Oregon St. @ Stanford preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 7, 2019 ) Stanford 83, Oregon St. 60

The early-season bloom is starting to fade for Stanford, which fell out of first place in the Pac-12 following back-to-back losses last week. The Cardinal look to get back on track Thursday against a visiting Oregon State team that has lost four in a row.

Stanford began last week by blowing a 17-point halftime lead in an 82-78 overtime loss at USC before squandering an 11-point second half lead Sunday against Cal and losing 52-50. Junior forward Oscar da Silva averages 16 points and 5.7 rebounds while shooting 61 percent from the field to lead the Cardinal, who opened Pac-12 play with four straight wins but have yet to face Oregon, Colorado or either of the Arizona schools. The Cardinal are in danger of dropping from the top tier of the Pac-12 standings, but coach Jerod Haase rejects any thoughts that his team will falter in the second half of conference play. “The guys are resilient. They have been great at listening to the messaging,” Haase told reporters. “Thursday’s going to come around and we’re going to treat it like the Super Bowl.”

TIME: 11 p.m. ET. TV: Pac-12 Network

ABOUT OREGON STATE (12-8, 2-6 Pac-12): Senior forward Tres Tinkle averages 19.5 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.7 assists but scored 17 points on 6-of-16 shooting in last Saturday’s 75-55 loss to USC, which led 30-8 with seven minutes left in the first half. The Beavers boast a true big man in 7-foot senior Kylor Kelley, who averages 11.2 points and leads the Pac-12 in blocked shots per game (3.75). Oregon State has failed to score 60 points in three of its last four games and needs more production from reserves such as forward Alfred Hollins, who has scored in double figures just once in conference play.

ABOUT STANFORD (15-4, 4-2): Oregon State is familiar with da Silva, who recorded 23 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in Stanford's 83-60 victory last season in Corvallis. Haase is using an eight-man rotation during league play that includes three freshmen – including 6-7 forward Spencer Jones, who is third on the team in scoring at 9.7 points per game while shooting 45.6 percent from 3-point range. Point guard Tyrell Terry remains in the hunt for Pac-12 player of the year but struggled in losses to USC and Cal last week, committing a total of nine turnovers while shooting 8-for-21 from the field.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Stanford is 30-7 against the Beavers since 2000 - including 16-3 at Maples Pavilion.

2. Oregon State is 23-0 over the last three seasons when scoring 80-plus points.

3. Stanford leads the Pac-12 in scoring defense at 59.3 points per game.

PREDICTION: Stanford 64, Oregon State 57