With at least a share of the Pac-12 title on the line against Stanford this Friday night, the Oregon State women’s basketball team looks to finish the season strong and take momentum into the Pac-12 tournament next week in Seattle.
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Where the Beavers sit
* 25-3 overall (14-2 in Pac-12 play): Currently on a three game winning streak.
*Beavers are tied with Stanford for first in the Pac-12
* Heading into final weekend of conference play, Beavers control their own destiny in regards to winning their third straight Pac-12 regular season title.
Pac-12 Tournament Seeding Scenarios
Let’s break down exactly how OSU could finish in the Pac-12, and therefore their seed heading into the Pac-12 tournament:
Win Friday vs Stanford, win Sunday vs. Cal: The Beavers clinch the Pac-12 outright, and earn the No. 1 seed in the Pac-12 tournament, giving them a showdown with the 8 or 9 seed.
Win Friday vs. Stanford, lose vs Cal: Beavers share Pac-12 title with Stanford and Washington, but receive No. 1 in Pac-12 tournament by tiebreakers.
Lose Friday vs Stanford, beat Cal: The Beavers will earn the No. 2 seed in the Pac-12 tournament and finished tied second in the Pac-12 with UW.
Lose Friday vs Stanford, lose to Cal: The Beavers will finish 3rd in the Pac-12 and earn the three seed in the Pac-12 tournament.
Emerald City Magic
Last season, the Beavers went into the Pac-12 tournament in Seattle as the No. 1 seed and came away with their first ever conference tournament title. OSU will look to continue that magic this season as they return to Seattle for the Pac-12 tournament next week.
The Pac-12 is as deep as ever, and the conference boasts the No. 1 RPI in the nation. As the Beavers found out the hard way two weeks ago against lowly USC, anyone can beat anyone on any given day. Can the Beavers get hot during tourney time just like last season? Maybe. We will know a lot more after this last weekend of play.
OSU to OKC?
NCAA committee: According to the latest release from the WBB committee, the Beavers are the No. 8 team in the country, making them the last 2 seed in the tournament. That would be the highest in the Pac-12, and would match last year’s seeding as OSU.
ESPN’s Charlie Creme also agrees that the Beavers are a 2 seed in this year’s tournament and offers more clarity on who they will be playing and when. The latest from Creme has OSU hosting the first and second rounds in Corvallis, playing North Dakota and then either Creighton or West Virginia in the second round. If OSU manages to win both of those games, they would be heading to OKC to take on the winner of the Durham, N.C. regional.
Quotable Section
Sydney Wiese on Friday’s sellout...
“It’s gonna be electric,” Wiese said. “It's like a storybook and hopefully it's a storybook ending where it is happy. We can’t wait to be in front of our fans, it's gonna be a party, bring your friends.”
Wiese on Rueck’s ability to reload each year...
“I think that shows how good of a coach (Rueck is,” Wiese said. “It doesn’t matter what pieces are out there, he is going to make it work and put us all in positions to be successful.”
Wiese on final games in Gill Coliseum...
“There is a lot of emotion that have been poured into (Gill), it's like home,” Wiese said. “It’s gonna be tough to not get emotional. I think it would be an injustice if I didn’t feel any type of emotions this weekend. I’ve made some of the best memories in that place and to share it with the people I care about most.”
Head coach Scott Rueck on senior class...
“It is amazing what they have accomplished,” Rueck said with a smile. “It’s a storybook type thing. They chose us off a 10 win season, hoping that we would be good and they believed in the vision, and saw the vision like we did, and saw the opportunity to come and be a part of it.”
Rueck on the upcoming game vs Stanford and opportunity to win Pac-12 regular season...
“It’s as good as it gets, and it's what you play for and hope for,” Rueck said. “It’s Stanford and us, and we happen to play each other the last weekend of the season. “It’s an awesome scenario for basketball fans, and our conference. It's what every competitor would love to be a part of.”
Check out the video below to listen to Oregon State head coach Scott Rueck talk about the upcoming game against Stanford and more.
