3/3/2023 basketball Edit

Oregon State WBB: Beavers Fall in Pac-12 Tournament Quarterfinals

Brenden Slaughter • BeaversEdge

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LAS VEGAS – Oregon State battled against no. 20 Colorado, but it didn’t have another upset in store, finishing their time in Las Vegas with a 62-54 loss in the Pac-12 Tournament Quarterfinals.

Adlee Blacklock led Oregon State with 12 points. AJ Marotte and Timea Gardiner joined her in double figures with 10 apiece. The Beavers made 9-of-18 three-pointers with the four in double figures combining to go 7-of-12.

“I couldn't be more proud of this group for just sticking with everything in a year where the wins weren't what we wanted, the win total anyway. From that point of view, it was obviously a disappointing year,” head coach Scott Rueck said. “But this team had no quit all year. Not one game did this team quit, and that was evident in the last couple days here. I thought that it was just another inspiring performance by our team and they deserve a ton of credit.”

It was a back-and-forth battle early as the teams were at a near draw with 4:39 left at the first quarter media timeout. Bendu Yeaney paced Oregon State early with four points on two open layups.

The shooters took it from there, draining three triples and a late-clock jumper to go up 20-15 at the break despite trading baskets with the Buffaloes for the whole period. Marotte cashed in a pair of wing threes while Blacklock made a contested, fadeaway jumper to end the first.

OSU extended its lead to nine with a 7-3 start to the second. Marotte and Yeaney each hit shots before a Gardiner three made it 27-18. The Buffs knotted it up at 33 at the break with a run late in the half, finishing the first 20 minutes on a 9-2 run.

The Buffaloes took what seemed to be a commanding lead in the third quarter. Aided by foul calls and free throws, Colorado outscored OSU 18-8 in the period, with seven coming on free throws. The Buffs shot nine free throws in the quarter to Oregon State’s zero.

The fourth quarter was a defensive battle and the Beavs weren’t able to get shots to fall to close the gap. Blacklock drilled a three to pull OSU within eight and Gardiner hit one of her one to make it a four-point game. Unfortunately for the Beavers, late turnovers and missed shots allowed Colorado to close the game.

OSU Athletics