Pac-12 Champions Host NCAA Tournament
The No. 10 Oregon State women’s basketball team will enter the NCAA Tournament as a No. 3 seed and will host the first two rounds of the event on Friday, March 20 and Sunday, March 22 at Gill Coliseum. The event will mark the first time an Oregon State basketball team (men’s or women’s) has played an NCAA Tournament game at home since the Beaver men’s team in 1962.
The Beavers (26-4) will play host to the No. 14 seed South Dakota State Jackrabbits at 2 p.m. Friday. The Corvallis Regional will also feature a matchup between No. 11 seed Gonzaga and No. 6 seed George Washington at 4:30 p.m. Both games will air on ESPN2 with the winners playing Sunday at a time to be announced.
All-session passes to tournament games in Corvallis are available for $28 for reserved seats and $20 for adult general admission, $16 for senior (62+)/youth (0-18) general admission. Fans of all ages are required to have a ticket for NCAA Tournament games. For more information or to request tickets, please call 800-GO-BEAVS.
The Beavers, who have been ranked as high as No. 7 in the nation this year, are in the midst of a historic season. Oregon State has broken numerous records this campaign, including setting a new mark with 26 wins this season, en route to a Pac-12 Conference regular season title. For their accomplishments this season, the Beavers had a strong showing in the conference awards, as head coach Scott Rueck was named Coach of the Year by both the coaches and the media. Ruth Hamblin earned Player of the Year honors (media) and Defensive Player of the Year honors (coaches and media), while Jamie Weisner and Sydney Wiese both earned All-Pac-12 honors (coaches and media). The Beavers also led the Pac-12 with four Player of the Week honors (two for Hamblin, one apiece for Weisner and Wiese), and Weisner earned national recognition in February, when she was named ESPNW National Player of the Week.
Oregon State’s 2014-15 seasons has been highlighted by a number of impressive victories, including a win over then-No. 6 North Carolina, two victories over No. 12 Arizona State and a win over California.
The Beavers made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 18 years last season, defeating Middle Tennessee in the opening round, before falling to No. 1 seed South Carolina in the second round.
South Dakota State (24-8) enters the tournament after finishing second in the Summit League regular season, but defeated rival South Dakota in the tournament championship game. The Jackrabbits are riding an eight-game win streak.
The second game of the tournament features West Coast Conference regular season champion Gonzaga (24-7) against Atlantic 10 regular season and tournament champion George Washington (29-3). Gonzaga features junior forward Elle Tinkle, the daughter of OSU men’s basketball coach Wayne Tinkle.
The winner of the Corvallis Regional will advance to Spokane for the Sweet 16, beginning March 28.
The four regional sites for the Sweet-16 and Elite-8 will be Spokane, Wash., Albany, N.Y., Greensboro, N.C. and Oklahoma City, Okla., leading up to the Final Four in Tampa, Fla.
What You Need To Know:
· Games are 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Friday on ESPN2. TBD for Sunday.
· General Admission Tickets ($20) are available now at BeaverTickets.com.
· Current season ticket holders may order reserved seats TODAY until 7 p.m. at 1-800-GO-BEAVS or in person in Gill Coliseum.
· Reserved All Session Seat Tickets ($28) for all fans become available at 8 a.m. Tuesday at BeaverTickets.com and at 9 a.m. in person at the OSU Athletics Ticket Office or via 1-800-GO-BEAVS.
· Tickets will be sent via email to print electronically on Wednesday. Requested Will Call tickets will be available also on Wednesday at Gill Coliseum from Noon to 5 p.m.
· Single session reserved tickets are $16; General Admission (Adult) $12; General Admission (Youth/Senior) $10; Group (12 or more) $8; OSU Student with ID $5.
· Parking is $10 per day.
· All games will be televised by the ESPN family of networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNU).
· OSU games will be broadcast live via radio (details forthcoming).
· Games will be livestreamed by ESPN3
