PULLMAN, Wash. — The last time the Washington State Cougars played in Spokane Arena and came away with a win, they had players like Cedric Coward and Isaiah Watts leading the charge. This time around, against LMU, they had to rely on three freshmen—and it was the one from Iceland who stole the show.

Tomas Thrastarson scored a career-high 17 points with four made 3-pointers and added six rebounds in WSU’s 73-59 win over the Lions. His efforts were crucial in a game where the final score didn’t tell the whole story.

Thrastarson had played limited minutes in the season’s first eight-ish games, totaling just 27 points through 14 contests. But with four rotation players out for the Cougars—Coward, Watts, Marcus Wilson, and Rihards Vavers—Thrastarson’s name was called, and he delivered in a big way Monday night. The 6-foot-6 freshman guard scored 11 of his 17 points in the first half to help the Cougars take a 36-34 lead into intermission, boosting Wazzu to what ended up being a 14 point win.

“I just felt the crowd behind me, and the guys got me open shots, so it was all in rhythm and, yeah, just good shots,” Thrastarson said.

“The coaches have trust in me to step out, so that’s been good for me. Yeah, I don’t know what else to say, my English not that good,” Thrastarson added with a smile.

WSU head coach David Riley was pleased with the hard-fought win, which improved the Cougars to 2-0 in WCC play and 12-3 overall, placing them in a first-place tie in the league standings. Riley even shared some lighthearted moments after the game.

“You guys got Tomas talking a little bit, I like it. That was a great answer. ‘If they show up, that will be good,'” Riley said, mimicking Thrastarson’s accent playfully and prompting laughter in the media room.

But all jokes aside, Riley was not surprised by Thrastarson’s performance.

“It’s just really cool to see his confidence kind of blossom,” Riley said. “We’ve seen it all fall. He had days where he was the best player on the floor, and that was when we had our whole team there. We walked out of multiple practices where Tomas was the best player on the floor.”

While Thrastarson shined Monday night, Riley told reporters not to be surprised if a different young player steps up in future games.

“Kase [Wynott] was the best player on the floor at times—you’re gonna see him blossom here soon,” Riley said. “Parker [Gerrits] has dominated practices. You’re gonna see that these freshmen come along as they get more minutes, and that’s where you build confidence. You build confidence from working hard. Not everyone wants to do it. Not everyone wants to practice. Not everyone wants to put in the extra work, and I think these guys have bought into that, and you see that from Tomas.”

The Cougars will look to give Thrastarson more opportunities as they continue conference play, hoping the Iceland native can maintain his composure on the court.

Washington State returns to Pullman on Saturday for its first true home conference game. The Cougars will host the San Francisco Dons (12-3, 2-0) at 4 p.m. on ESPN+.