The much anticipated 2007-08 Cougar basketball season does not start until Nov. 9 when the team takes on Eastern Washington at home. However, the excitement is brewing in Smith Gym, as the WSU basketball team is practicing to continue its success from last season.

The Cougars' first practice that was open to the media and public took place on Monday and head coach Tony Bennett went straight to work.

The Cougars' started the first practice with the use of large elastic bands, with a player attached by the hip on each end of the band. The players would begin to shuffle in the defensive stance.


After this, the majority of the first practice was a drill focused on the team's transition defense, something that the Cougars needed improvement in with the fast-paced styles of their Pac-10 foes.

At first, the team was not impressing Bennett in this drill, who went as far as saying that the team was earning a D-minus in the drill. But the improvement was noticeable as the drill lasted. Also in the practice, the team worked on getting past a full court press and also applying it.

Tuesday's practice was dominated by defense.

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