Oregon State
Arizona State
No. 8 OSU Tops No. 12 ASU to Take Pac-12 Lead
January 26, 2015 | Women's Basketball
TEMPE, Ariz. - The No. 8/9 Oregon State women's basketball team took sole possession of first place in the Pac-12 Sunday afternoon, as the Beavers defeated No. 12/13 Arizona State 68-57 at the Wells Fargo Arena in Tempe, Ariz. Both teams entered the contest as the only remaining undefeated sides in the conference.
The win was Oregon State's first road win over the Sun Devils since 1996, and with the 2-0 trip to Arizona, the Beavers earned their first sweep of the Arizona schools since 1995.
With the triumph, the Beavers improve on the best start in school history, moving to 18-1 on the season. Oregon State also goes to 8-0 in Pac-12 play, the most wins to open conference action in school history.
“We have a combination of ability and experience, and I think that really showed today,” said Oregon State head coach Scott Rueck. “This team has a lot of fight and incredible character, and they do what it takes to win. That leads to opportunities like this one. We had some good looks in the first half where the shots just didn't fall. In the second half we came out with great focus, and I think we executed phenomenally. We got great looks and took care of the ball, and our defense was solid all day.”
Junior Jamie Weisner led the Beavers 21 points on 8-for-14 shooting from the floor, notching her fourth 20+ point showing of the year. She also pulled down five rebounds and recorded a steal.
Oregon State entered halftime leading by five points, but a 14-0 run early in the second half helped the Beavers take control. OSU shot 50 percent (26-for-52) from the floor, including 66.7 percent (14-for-21) in the closing frame.
“We didn't want to focus on everything that was at stake today,” Wiese said. “We just wanted to focus on one possession at a time, because that was what we knew it would take to win this game. I think that's what we did today.”
Junior Ruth Hamblin filled the stat sheet yet again, scoring 12 points on 6-for-8 shooting, and finishing with seven rebounds and three blocks. Senior Ali Gibson was nearly perfect from the floor, going 5-for-6 on her way to 12 points. Sophomore Gabriella Hanson matched her with 12 points, and made some big defensive plays for the Beavers.
Sophomore Sydney Wiese scored seven points and tallied six assists, as she returned to her home state.
Arizona State jumped out to an early 11-4 lead, but the Beavers used an 10-2 run to take the lead 14-13. The teams would trade punches from there. Hamblin and Weisner hit back-to-back layups to give Oregon State a 22-19 lead with five minutes left in the opening frame. Weisner would follow that up by hitting a three-pointer to close out the first-half scoring for OSU, and the Beavers took a 27-22 lead into the intermission.
Weisner and Hanson had seven points apiece at the break.
The Beavers exploded out of the gates to start the second half, using a 14-0 run to jump out to a 45-25 lead less than five minutes into the closing frame. The Sun Devils would chip away at the lead from there, but were never able to get within single-digits, as the Beavers took the 11-point victory.
The Beavers will return to action Saturday when they host USC at Gill Coliseum.
Game Notes:
- Oregon State improved the best start in school history, moving to 18-1
- No. 12 Arizona State is the highest-ranked conference opponent the Beavers have beaten since they topped No. 10 Washington 74-70 in Seattle on Feb. 17, 1995
- The Beavers also set the best start to conference play in school history at 8-0
- Jamie Weisner finished with 21 points, bringing her career total to 965
- Ruth Hamblin notched three blocks, extending her career record to 242
- Sydney Wiese hit one 3-pointer, moving her within 22 of the school record.
