Beavers Headed to Bay Area to Face Santa Clara

THE GAME: Oregon State will head to the Bay Area Thursday to take on Santa Clara.

TELEVISION: The game will be televised on ESPN+

RADIO: The game will air live on Beaver Sports Radio Network with Mike Parker calling the action.

LIVE STATS: Live stats will be available at this link

QUICKLY: Thursday will mark the 11th all-time meeting between Oregon State and Santa Clara, and the first since the 1997-98 season ... At 12-4 Oregon State matches its best start through 16 games since the 1989-90 squad opened the year 14-2 (the Beavers also opened 2019-20 12-4) ... The Beavers are 19th in the nation in scoring defense, holding opponents to 62.6 points per game ... Oregon State is on pace for it's best season in defensive points per game since the 2014-15 team allowed 59.2 points per contest ... OSU has held 10 of its 16 opponents below 38 percent shooting from the floor, and has allowed over 65 points just five times ... The Beavers held San Diego to 29.3 percent shooting from the floor on Saturday, the lowest percentage by an OSU Division I opponent since the Beavers held Duke to 26.7 percent from the floor Nov. 24, 2022 ... Michael Rataj and Damarco Minor are both in the top four in the WCC in steals per game ... Oregon State has shot 45 percent or better from the floor 11 times this season ... Oregon State's avarage margin of victory in its 12 wins is 21.3 ... Michael Rataj is top-12 in the WCC in points per game, rebounds per game, field goal percentage, free throw percentage, blocks per game and steals per game ... Oregon State has four games with 20 or more assists this season, its most since the 2019-20 squad had five such games.

THE TEAM: Here are some quick-hitters about the 2024-25 Oregon State men's basketball team:

The Beavers' team features nine international players, representing eight different countries (Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Iran, Lithuania, Turkey, United Kingdom). Counting the USA, Oregon State's nine nations represented is the second most of any Division I men's basketball team trailing only UT Martin with 12.
The Oregon State men's basketball squad is one of 10 OSU programs slated to compete in the West Coast Conference beginning in the fall of 2024 as part of the two-year conference affiliation agreement announced on Dec. 22.
The 2024-25 WCC schedule will see the Beavers face some foes they have not often seen during their history. The following is Oregon State's total games played against each WCC opponent (excluding Washington State) along with the last season the two teams met. Portland - 71 meetings, last in 2020-21; Gonzaga - 27 meetings, last in 1991-92; Santa Clara - 10 meetings, last in 1997-98; San Francisco - 10 meetings, last in 1968-69; Pepperdine - 5 meetings, last in 2018-19; LMU - 5 meetings, last in 2017-18; Saint Mary's 4 meetings, last in 1968-69; San Diego - 3 meetings, last in 2012-13; Pacific - 3 meetings, last in 1994-95.
The Oregon State men's basketball program received a $1.5 million endowment from Joth Ricci and his family, part of a $3 million gift to the Beavers' men's and women's basketball programs. Ricci, known for leadership roles with Dutch Bros, Stumptown Coffee Roasters, Adelsheim Vineyards, Jones Soda and, most recently, Burgerville, is a 1990 Oregon State graduate now serving as executive in residence for the College of Business.

SATURDAY VS SAN DIEGO:

The Beavers shot 57.8 percent from the floor, compared to 29.3 percent for the Toreros
Michael Rataj recorded his seventh double-double of the season
Four Beavers finished in double-figures.

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Players Mentioned

Damarco Minor

Michael Rataj