Washington State Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 08:06:07 PDT

Shortly after being given the coaching job at Washington State, Ken Bone provided this hint as to how he might tinker with the formula the Cougars have used the previous six seasons.

"I'm intrigued with the way the Bennetts got the job done," Bone said, "but I'm not so sure that's the only way you can win at Washington State."

Translation: Don't expect a lot of 50-49 games.

The Cougars led the conference in scoring defense in six consecutive seasons under Dick Bennett, then his son and successor Tony, who now is coaching at Virginia.

Bone won't abandon playing defense at WSU, but his record at Portland State suggests a more wide-open approach to offense.

The Vikings averaged 73.4 points per game last year, hoisting up 835 3-point attempts.