Tourney Journey Begins Sunday In Seattle
THE GAME: Oregon State (23-10), making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1996, will look for its third-ever win at the event when it travels to Seattle to take on No. 22/20 Middle Tennessee (29-4) on Sunday, March 23 at 5 p.m.
TRACKING THE BEAVS: The game will air live on ESPN2 and the Watch ESPN app with Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham on the call and be broadcast on a number of stations in the Beaver Sports Radio Network (FOX Sports Radio 620AM in Portland, KICE 940AM in Bend, KEJO 1240AM in Corvallis) with Ron Callan at the mic. Live audio and live stats are also available on osubeavers.com and fans can follow @OregonStateWBB on Twitter for all game day information, including score updates, photos and observations.
THE RUNDOWN: Oregon State is making is sixth NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 1996 ... The Beavers won 23 games this season for just the third time and first since 1982-83 ... OSU’s late-season 11-game win streak tied the second-longest in program history and was the best since 1982-83 ... Each win during the run was by at least 10 points ... OSU, which hasn’t been ranked since 1996, is receiving votes in both the AP (27th) and USA TODAY Coaches’ Polls (26th) ... The Beavers are shooting 44 percent from the floor, their highest clip since 1995-96 ... This season has marked the second-biggest turnaround in Oregon State history ... OSU’s .349 field goal percentage defense is seventh in the nation ... Sydney Wiese broke the school single-season record for 3-point makes against USC on Feb. 16 and now has 104, second in Pac-12 single-season history ... Ruth Hamblin leads the NCAA with a Pac-12 single-season record 133 blocks and averages 4.03 per game ... Hamblin also led the conference in field goal percentage in league games (.678) and is third when including non-conference contests (.588) ... The Beavers are 15th in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage (.371) ... Freshmen and sophomores are responsible for 82.2 percent of the team’s points and 88.9 percent of its rebounds ... Oregon State, which hasn’t averaged more than 70.0 ppg since 1995-96, scores 71.0 this season.
VS. MIDDLE TENNESSEE: This will be the first meeting between Middle Tennessee and Oregon State. The Beavers own a 4-2 all-time record against current members of Conference USA, claiming wins over Southern Mississippi (1982), UTEP (1986), Tulane (2002) and Rice (2011) and dropping contests to Tulane (2003) and North Texas (2011). The Blue Raiders will be OSU’s sixth-ever opponent from the state of Tennessee. Oregon State is 1-0 against Belmont, 0-2 against Tennessee, 1-0 against Tennessee Tech, 1-0 against Tennessee State and 0-3 against Vanderbilt. Its most recent game against that group came versus the Bruins in 2009.
NCAA TOURNAMENT NOTES: Oregon State is making its sixth-ever NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 1996.- The Beavers are 2-5 in five previous trips, winning their first game in the event, 75-62, over UCLA on March 19, 1983 and beating Tennessee State in overtime, 88-75, on March 17, 1995.
- Through the completion of the 2013 NCAA Tournament, 254 schools had earned bids in their histories. Of that group, OSU was one of 33 that had not been to the Big Dance since 1996.
- Oregon State was a No. 3 seed in 1983, a No. 4 seed in 1984, an 11-seed in 1994, a No. 5 seed in 1995 and a six-seed in 1996.
- The Beavers are 20-2 this season in games played in the Pacific Northwest (Oregon and Washington).
- OSU is 3-1 this season in Seattle and 1-0 at Alaska Airlines Arena.
- The Beavers went 7-0 this season against their Pacific Northwest rivals (Oregon, Washington, Washington State). It’s the program’s best record against those conference foes since 1982-83, when Oregon State was also 7-0 against the region’s major college teams.
- Oregon State won 13 Pac-12 games for the first time and tied the school record for league wins. The Beavs went 13-2 as an NWBL member in 1979-80.
- OSU finished tied with Cal for second in the Pac-12 standings, tying the program’s best finish as a conference member. Judy Spoelstra’s 1995-96 squad also finished second in the Pac-10 with an 11-7 league record.
