Oregon State
UC Davis
Big Second Half Boosts Beavers over UC Davis to Second Round of WNIT
March 15, 2012 | Women's Basketball
March 15, 2012
Corvallis, Ore. – Junior Thais Pinto (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) scored a game-high 14 points to lead four Oregon State players in double figures as it defeated UC Davis 66-48 in the opening round of the WNIT Thursday night at Gill Coliseum.
It was the eighth time in nine games the Beavers have won their opening WNIT matchup and marked the first postseason victory at the NCAA Division I level for second-year head coach Scott Rueck.
The Beavers broke open a tight game early in the second half by picking the pace up on offense and increasing its intensity on the defensive end. Oregon State outscored the Aggies 18-4 in the first 7:50 of the second half with junior Sage Indendi (Livingston, Mont.) doing most of the damage on the offensive end with eight of her 13 points for the game coming in the run.
Oregon State scored 43 second half points, among its most for a half this season, in building as much as a 24-point lead.
“She's a competitor. She loves those moments and she has worked her butt off to get to this level,” Rueck said of Indendi. “This is an environment she lives for; I know that, it is one of the reasons I recruited her. When the lights are the brightest that is when she is at her best. That is what I have learned from her. I was looking forward to watching her play tonight.”
Pinto's 14 points were just two short of her career high, set in the preseason at CSU Bakersfield. She also corralled six rebounds and made six of her eight field goal attempts. The Beavers outscored UC Davis 40-0 in the paint. Oregon State also shot 54 percent from the field, its best since a 56 percent clip in the season opener against Western Oregon.
The Aggies, a member of the Big West Conference, kept the game close in the first half with three-pointers, hitting 6-of-13 attempts and led 20-19 when Brianna Salvatore hit a jumper with 2:46 left. Layups by senior Earlysia Marchbanks (Salem, Ore.) and Pinto down the stretch moved Oregon State to its halftime lead.
Oregon State (19-12) goes for its 20th victory of the season in the second round against St. Mary's College, a 71-63 winner Thursday in Moraga against UNLV. The game will be played at Gill Coliseum at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, and Oregon State will be out to avenge a December loss to the Gaels in Corvallis.
“We played scared knowing that we didn't know how good we were, we had gotten off to a 7-2 start or something like that, then Saint Mary's comes in here and just drilled us,” Rueck said of the earlier game. “They're going to come for blood on Saturday night, and we have to rise to that challenge. This team was a lot different than it was at that time, so there will be no overlooking whoever comes in here on Saturday; we know it will be a 40-minute war.”
Tickets for Saturday's game will be available beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Friday. All general admission seats will be on sale to the public through osubeavers.com, by calling 1-800-GOBEAVS and by stopping by the ticket office. Women's basketball season ticket holders have until 3:00 p.m. on Friday to order their reserved seats by calling 1-800-GOBEAVS or by stopping by the ticket office ONLY.
Beginning at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, reserved seats will also be made available through osubeavers.com. The ticket office will close at 5:00 p.m. on Friday; however it will still take phone calls until 6:00 p.m.
After 6:00 p.m., fans will have to purchase tickets on line until Saturday afternoon at 5:00 p.m., when the front ticket booth will be open for ticket sales and will call. Gates to Saturday's contest will open at 6:00 p.m., and tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Reserved tickets are $11, and adult general admission seats are $8. Senior/youth tickets are $6 while Oregon State students can get tickets to the game for $4 with a student ID card (limit one ticket per student).
Additional charges may apply for phone and internet orders. For a list of fees, click here.
Support Oregon State University Athletics by making your tax deductible donation to the Beaver Athletic Student Fund. For more information follow this link or call 541-737-2370. Former student-athletes are invited to join the Varsity O Facebook Page for upcoming Alumni events.
Follow Oregon State Athletics on YouTube.
