Miracle at Miller Court
February 25, 2016 | Men's Basketball
Corvallis, Ore. – Freshman guard Stephen Thompson Jr. swished a 3-pointer as time expired on Wednesday night to give Oregon State a dramatic 82-81 victory over Washington before a delirious crowd of 5,593 at Gill Coliseum.
The Beavers (16-10, 7-8) trailed 81-79 with 3.3 seconds remaining after the ball went out-of-bounds on the baseline following a missed Washington free throw. With the Beavers out of timeouts, Thompson took an in-bounds pass from Olaf Schaftenaar on the move in backcourt, dribbled up the left sideline, juked defender Dejounte Murray and squared up for a 27-footer that hit nothing but net.
Following the obligatory officials' review, the basket stood. Thompson was mobbed by his teammates and by a horde of classmates who poured onto the floor from the courtside student section.
“I don't think I've ever hit a game-winning three,” said Thompson, one of four Beavers in double figures with a team-high 18 points. “It was definitely the most exciting moment in my career so far.
“I tried to get as close as I could to the basket and shoot it in. If you catch it on the run, the defense is on its heels and can't press into you” to slow you down.
“I knew they didn't want to foul. I tried to elevate above him and I just hit the shot. It was a special moment.”
It was the second time in the last three home games that Thompson won the game in the final second. He hit three free throws with one-tenth of a second remaining to defeat Utah 71-69 on Feb. 4.
Added coach Wayne Tinkle:
“They were confused defensively, Murray didn't want to foul, and Stevie hit a great shot. How about him down the stretch, the free throws against Utah and hitting what was one of the biggest shots in our program in a while.”
The Beavers thus clinched their first back-to-back winning seasons since 1989-90, and posted their first successive home wins over the Huskies since the 2000-2001 seasons.
Thompson's game-winner capped an incredible comeback for the Beavers. They led for almost the entire game before falling behind 79-73 with 1:48 to play when a 19-5 Washington run erased a 68-60 OSU advantage.
Freshman center Drew Eubanks scored on a stickback with 1:02 remaining to make it 79-75. After a Washington turnover Tres Tinkle hit an acrobatic, double-pump shot from the left baseline to draw OSU within 79-77 with 22 seconds left.
Washington's David Crisp made 1 of 2 free throws with 21 seconds left to increase Washington's lead to 80-77, but Tinkle made two free throws with 5.3 seconds left to trim the lead to 80-79.
Washington's Andrew Andrews made a free throw with five second left for an 81-79 lead. But he missed the second shot and the rebound bounced out-of-bounds off a Washington player.
That play was also reviewed, giving the Beavers time to set their final-shot strategy.
“We drew up a play, and we had a feeling we were going to hit the shot,” said Tres Tinkle, who had 16 points, seven rebounds, two steals and two assists in another solid all-around effort. “Stevie not only got open, but got enough space to get off the shot, and he hit it.”
Eubanks had 17 points, his first game in double figures since he scored 12 in a loss at Arizona State on Jan. 28. He also grabbed 13 rebounds to post his first career double-double. He added two blocked shots.
Senior guard Gary Payton II added 15 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and a blocked shot in a gritty 35 minutes. OSU outrebounded Washington 41-25 and held a 15-2 edge in offensive rebounding, which led to a decisive 21-4 advantage in second-chance points.
“Our three main keys were to stop transition, no points in the paint, and rebound,” assistant coach Gregg Gottlieb said. “We did a great job on two of the three.
“You play to the final whistle. Having some of the endings we've had that resonates with the guys,” and they responded on Wednesday to remain in contention for a major postseason tournament.
The Beavers resume Pac-12 action on Sunday when they host Washington State at 3:30 p.m. in their final regular-season home game. Seniors Payton, Schaftenaar, Daniel Gomis, Langston Morris-Walker and Jarmal Reid will be honored before the game on Senior Day.
It will be televised by Pac-12 Networks. Fans can purchase OSU men's basketball tickets by visiting this link or by calling 800-GO-BEAVS.