- The Beavers propelled themselves into their first-ever Pac-12 Tournament Championship thanks to a late-season 11-game win streak, which tied for the second-longest in program history and was the best since winning a school-record 14 straight in 1982-83.
- Nine of those 11 victories came in conference play, marking the second-best overall conference win streak in program history behind the 11 straight Aki Hill’s 1979-80 team strung together in the NWBL.
- Oregon State won 23 games for only the third time and first since 1982-83. That year’s squad went 24-6 and earned the school its first ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
- No Pac-12 conference member with 13 league victories has ever been left out of the field.
- Every 20-win Pac-12 school with 12 league victories has been invited to the NCAA Tournament.
- Five Pac-12 teams have gotten to 12 conference wins and not received an invite, but none won 20 total games.
- As of the release of official NCAA RPI ratings on March 17, the Beavers sit in 35th.
- Of Oregon State’s 10 losses, five came to teams in the Associated Press Top-25 (No. 2 Notre Dame; No. 4 Stanford; No. 13 Penn St.; No. 15 Arizona St.; No. 23 Cal).
- As of March 17, Oregon State is 27th in the AP Top 25, receiving 37 points. The Beavers haven’t been ranked in that poll since finishing the 1995-96 season 22nd in the nation. Since then, the program had only received votes three weeks early in the 2008-09 season following a 9-1 start, capped off with 11 votes in the Dec. 29, 2008 poll.
- The Beavers are also 26th in the USA TODAY Coaches’ Poll released on March 11. Their 28 points are just nine behind No. 25 Iowa. OSU has not been ranked by the nation’s coaches since checking in a No. 20 on March 11, 1996.
- Eleven wins in a row ties the second-longest stretch in program history, which was last accomplished during the 1982-83 season. That also happens to be the first time the Beavers earned an NCAA Tournament berth.
- Oregon State won a school-record 14 consecutive games in 1982-83 and 11 straight in 1979-80.
- The Beavers went on the run by employing a balanced attack. During the those 11 games, Sydney Wiese (15.8), Ruth Hamblin (11.6), Ali Gibson (10.2) and Gabriella Hanson (10.2) all averaged in double-figures scoring and Deven Hunter (9.3) was close behind.
- OSU shot 46.1 percent and scored 66.8 ppg and held its opponents to 32.3 percent from the floor and 50.7 ppg.
- Each win during the run was by at least 10 points and three came by 20+. The Beavers’ average margin of victory was 16.1 points.
- Oregon State finds itself on the right side of many important percentage markers. The Beavers are second in the Pac-12 in field goal percentage (.440) and 3-point field goal percentage (.371), trailing only Stanford in both. OSU also tops the league in field goal percentage defense (.349) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (.284).
- The team’s field goal percentage is currently its highest since it was successful on 44.3 percent of its attempts from the floor during the 1995-96 season.
- The Beavers’ 66-43 win over No. 20 Arizona State on March 2 was their first over a ranked team since they defeated No. 19 Utah, 71-62, on Dec. 16, 2003. OSU had been winless in its last 50 against nationally ranked opponents.
- It was the Beavers’ largest margin of victory against an AP Top 25 foe since downing No. 23 USC, 92-59, on March 11, 1996.
- Oregon State shot 55.1 percent (27-of-49) from the floor against Arizona on Feb. 28, its best in a Pac-12 game since converting 55.8 percent (29-of-52) against the Wildcats on Feb. 11, 2006.
- Each win during OSU’s perfect stretch was by double digits, but none greater than the 30-point margin of victory that it hung on Arizona on Feb. 28. It was the Beavers’ biggest win in conference play since beating Cal 68-37 on Jan. 11, 2003.
- OSU features a young roster in terms of NCAA experience. Of its 11 players, nine are underclassmen, and the team collectively has 10 varsity letters (0.9 average). Ali Gibson (junior) and Alyssa Martin (senior) are the only players with more than one year under their belts.
- Freshmen and sophomores are responsible for 82.2 percent of Oregon State’s scoring (1,925 of 2,342 points), 79.0 percent of its minutes played (5,217 of 6,600 minutes) and 88.9 percent of its rebounds (1,276 of 1,435).
