PREVIEW: Oregon State Men’s Basketball at Santa Clara

Is this the best Beaver basketball season of your lifetime?

Many fans would consider nodding. The orange & black are off to their best overall record (12-4) since the 2019-20 season.

Thursday night, the Beavers take their 12-4 record to the southern tip of the Bay Area, where they will face Santa Clara. Here are 3 keys to victory for Wayne Tinkle’s Oregon State men’s basketball team.

In the Beavs’ two West Coast Conference wins over Portland and San Diego, the orange & black have shot 61.4% and 57.8% respectively. Buoyed by Wayne Tinkle’s consistently strong defense, those high shooting numbers should be good enough to win most nights. Oregon State is the kind of team that can defend a lead, but first they need to build it.

In the Beavers’ conference-opening win over Portland, five shooters scored more than 14 points. Michael Rattaj has provided a reliable 16.7 PPG to lead all scorers, but Oregon State is much more successful when the stellar German wing doesn’t have to carry the burden by himself.

All season, a consistent trend has followed the Beavers. When they are bigger and longer than their opposition, particularly inside with 6’9″ transfer forward Parsa Fallah, they win games. Former McNary HS (Keizer, OR) standout Nate Kingz has also exceled on the wing, with his length proving crucial. If they can involve those players early, and repeatedly press their size/length mismatches against smaller WCC foes like Santa Clara, they will have the advantage.

HOW TO WATCH:
– Tipoff is Thursday, January 9th at 7:00 PM

– Radio coverage begins at 6:30 PM on KEX 1190 AM (Portland/Salem), KEJO 1240 AM (Corvallis), and across the Beavers Sports Network

– Video coverage can be viewed online with an ESPN+ subscription

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