Washington St. @ Oregon St. preview
Gill Coliseum
Last Meeting ( Mar 3, 2018 ) Oregon St. 92, Washington St. 67
Oregon State’s 3-0 Pac-12 start was dampened by a 0-2 road trip to Arizona last week. The Beavers will now try to get back on track with a pair of home games, beginning with Thursday night’s date with Washington State.
In its two losses in the desert, Oregon State was outrebounded by a combined 82-63, including 33-17 on the offensive glass. It was particularly damaging Saturday night as the host Wildcats finished with a 21-9 offensive rebounding edge, leading to 28 second-chance points in an 82-71 victory. “They were driving us, and we had to help, so you’re not by your guy to box out,” Beavers coach Wayne Tinkle said in his post-game news conference. “So (there) was penetration, No. 1, and we didn’t play nearly physical enough.” Washington State, meanwhile, has been facing a number of the same issues and then some while dropping seven of its last eight, including a 1-4 Pac-12 start.
TV: 11 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network
ABOUT WASHINGTON STATE (8-10, 1-4 Pac-12): Senior forward Robert Franks, the conference’s leading scorer at 21.5 points per game, returned last week after missing the previous four contests with a hip contusion and had 24 points and eight rebounds in 31 minutes in an 82-59 win over California on Thursday. Franks, though, had only 12 points and six points on 4-of-14 shooting in Saturday’s 78-66 home loss to Stanford. Freshman forward C.J. Elleby (15.8 points) is the only other player averaging double figures for the Cougars, who rank second in the Pac-12 with 78.6 points per game but are giving up nearly as many on the other end with 77.3 allowed per outing.
ABOUT OREGON STATE (11-6, 3-2): Ranking right behind Franks on the conference scoring list is Beavers junior forward Tres Tinkle who’s averaging 20.4 points and a team-leading 8.4 rebounds. Brothers Stephen Thompson Jr. (14.8 points) and Ethan Thompson (13.4) also average double digits and that trio has combined to account for 182 of the team’s 268 assists. The Beavers rank second in the conference in overall field-goal percentage (46.6) but are shooting a Pac-12-worst 32.2 percent from 3-point range after a 4-of-17 showing in the loss to Arizona.
TIP-INS
1. Oregon State has won eight of the last nine meetings, including four consecutive home wins.
2. Washington State has lost all eight of its road/neutral-site contests this season, and its three Pac-12 road losses (all without Franks) were decided by an average of 22.7 points.
3. The Beavers are averaging 5.8 blocked shots per game, which ranks second in the Pac-12 and seventh nationally.
PREDICTION: Oregon State 82, Washington State 70