CORVALLISO The Beavers should be putting the final touches on their potential at this point in the men’s basketball season, which is about two-thirds of the way through.
For coach Wayne Tinkle, it’s not what the Beavers haven’t learned yet; rather, it’s what they occasionally overlook. And that’s defense play.
As Tinkle stated early in the season, this was a defense-hungry club. For the most of the first two months of the season, Oregon State performed admirably. In both scoring defense and field goal percentage, the Beavers were among the top teams in the country.
Oregon State’s opponents have shot over 50% five times in its last nine games. Of those five, four were away games. The final one was the worst, as San Francisco defeated the Beavers by 11 points on Saturday, making 27 of 45 shots and scoring 81 points.
I don’t like our current defensive stance. “We’ve forgiven it,” Tinkle added. It’s been going well at home. You must adopt the mindset that a strong defense should travel.
With 11 games left in the regular season, the small details are starting to take shape. The Beavers are 4-3 in the West Coast Conference and 14-6 overall. A run for the West Coast Conference championship, a top conference tournament seed, and a spot in the NCAA Tournament are all on the line in the next six weeks.
Tinkle is worried about the defensive slack since it determines the outcome of away games. The Beavers have been dealing with the road for a number of seasons.
The defensive details divert our attention. “Let’s get to the point where we’re maintaining discipline for forty minutes, which will reduce that margin of error and give us an opportunity to build,” Tinkle stated. We can still do better because I don’t think we’ve played our best basketball yet.
The good news is that the offensive intensity of Oregon State has increased. Oregon State is scoring 81.4 points per game and shooting a conference-best 51.3% in seven WCC games. Moving forwardNate Kingz recently recorded back-to-back 20-point performances, Parsa Fallah scored 49 points during a two-game road trip to Santa Clara and Pacific two weeks ago, and Michael Rataj is currently second in WCC scoring.
Since June, we have been explosive. Guard Damarco Minor stated, “We simply needed to figure it out.” Each member of this team have unique talents. It is an extremely explosive offense when combined.
In addition to defense, Minor stated that throughout the last stretch of this season, players need to focus on finishing games and putting together a 40-minute performance. OSU had the lead late in the second half or in overtime in three of the six games that were lost by three points or less. However, on Thursday, Gonzaga lost to the Beavers 97-89 in overtime.
Every team faces difficulties when it comes to playing a full 40-minute game. Small smiles.
We can combine 38 and 37 minutes. “That’s fine with me,” he said.
Beginning this Thursday against Pepperdine and ending on Saturday against Santa Clara, Oregon State will play four of its next five games at home. For the next few weeks, especially in mid-February, when the Beavers face four straight teams with losing conference and overall records, the schedule is friendly.
Where teams place in the conference is crucial for the WCC tournament, which takes place in Las Vegas from March 6–11. Third and fourth place teams begin play in the quarterfinals, while the top two teams advance to the semifinals bye. To win the WCC tournament title and earn a spot in the NCAA tournament, teams that place fifth or sixth must win four games in four days.
It’s not far from us. This weekend is significant. We have a long way to go. Tinkle stated, “We think we can keep gaining momentum in February.” I am confident that this is a team that can ultimately position itself well if we keep improving.
The contact information for Nick Daschel is 360-607-4824, [email protected], or @nickdaschel.
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