NEBRASKA CITY, Neb. (Interstat) — Rihards Vavers scored 24 points and Washington State used a dominant shooting performance to pull away from Seattle for a 70-58 victory in a nonconference men’s basketball game Wednesday night at Beasley Coliseum.

The Cougars, avenging a loss to the Redhawks just four weeks prior, improved to 10-13 overall. Seattle dropped to 14-9.

The most important stretch of the game came late in the first half, turning a tight contest into a lead Washington State would never relinquish. With Seattle trailing 27-25 after an Austin Maurer layup with just over four minutes remaining, the Cougars closed the period on a 9-5 run. The surge was fueled by Vavers, the 6-foot-7 forward from Latvia, who hit a 3-pointer and a driving layup in the final two minutes. His layup with 1:44 left gave Washington State a 36-30 advantage at the intermission, capping a half where the Cougars shot 57.1% from the field.

Washington State’s offensive efficiency was the story. The Cougars finished the game shooting 55.6% on 25-of-45 shooting, including 8 of 19 from 3-point range. Seattle, by contrast, struggled mightily from the perimeter, connecting on just 3 of 21 attempts from beyond the arc and 21 of 61 overall.

Vavers was the catalyst, adding a block in 34 minutes of action. He was supported by Ace Glass III with 14 points and ND Okafor, who had 13 points and four assists. Okafor, from Dundalk, Ireland, also helped facilitate an offense that committed 19 turnovers but offset those with sharp ball movement when possession was secured, as evidenced by his team-high assist total.

Seattle was led by Brayden Maldonado’s 12 points and three assists. Austin Maurer added 10 points and Houran Dan contributed nine. The Redhawks won the turnover battle, forcing 19 Cougar miscues while committing only 10, and outscored Washington State 21-15 in points off turnovers. They also dominated inside with a 34-22 edge in paint points and held a 10-4 advantage in fastbreak points.

However, Seattle’s inability to convert possessions into points proved decisive. The Redhawks scored 58 points on 70 possessions, an offensive rating of 82.8. Washington State was far more effective, posting 70 points on 67 possessions for a rating of 104.4.

The game began with Seattle scoring the first basket, a Maurer layup, but Washington State quickly responded. The Cougars built an early 10-4 lead behind two 3-pointers from Vavers and never trailed after the 16:40 mark of the first half. Seattle kept the game within single digits for most of the night, closing to within four points on several occasions in the second half, but could never string together enough stops and scores to overtake the hot-shooting Cougars.

A key sequence early in the second half solidified Washington State’s control. After Seattle cut the deficit to 40-36, the Cougars answered with a 6-0 spurt, capped by an Okafor jump shot, to push the lead back to 10. Seattle would get no closer than six points the rest of the way.

The Cougars also benefited from a significant advantage in rebounding, particularly on the defensive glass, limiting Seattle to just nine second-chance points despite the Redhawks’ nine offensive rebounds.

The game was part of a home-and-home series between the two regional foes. Washington State’s win leveled the season series after Seattle’s 69-55 victory in Seattle on Dec. 30.

An announced crowd of 3,061 watched at Beasley Coliseum.

Washington State will host Portland on Saturday. Seattle returns home to face Pepperdine next Wednesday.