Oregon State Men's Basketball: Tuesday Notebook

Following a tough weekend in Arizona that saw the Oregon State basketball team dropped back-to-back contests against Arizona State and Arizona, the Beavers will look to get back on track against the Washington schools at home this week. OSU head coach Wayne Tinkle and the players spoke at practice on Tuesday to discuss how they need to respond following the two losses and what they see in the Cougars and Huskies.

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After starting the Pac-12 slate with a 3-0 record, the Oregon State men's basketball team came back to earth with losses to Arizona State and Arizona this past weekend. The Beavers (11-6, 3-2 Pac-12) didn't defend at the level they've shown throughout the first few weeks of conference play and Wayne Tinkle didn't mince words when talking about how poorly the team played on the road.

"We didn't defend very well and didn't rebound," Tinkle said. "That's simple but it's what it came down to. The Arizona game was just about as bad of a game as we've played in terms of defending and rebounding. We watched the film with the guys yesterday and we probably should have been sick to our stomach because it was a comedy of errors. We have to get back to defending and rebounding at a high level."

"When we were looking back at film, we noticed we weren't playing as hard as we were the first three games of conference play," added sophomore guard Ethan Thompson. "We missed box outs and didn't close out on shooters. A lot of it had to do with the effort we played with as a team. It's definitely something that we as a team have to reflect on and learn on how to do better moving forward."

"We realize that it isn't the end of the world losing those two games," senior guard Stephen Thompson Jr. said. "Coach was talking about how that's the toughest road trip in conference play. The main thing is not letting those losses make us lose more games down the road. Learning from those mistakes and putting it behind us is what we want to do."

Despite getting swept on the road, Tinkle is happy that the Beavers got through one of the toughest stretches of the conference season and are still sporting a 3-2 record in Pac-12 play.

"You look at our start to conference and I don't think anyone has had a tougher go of their first five games," Tinkle said. "At Oregon, L.A.'s at home, and at Arizona is a tough stretch. We weren't happy with how we played, but with where we stand knowing we've got five of our next seven at home, we've got to respond."

Added senior center Gligorije Rakocevic: "In general this was a really tough road trip for us because we didn't perform well. We didn't rebound well as a team and we weren't there defensively. Now that we're back at home we need to rebound better as a team and play our brand of defense."

Improvement is very necessary for an Oregon State team with postseason aspirations. Thompson Jr. pointed to the Beavers' lack of ability to close out on three-point shooters and secure rebounds as the biggest thorns in the side of the Beavers' two losses in the desert.

"As a team we didn't do a good job of rebounding in those two games," Thompson Jr. said. "Our defense has to get better at defending threes against players who we see in our scouting report can shoot it. Cleaning those two things up will help us tremendously."

Thompson Jr., who struggled with his shot against the Sun Devils and the Wildcats (5-of-15 from the field, and 16 combined points) noted that he needs to continue to find ways to be aggressive on both ends of the floor, even when his shot isn't falling.

"I still have to find ways to be aggressive when I get the ball, and even when I don't," Thompson Jr. said. "When I don't have it, I need to get better moving in transition... I didn't do a good job of that this weekend."

Beavers' junior forward Tres Tinkle isn't at 100 percent physically, as he's still recovering from an ankle sprain suffered against Oregon several weeks ago, but he's feeling better day by day. The latest update comes to us after Tinkle returned to form against the Arizona schools, notching at least 20 points in each of the games and leading the team in scoring.

Despite the return to form, Tinkle isn't where he'd like to be just yet, but hopes that he will be in the coming days and weeks.

"I wouldn't say it's at 100 percent because it's still pretty painful," Tres Tinkle said. "When you have games going, adrenaline kicks in, but I remember making a handful of moves where you explode off it and it re-tweaks it. It's getting better for sure day by day, but it's pretty hard to get it going before game time when the energy kicks in. It's tough because it's still pretty painful. It will be a couple weeks before it gets to 100 percent but every game I'm getting more confident on it."

Oregon State men's basketball will have the benefit of trying to snap its two-game skid in front of their home fans this weekend as the Beavers return home to face Washington State (8-10, 1-4) on Thursday and Washington (14-4, 5-0) on Saturday.

"It's very important to get back on track and we're really looking forward to having these two games at home," Thompson Jr. said. "We feed off our home court energy and we need to come out strong."

First up for the Beavers is a date with Ernie Kent's Cougars... The Cougars have been one of the Pac-12's bottom feeders through the first five games of the season, but Coach Tinkle and the Beavs aren't taking the Cougars lightly as they noted WSU can beat anyone when they're hitting their shots, particularly from behind the three-point line.

"Washington State is dangerous and they're a little bit of a wounded animal," Tinkle said. "They can shoot it well from three and Robert Franks is back so they're a little more complete. They're dangerous because anytime they can ignite it and get it going."

On Saturday, the Washington Huskies will come to town, and every time the purple and gold come to Corvallis for a matchup on the hardwood, it's usually loaded with fireworks.

Thompson Jr. has been the thorn in the Huskies' side since he's been a Beaver as Thompson Jr. hit buzzer-beating game winning shots against them in his freshman and junior seasons.

"It's usually a pretty fun game," Thompson Jr. said with a smile.

Beating the Huskies in Gill Coliseum this season will certainly be a tough task as UW has risen to the top of the Pac-12 standings with superb play to start the Pac-12 slate.

"Washington is at the top of the league right now and I think the early schedule has favored them a bit," Coach Tinkle said. "The majority of their games have been at home. We've had some great battles with them the past few years and it's going to be a great atmosphere in Gill on Saturday afternoon."

"We've got to take care of business on Thursday against WSU, but we are looking forward to the game on Saturday because of the games we've had against the Huskies in the past," Tres Tinkle said. "It's fun and they are the top of the conference right now and so hopefully both teams can leave Oregon with a couple of losses."

Former Oregon State guard Gary Payton II was signed to a 10 day contract by the Washington Wizards on Monday. Coach Tinkle coached Payton II, as he led the Beavers to their first NCAA postseason appearance in 26 seasons in 2015-16.

Since then, Payton II has bounced around the G-League and had stints with several NBA teams including the Los Angeles Lakers and the Milwaukee Bucks.

Tinkle lauded the effort of GP2 to stay with the process and that it couldn't have happened to be a better person.

"It's all about perseverance," Tinkle said. "That kid works his tail off and he's going to continue to grind until he can get there and stay there, which hopefully is just a matter of time. He's such an imprint on the game defensively and going to the rim on the offensive end. I'm really proud of him and I hope he can make it stick because no one deserves it as much as he does."