If there was ever a time for the Cardinal to come home, it is definitely right about now.

Stanford (10-13, 4-7 Pac-10) returns to the friendly confines of Maples Pavilion tonight when it faces Washington State (15-8, 5-6) at 7 p.m.

The game — and this weekend’s homestand, for that matter — will be extra important as Stanford is looking to recover from a 0-4 stretch over the last two weeks on the road.

Despite the close losses the Cardinal suffered down in Southern California this past weekend, head coach Johnny Dawkins remained optimistic about the course of his team’s season.

“They were tough games for us,” he said of the Cardinal’s close losses to UCLA and USC. “But I think we grew. We had opportunities to win each game at the end, and I think we just have to learn to minimize our mistakes. If we can cut down on mistakes, I think the rest will kind of take care of itself.”

Things seem to take much better care of themselves at Maples Pavilion for the Cardinal. Dawkins’ squad is just as good at home as it is poor on the road: Stanford has won every conference home game it has played this season, while losing every one it has played on the road. Tonight’s game will be all the more crucial considering that, while only three games behind first-place Cal, the Cardinal currently stands alone at last place in the conference (albeit by a half game) with a record of 4-7.

“We have a chance to make up some ground,” Dawkins said. “We have five out of our last seven games at home. It would have been nice to win some games on the road, but we can still take care of business and we’ll have a chance to be in this conference race.”

The Cougars are coming into Thursday’s game fresh off an impressive win over then-first-place Arizona by the score of 78-60. Dick Bennett’s team is led by one of the best, if not the youngest, backcourt duos in the conference — sophomore shooting guard Klay Thompson and freshman point guard Reggie Moore. Thompson is the second-leading scorer in the conference — behind Stanford’s own senior forward Landry Fields — at 21.2 points a game, while Moore has made a solid case for Pac-10 Freshman of the Year with an average of 14.1 points and 4.3 assists a game.

“We have to be good defensively. They’re an explosive offensive team,” Dawkins said.

This year’s Washington State squad marks a break from the past, as the Cougars have been known for their stifling defense and methodical half-court sets in recent years. The team has picked up the pace on the offensive side of the ball, however, averaging more than 75 points a game this season.

The outcome of Thursday’s game will likely be determined by the play of the respective backcourts. Fields, likely on his way to Player of the Year in the conference, is bound to get his points and rebounds. What will be truly crucial for Stanford will be whether or not the backcourt trio of senior Drew Shiller and sophomores Jeremy Green and Jarrett Mann will be able to neutralize the threat posed by Moore and Thompson. In particular, the matchup between two up-and-coming shooting guards — Green and Thompson — will be one to watch.

A win tonight would help keep the Cardinal afloat in the Pac-10, but a loss would be devastating to its hopes of finishing the regular season with a decent seed for the conference tournament. Saturday’s opponent Washington presents an even greater threat than its state counterpart, so a victory tonight is basically a must for Dawkins and his team going into Saturday’s game.

“It’s a big weekend,” the second-year coach said. “[We’re facing] two good teams with terrific players. For us, we look forward to the matchups . . . we’re excited about the opportunity we see in front of us.”