Huskies

The topic was basically off-limits.

What if Washington center Regina Rogers can't play Saturday against Washington State?

"I kind of don't want to think about that right now," she said as politely as possible. "I'm hoping for the best. Hopefully, I can play."

Rogers appeared fine as she walked into the media room at Edmundson Pavilion. But the 6-foot-3 post suffered what she described as a deep bruise on her right leg in the overtime defeat against Utah last week.

As the team's leading scorer (16.2 points), Rogers is the focal point of coach Kevin McGuff's offensive system. And she's a proven advantage in the in-state rivalry, joining post Mackenzie Argens (6-3) to combine for 31 points and 14 rebounds in a 65-48 victory at Beasley Coliseum last year.

"I've seen her play since she was in sixth grade, and this is a very talented young lady who has a very strong basketball IQ," WSU coach June Daugherty said. "She understands the angles of the game, and she has very soft hands and soft feet and that's a complement when you're talking about a post player. How do you defend that? That's always a good question."

If Rogers is on the bench, though, it's pretty simple.

McGuff, in his first year coaching the Huskies, mentioned senior forward Mollie Williams and junior wing Jeneva Anderson as options to replace Rogers when the teams meet Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in Pullman.

Washington sophomore forward Marjorie Heard is out for the remainder of the season with a torn left ACL, and freshman forward Talia Walton might also be out for the season because of a right knee injury. Walton had minor surgery in October and played one nonconference game, but the knee isn't responding well.

So, Washington's once-formidable frontcourt has some holes. Even Williams and Anderson are struggling. Williams, at 6-2, is averaging 1.5 points and 2.3 boards in early Pac-12 play. McGuff didn't play Anderson (6-0) in two conference games and she averaged three minutes in the other two conference games.

Washington (9-5, 1-3 Pac-12) has won the past 32 games in the series. It's a streak that began during Daugherty's 11-year tenure at UW. Now the Cougars (9-7, 3-1) are brimming with confidence behind a balanced offense where no player averages in double figures and a defense that is holding Pac-12 opponents to 50.2 points.

"This year, everyone is expecting them (the Cougars) to play even better," said UW guard Mercedes Wetmore. "I just think if we come in and play hard, I don't see problems for us."

WSU lost top three-point shooter Ireti Amojo to an ACL tear in the conference opener. Senior Jazmine Perkins is averaging 11.3 points in the Pac-12 and has joined Jeanne Eggart (1977-82) as the only players in WSU history — men's or women's — to record 1,000 points, 600 rebounds and 200 steals.

Jayda Evans: 206-464-2067 or jevans@seattletimes.com.