- Scott Rueck went undefeated and won the NCAA Division III title at George Fox in 2009 despite returning no starters and bringing in 10 freshmen.
- The Beavers are the only school with three of the league’s top 10 performers in field goal percentage: Ruth Hamblin (.588); Sydney Wiese (.457) and Deven Hunter (.453).
- This season has marked the second-biggest turnaround in Oregon State history. Using the official NCAA formula (difference in victories between two seasons + difference in losses/2) the Beavers have already notched a 12-game improvement over last year’s 10-21 record. OSU’s 1990-91 squad went 17-11 after going just 5-26 the year before, a 13.5-game improvement.
- OSU has held six opponents this season to less than 30 percent shooting and eight to under 50 points.
- In the 3+ years Scott Rueck has been the head coach, the Beavers are 22-2 when forcing their opponents to shoot less than 30 percent and 28-3 when holding them to under 50 points.
- Utah’s 21 percent clip from the field in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament was the lowest for a Beaver opponent since Cal State Fullerton shot 19.1 percent on Dec. 13, 2012. OSU hadn’t held a conference foe to a percentage that low since it forced Washington State to convert only 17.4 percent (12-for-69) on December 28, 2001.
- OSU’s .349 field goal percentage defense is first in the Pac-12 and seventh in the nation.
- Since 2006-07, all but one of his squads has finished in the top 25 in the nation in that category.
- Its .346 field goal percentage defense was a school record last year and 16th best in the country.
- The top blocking team in the Pac-12 two of the last three years, OSU is again leading the conference and is fifth in the nation in blocks per game (6.2).
- OSU is 21st in the nation in 3-point field goals made per game (8.1) and 15th in 3-point field goal percentage (.371).
- Oregon State has made 268 3-pointers this season, beating the previous school record of 194 (2010-11).
- Prior to this year, Oregon State had only connected on 12 3-pointers in a game just three times in program history, a feat it has already accomplished five times this season.
- OSU has scored 80 or more points six times this season, something it hasn’t done that often since 1995-96 when it broke that mark nine times.
- The Beavers have scored 2,342 total points and average 71.0 per game. That 1995-96 season was the last time OSU scored more than 70 points per outing (72.8).
- Four active players are among Oregon State’s top 10 in 3-point makes. Alyssa Martin is third (148), Ali Gibson is fourth (136), Sydney Wiese is eighth (104) and Jamie Weisner is ninth (98).
- OSU is second in the conference and 28th in the nation, pulling down 7.0 more rebounds per game than its opponents.
- The Beavers are averaging 43.5 rebounds per game this year after eclipsing the 40.0 rpg mark last season for the first time since 1996-97. The school record for rebounding average is 44.5, set during 1990-91.
- Oregon State tied a school record this year by going 17 consecutive games without being outrebounded. The Beavers were even or better on the glass starting Jan. 11 at Oregon and ending in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament against Utah.
- That sort of run had not been accomplished since 1980 when OSU did it through the final 16 contests of the 1979-80 season and the first game of the 1980-81 campaign.
- Oregon State’s 14 home wins set a new school record, surpassing the 13 from 1994-95, 2002-03 and 2008-09.
- Thirteen of the Beavers’ 14 wins in Gill came by double digits.
- OSU went a perfect 9-0 in home Pac-12 games for the first time. The school’s only other undefeated home conference records came in 1983 (7-0) and 1984 (5-0) when it was a NorPac member.
- Oregon State’s previous best Pac-10/12 home record was 8-1, achieved in both 1995 and 1996.
- In true road games, Sydney Wiese (15.1 ppg) and Jamie Weisner (12.6 ppg) were responsible for 35.2 percent of OSU’s scoring offense while the production was more equitable for the Beavers at home.
- In 15 games in Gill, Wiese (14.1 ppg), Weisner (12.3 ppg) and Ruth Hamblin (11.9 ppg) all averaged double figures and Deven Hunter (9.9 ppg) and Ali Gibson (9.3 ppg) were not far behind. OSU put up 76.0 points at home compared to 68.9 in away contests.
