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Oregon State Beavers Basketball: Monday Notebook

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A clean sweep

It was a solid post-Christmas week of action for the Oregon State men’s and women’s basketball teams as the Beavers took care of business on their home floor to build momentum and set the stage for Pac-12 play starting this week.

After a disappointing loss to Kent State just before Christmas, Wayne Tinkle’s Beavers (8-4) took care of business against Central Connecticut State 80-59 to give them a shot in the arm of both confidence and momentum heading into Pac-12 play. While the Blue Devils certainly weren’t the caliber of team that the Beavers are used to facing, a win is a win, and given how the Pac-12 is shaking out this season, OSU will take them where they can.

Consider this, for all the inconsistency and tough, close losses the Beavers have had this season, they still sit fifth in the Pac-12 conference in terms of their non-conference record heading into the first week of conference play.

The surprising departure of former three-star center Jack Wilson certainly raised eyebrows around those following Tinkle’s program, as Wilson was the second Beaver to transfer this season (joining guard Jordan Campbell who also left a couple weeks ago). It’s usually not a good sign when multiple players leave a team in a matter of weeks and if the losses start to mount for the Beavers early in conference play, there might be some pressure starting to build in Corvallis if there isn’t already.

A strong start to Pac-12 play would be exactly what the doctor ordered for this team.

On the women’s side, the Beavers (10-2) upped their winning streak to two games and have won five of their last six thanks to a 92-52 victory over Cal State Bakersfield.

With an impressive 10-2 mark in non-conference play and marquee wins over South Carolina and Duke on their resume, Scott Rueck’s Beavers are ready for the gauntlet that the Pac-12 conference will provide them.

Unlike the men’s side, which can’t seem to find any sort of rhythm, the Pac-12 women might just be the toughest conference top to bottom to play in night in and night out as five teams (Oregon, Stanford, OSU, California, and Arizona State) currently sit in the top-25. With that sort of competition on a nightly basis, the Beavers will be plenty battle tested in conference play heading into the postseason.

Is this the worst year in men’s Pac-12 Hoops in recent memory?

Can we take a second and talk about the parity that is the Pac-12 conference?

It’s almost like men’s basketball took a page from Pac-12 football when it comes to underperforming and garnering very little real interest and buzz in the national spotlight.

Whether it’s Arizona State defeating No. 1 Kansas at home before dropping a very questionable game to Princeton just days later, UCLA choosing to fire Steve Alford just 13 games into the season, or the rest of the conference muddling their way through their non-conference slate, the Pac-12 has been a mess this season.

So now the question begs to be asked, is this the worst the Pac has been in recent memory?

The answer? Probably.

The Pac-12 usually always has two, three, or sometimes four teams ranked in the top-25 with deep postseason aspirations and this year it looks like the conference might struggle to send any outside of the winner of the Pac-12 Tournament.

Granted, there have been some unforeseen factors that have led to the conference favorites weaknesses so far this season. Oregon has been hit with a slew of injuries to players who will presumably be in the NBA next season… Arizona and Sean Miller have struggled to rebound from external cloud surrounding the program following the DeAndre Ayton mess from last season. Combine those two top tier programs suffering through injuries and inconsistent play with a bunch of teams that can’t seem to put it all together, and it creates a recipe for a very mediocre conference.

I could go on, but the bottom line is this, the Pac-12 is simply just so-so this season. Inconsistency has plagued the league so far in 2018 and it doesn’t appear to be getting any better anytime soon. I don’t think it’s necessarily a trend that’s going to continue in the coming years, but this might be a Pac-12 season that many will want to forget by the end.

There’s a whole lot of Pac-12 games yet to be played and heck, maybe the teams in the Pac will prove me and everyone else wrong, but it’s hard to remember a season in recent memory when there’s been so much mediocre play through the non-conference slate.

5 Thoughts from Slaughter entering Pac-12 play

1. I’m still surprised at Wilson’s decision to transfer. Wilson was one of Tinkle’s most prized recruits as he was committed to the Beavers for nearly two years before coming to Corvallis. Granted, the 7-foot-1 255 pound Wilson hadn’t found his groove early in his OSU career, falling behind Kylor Kelley, Gligorije Rakocevic, and Warren Washington in the frontcourt depth chart, but the timing seems a little out of place. Tinkle didn’t have much to say regarding the transfer, as he said in a press release, “Jack is a great kid and we wish him nothing but the best.” All in all, losing Wilson certainly hurts the future prospects of the Beavers frontcourt as Big G will be out of eligibility at the end of the season and Kelley set to be a senior next season.

