks got back to their winning ways with a decisive 69-55 win over the Washington State Cougars in a battle of state rivals at Climate Pledge Arena.

While the Redhawks defense did a good job slowing down the Dons offense Sunday, the offense could not sustain itself enough to finish off the comeback. Seattle U shot just 27% from the field and 17% from three. But on Tuesday, the Redhawks kept their intensity on defense with nine blocks while getting back on track offensively with the basketball finding the bottom of the net much more often.

A balanced Seattle scoring attack closed out the first half on a 15-6 run to take a 36-22 lead over Washington State after 20 minutes. With the Redhawks running a smaller lineup than the Cougars, their guards found driving opportunities that led to baskets in the paint while also stretching out the floor out.

As a result, Seattle finished the game shooting 42% with an unexpected beneficiary in Jojo Murphy finishing the game with eight points and two three pointers that helped kickstart the Redhawk run.

“I thought in the first half Jojo Murphy coming in and having those eight points and hitting those two threes was huge for us, and I'm proud of him for being ready to go when his name got called,” Seattle coach Chris Victor said. “We were struggling on offense in the first half and for him to come in and make those shots was big for us.”

Washington State has struggled with turnovers all season, ranking worst in turnover margin in the WCC, while Seattle U ranks second. All night, Victor’s team swarmed Wazzu and forced 19 turnovers, leading to 19 points off the extra possessions. Leading the charge, guard Brayden Maldonado scored a team-high 15 points and Junseok Yeo added 10 points.

But while the Redhawks did much of their damage off turnovers, the Cougars earned extra chances on the glass, which helped lead to several rallies that kept the game in striking distance in the second half.

Wazzu ultimately outrebounded Seattle 54-28 and 25-2 on the offensive boards, leading to second chance opportunities. However, the Cougars half court offense could not capitalize enough off the extra chances, finishing the night shooting 30% from the field and 15% from three. Washington State coach David Riley credited the opposition for physical play that made it difficult to get clean shots.

“We looked a little hesitant in the first half and couldn't gain rhythm and that's a lot of things on our end,” Riley said. “But at the end of the day, Seattle U did a great job defensively and were physical with us, put us off balance, and forced us into those misses.”

While the Cougars put together enough offense for a comeback attempt, including cutting the lead to four with six minutes remaining, the Redhawks defense anchored down when needed, extending their lead and holding Washington State to just one field goal made in the last five minutes to secure the double-digit win.

Even given the rebounding discrepancies for the entirety of the game, Victor was pleased with improvements in that area late in the game, as the Redhawks came up with a few crucial boards when they absolutely needed them to lock up their first conference victory.

“I thought we were consistent with on the defensive end. We were physical,” Victor said. “We couldn’t get a rebound all night, but we had some big ones down the stretch and just the consistency of how we guarded.”