PULLMAN — Washington State will kick off its men’s basketball season with a tune-up game.
The Cougars will host New Mexico in an exhibition game at 6 p.m. on Oct. 25, according to a Thursday release, giving free admission to all fans. It will be the first game of coach David Riley’s second season at WSU.
WSU football hosts Toledo at 12:30 p.m. the same day.
The Cougars, who have nine newcomers this season, will square off against a Lobo team that captured last season’s Mountain West title and made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. They are coached by first-year coach Eric Olsen.
The game will mark WSU’s first public preseason game since hosting New Hope Christian in an exhibition game ahead of the 2018-19 season. This season is also the first when Division-I teams are permitted to other D-I team in public exhibitions.
WSU is working to integrate those nine newcomers with a few key returners, including guards Tomas Thrastarson and Ri Vavers and forward ND Okafor. Over the offseason, Riley landed a few key cogs via the transfer portal, including Boise State’s Emmanuel Ugbo, Texas Tech’s Eemeli Yalaho, Morehead State’s Jerone Morton and High Point’s Simon Hildebrandt. True freshman Aaron Glass is also expected to make a splash.
