WSU hires Riley away from Eastern Washington

Washington State worked with David Riley as its males’s basketball coach on Tuesday, capturing the two-time Big Sky Conference coach of the year at a time of uncertainty for the Cougars.Riley will move

down the Palouse highway after 3 effective seasons as coach at Eastern Washington. He’ll take over a Washington State program coming off its very first NCAA competition appearance in 16 years, but with significant questions after the collapse of the Pac-12 Conference. The Cougars will play the next 2 years as affiliate members of the West Coast Conference, but have actually currently seen essential players go into the transfer portal.Riley replaces Kyle Smith, who spent five years in Pullman before taking the

head job at Stanford after the Cougars were eliminated in the second round of the NCAA tournament by Iowa State.The 35-year-old Riley was 62-30 in his 3 seasons at Eastern Washington, consisting of successive Big Sky regular-season titles. He agreed to a six-year agreement with Washington State. “Throughout the process, Dave’s training acumen was evident as was his capability to develop a winning culture. In simply three seasons, he

has actually emphasized player advancement through a fast-paced, high-powered offense that permits his student-athletes to play complimentary and confidently, “Washington State interim athletic director Anne McCoy stated.