Oregon State
UCLA
Beavers Nab Crucial Win
March 06, 2016 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Freshman guard Stephen Thompson Jr. scored a career-high 23 points, all in the second half, and Oregon State ended an 11-game tailspin at Pauley Pavilion on Saturday with a crucial 86-82 victory over UCLA.
Seniors Gary Payton II and Olaf Schaftenaar added 17 points each and freshman guard Derrick Bruce tied his career best with 11 points as the Beavers (18-11, 9-9 Pac-12) defeated UCLA in Los Angeles for the first time since Feb. 1, 2003.
“It was unbelievable, I'm super-proud,” OSU coach Wayne Tinkle said. “It was a must-win. It was a great team win,” that clinched the No. 6 seed in the upcoming Pacific-12 Conference tournament.
“Everything that could go wrong did,” in the hectic final two minutes, when every loose ball seemed to bounce UCLA's way. “But we never doubted, we never panicked and we made plays in the last 30 seconds to win.
“We are doing something special. We knew it was going to take some time but this is going to give us a huge shot in the arm,” not just for the rest of this season, but for seasons to come.
“With our backs against the wall and so much riding on this one, we responded.”
A thundering dunk by Payton with less than one second remaining following a key defensive stop enabled OSU to equal its most conference wins since the 1992-93 season. UCLA rallied from a 73-58 deficit, hit three 3-pointers in the final 50 seconds to draw within 84-82 and was in position to tie or win until Bruce stole the ball with four seconds left and then dished off for Payton's game-ending dunk.
“It was a great team effort, it was something this program needed,” assistant coach Stephen Thompson said. “That's what we've been working for the last two years. It's a great feeling, I can't describe it.
“We made it interesting; hats off to UCLA, they hit some big shots, they did not lie down and they played with the heart of the champion. But we were ready to get this one.”
Thompson Jr. was 0-for-7 and scoreless in the first half, but went 7-for-9 overall and 4-for-5 on 3-pointers in the second to post his first career 20-point game. His previous career high was 18 against Washington on Feb. 18, a game he won with a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Thompson scored 39 points in the two games in his hometown of Los Angeles, where he got his first two career starts in place of the injured Tres Tinkle.
“I have a bad habit of slow starts,” the younger Thompson said. “I tried to stay confident and make some shots, to stay positive and keep a positive mindset.
“My team encouraged me, found me when I was open and I knocked down some shots. We told ourselves to stay together; it was a must-win game for us to accomplish what we want to. We dug down deep.”
The Beavers used a 10-0 run early in the second half, capped by a Schaftenaar 3-pointer, to take a 43-33 lead with 14:44 remaining. They would not trail again, and they eventually led by 16 (68-52) with 5:31 to play.
OSU was still ahead 73-58 with 3:25 left following a 3-pointer by Thompson before the Bruins (15-16, 6-12) got hot from beyond the arc. They made five of their seven 3-pointers in the final 4:32, fueling a furious comeback aided by some missed OSU free throws.
Schaftenaar hit a personal-best five 3-pointers and the Beavers were 12 of 24 from deep. Payton had six assists, Bruce four; freshman center Drew Eubanks had six points and 10 rebounds.
OSU came out blazing and hit five 3-pointers in the first five minutes to build a 19-8 with 13:56 to play in the half. However, it went cold, did not score for seven minutes, and UCLA rallied to take a 29-28 lead with 2:13 left in the half.
The Beavers answered and pulled even at 31-31 on Payton free throw with 43 seconds left. Neither team scored again before the intermission and the first half ended 31-31.
Payton II and Schaftenaar had nine points each at the break. Schaftenaar had three 3-pointers in the first three minutes; Payton had three assists and Eubanks grabbed four rebounds.
The Beavers will play Arizona State at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday in the opening round of the Pacific-12 Conference Tournament at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The game will be televised by Pac-12 Networks.