- She the first OSU freshman since Tanja Kostic in 1993 to receive a spot on the All-Pac-12 Team and is one of just two first-year players to make the cut this season.
- Already the school single-season record holder, Wiese has netted 104 threes, the second-most in a season in Pac-12 history and the highest-ever total for a conference freshman.
- Her 3-point field goal percentage (.435) is 10th in the nation and those 104 makes are tied for fifth in the country. The freshman is also already in eighth on the school’s career 3-point list.
- Wiese has also poured in 466 points this season on just 335 attempts from the field and is shooting 45.7 percent from the floor. That clip is eighth overall in the Pac-12 and second among the league’s guards.
- She is just the fifth OSU freshman to tally 400 points in a season and first since Kostic put up 473 in 1992-93.
- Nearly 70 percent of Wiese’s field goals this year have come from 3-point range (104-of-153).
- She is fifth in the Pac-12 and tops all conference freshmen, averaging 4.0 assists per game, and through games played as of March 17 is also 11th among first-year players across the country in assists.
- Her 131 assists are the most for an OSU player since Mercedes Fox-Griffin had the same number in the 2008-09 campaign. Wiese is second among OSU freshmen in single-season assists all-time. Leilani Estavan handed out 139 during her first year in Corvallis (2000-01).
- She was affectionately dubbed “The Canadian Hammer” by former Oregon State men’s basketball standout Joe Burton during her freshman season
- Hamblin’s single-game school-record 10 rejections against Oregon on Jan. 13 came just two weeks after she tied the previous mark with nine against No. 2 Notre Dame on Dec. 29. With those performances, she has two of the 10 best single-game totals in the NCAA this year.
- She has 133 total and averages 4.03 per game, both numbers that lead the nation. Hamblin averages more blocks than 265 teams in the country.
- She has 165 career blocks to her name in just 61 games, already fourth all-time at Oregon State.
- Hamblin was also the most efficient Pac-12 player from the floor in conference games, making 99-of-146 in league contests, a 67.8 percent clip and a new school record in Pac-12 play.
- Hamblin is third in the Pac-12 from the field when including non-conference games, shooting 58.8 percent (140-of-238) overall this season.
- Her 288 rebounds are the fifth most in Oregon State single-season history.
- Earlier this season, Hamblin posted Oregon State’s first triple-double in 30 years against rival Oregon on Jan. 13. The 6-foot-6 sophomore totaled 23 points, 12 rebounds and a school-record 10 blocks in the Beavers’ 84-70 win, their seventh straight in the series.
- Lisa Channel was the last Beaver to accomplish the feat when she scored 16 points, had 10 rebounds and handed out 10 assists in an 84-62 Beaver win over Cal in Gill Coliseum on Feb. 11, 1984. Judy Spoelstra, also Oregon State’s coach from 1996-2005, was the first to do it when she had 10 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists against Illinois State on Jan. 7, 1983, an 89-57 OSU win; a game that was also played in Gill as part of the Big ‘O’ Classic.
- Hamblin’s performance is one of 30 triple-doubles in the NCAA this season. It was the 17th triple-double in Pac-12 history and the first to be accomplished with blocks.
- Hamblin’s sophomore season has put her in the conversation among some of the nation’s most improved players. Last year, she averaged just 13.0 minutes, 4.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. This season she has arguably been Oregon State’s most important presence on the court and is averaging 27.2 minutes, 10.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game.
- She is third in the conference in field goal percentage, seventh in rebounds and first in blocks.
- Hamblin’s numbers in the non-conference were 6.2 ppg, 7.2 rpg and 3.3 bpg compared to 12.7 ppg, 9.4 rpg and 4.2 bpg in league games.
- Grew up on a 2,000-acre Black Angus cattle ranch in Houston, British Columbia, which is about a 16-hour drive north of Seattle.
- A mechanical engineering major with a 3.98 GPA, was named 2013-14 Capital One Academic All-District.