2. I’m excited to see what the Lady Beavs do in conference play. The Beavers have been mostly what we’ve come to expect from Rueck’s teams, which include fantastic fundamentals, stifling defense, and togetherness throughout. OSU has had just one slip up in non-conference play with a loss to Texas A&M, but I chalk that up to the Beavs simply having an off night. Their only other loss was to then No. 1 Notre Dame and I think each of those losses will serve the Beavers well in conference play as they’ve faced some adversity and are still learning the ins and outs of exactly what this year's team can do. The Pac-12 conference is loaded, but if there’s one thing Rueck and the Beavers have proven time and time again over the past few seasons, it’s that the Beavers are usually always playing their best basketball come March after an impressive Pac-12 slate and this years’ team looks to be following that trend.

3. As I mentioned in last week's weekly hoops notebook, the Oregon State men simply put, win games when Stephen Thompson Jr. hits his shots. This was the case against CC State as Thompson Jr. went 8-of-15 from the field, notching 17 points, four assists, and three rebounds. The Beavers cruised to victory over the lowly Blue Devils, but having Thompson Jr. hit his shots allows the rest of the floor to open up and the Beavers become much harder to beat. The recipe for success for the Beavers heading into Pac-12 play comes down to ball-movement and getting their big three of Tres Tinkle, and the Thompson brothers involved early and often.

4. Kylor Kelley is going to be a special player before his time at OSU is done. Perhaps part of the Wilson for Wilson’s transfer was seeing that he’d have a tough time finding playing time with the emergence of the 7-foot defensive dynamo, and Kelley has come from being an relative unknown and underrated recruit to leading the nation in blocks at just over four per game and is growing more comfortable as a player day by day. His offensive game still needs work, but his shooting-stroke is silky smooth and his humble path to OSU through Gervais High School, Northwest Christian University, and Lane Community College tells me that he’s a very coachable player who will soak up all the teachings he can from OSU’s coaching staff, and most notably associate head coach Kerry Rupp who works with the frontcourt. Not to get ahead of ourselves, but let’s remember that Rupp helped mold Andrew Bogut into the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft during his time at Utah and if Kelley continues to grow his game and stays the course at OSU, there’s little reason to doubt that he’ll get an opportunity at the next level by the end of his senior season.

5. A win in Matthew Knight Arena would be huge for the Beavers to distance themselves from a subpar non-conference season. The Ducks have proven to be mortal this season as Bol Bol, Kenny Wooten, and Abu Kigab are all on the shelf for Dana Altman at the moment with injuries. Oregon hasn’t been overwhelming in the non-conference slate by any means, and starting the Pac-12 season 1-0 with a win in a hostile environment would go a long way in building the Beavers’ confidence back. I didn’t think I’d say this coming into the season, but I like the Beavers’ chances to perhaps play spoiler in both teams’ conference opener.

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Ready or not, here comes Pac-12 play

It’s Civil War week for Wayne Tinkle and Co. as the up and down Beavers are set to travel south for a Saturday matchup with the Oregon Ducks (9-4). The Beavers haven’t beaten the Ducks in Matthew Knight Arena in the Tinkle era and haven’t won in Eugene since Jan. of 2012 when Craig Robinson was still OSU’s head man. However, with a rash of injuries and inconsistent play on the part of Dana Altman’s Ducks

The Lady Beavs start off Pac-12 play with Washington State and Washington coming to Gill Coliseum on Friday and Sunday respectively. The Cougars (5-6, 1-0) and Huskies (7-5, 0-1) faced each other on Sunday to open their portion of Pac-12 play with WSU coming out on top 79-76. Both teams have played the Beavers tough in past seasons, but given how efficiently Rueck and OSU have been in Gill Coliseum this season, the Beavers figure to have the edge in both matchups this weekend.

Stay tuned to BeaversEdge.com for an in-depth preview of Oregon State’s weekend of hoops, including the Civil War and the Rueck's squad hosting the Washington schools.

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