Beavers Prepared For Battle With No. 2 Jayhawks
December 08, 2015 | Men's Basketball
THE GAME: Oregon State (6-1) faces the ultimate test when it takes on No. 2 Kansas (7-1) at 5 p.m. PT (7 p.m. CT) on Saturday at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.
TELEVISION: The game will be televised on ESPN2 with Adam Amin and Miles Simon calling the action. It can also be viewed online on WatchESPN at this link.
RADIO: The game will air live on Beaver Sports Radio Network with Mike Parker calling the action. It can also be heard online at this link.
LIVE STATS: There will be live stats at this link.
SOCIAL MEDIA: Live updates will be available on Twitter and Facebook.
TICKETS: Fans can secure Oregon State men's basketball season tickets and single-game tickets by visiting this link or calling 800-GO-BEAVS. Far West Classic Invite tickets will be included for all Oregon State men's basketball season ticket holders, giving fans a total of 18 games to watch in Corvallis and Portland during the 2015-16 season (including the exhibition game).
For Far West Classic Invite tickets and other information, click on this link.
THE SERIES: Oregon State and Kansas meet for the second time in history with the Jayhawks holding a 1-0 advantage after winning, 84-78, on Nov. 30, 2012 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City.
The Beavers played well in the game but the 10th-ranked Jayhawks shot 60.0 percent (33-for-55) from the field to pull away at the end and win in front of a crowd of 18,789. It's the last time an Oregon State opponent has shot 60 percent or better in a game.
Ahmad Starks tied an Oregon State single-game record with seven 3-pointers to score a game-high 25 points, while Roberto Nelson added 17 and Eric Moreland pulled down 16 rebounds. Three players on the current roster played in that game. Jarmal Reid started and scored four points in 15 minutes, while Olaf Schaftenaar (6 points, 17 minutes) and Langston Morris-Walker (0 points, 2 minutes) came off the bench.
Ben McLemore led a balanced Kansas attack with 21 points, while Travis Releford (20), Jeff Withey (17) and Kevin Young (10) were also in double figures. The Jayhawks outscored Oregon State 54-32 in the paint.
Oregon State is 10-76 all-time against teams ranked in the top 5 in the Associated Press poll (began in 1948-49 season). The Beavers' last win over a top-5 team came against No. 3 Arizona on March 2, 2000 when Deaundra Tanner hit a three-pointer at the buzzer in overtime for a 70-69 victory at Gill Coliseum. Oregon State's last win over a No. 2 team came during Gary Payton's senior season when the Beavers upset Arizona, 84-61, on Dec. 2, 1989 at Gill Coliseum.
The 10 Oregon State wins against top-5 teams:
March 2, 2000 - Oregon State 70, No. 3 Arizona 69 (ot) (at Corvallis)
Dec. 2, 1989 - Oregon State 84, No. 2 Arizona 61 (at Corvallis)
Dec. 10, 1983 - No. 18 Oregon State 53, No. 5 Iowa 48 (at Corvallis)
Feb. 12, 1983 - Oregon State 69, No. 5 UCLA 65 (at Corvallis)
Dec. 20, 1981 - No. 20 Oregon State 62, No. 3 Louisville 56 (at Tokyo, Japan)
Jan. 10, 1976 - Oregon State 75, No. 3 UCLA 58 (at Corvallis)
Feb. 15, 1974 - Oregon State 61, No. 1 UCLA 57 (at Corvallis)
Jan. 4, 1964 - No. 8 Oregon State 82, No. 4 Cincinnati 61 (at Corvallis)
March 16, 1963 - Oregon State 83, No. 4 Arizona State 65 (NCAA West Regional - Provo, Utah)
Dec. 22, 1953 - No. 12 Oregon State 67, No. 1 Indiana 51 (at Eugene, Ore.)
QUICKLY: With a win, Oregon State will equal its best start through eight games since the 1980-81 team opened 26-0 (the 1984-85 and 1986-87 teams started 7-1) … Kansas is the highest-ranked non-conference team the Beavers have played since Nov. 30, 1977 when they lost at No. 2 North Carolina, 90-64 ... Oregon State is 20-1 under Wayne Tinkle when leading with five minutes to play ... Gary Payton II broke the Oregon State record for consecutive games with a steal (38) and is closing in on the school record for consecutive games with multiple steals (16, Brent Barry, 1994-95) ... Stephen Thompson Jr. and Malcolm Duvivier have a combined 3-point field percentage of .482 (27-for-56), the highest of any teammate tandem in the Pac-12 ... Drew Eubanks continues to lead the Pac-12 in field goal percentage (.692) ... Jarmal Reid made his season debut against Nevada and had seven points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals in the win ... Olaf Schaftenaar has made at least one 3-pointer in six consecutive games.
Click on the PDF in the Related Links box above for the full game notes.
