Oregon State Men's Hoops Beat Portland, 89-79

Beaver fans will be forgiven if they showed restraint in following this season's Oregon State men's basketball team. The Beavers won 5 league games last season. They won 5 league games in 2022-23. They won a single, lonely league game in 2021-22. Seasons past would deflate even the most diehard of fans. Tonight, this season's Beavers pushed the past behind them, and won many fans over.
The orange & black tipped off their first ever West Coast Conference campaign with a commanding victory, besting the University of Portland 89-79.
A close first half tore open thanks to hot shooting. Over the duration of the opening period, Portland shooters struck twine at an incredible 62.5% rate, and the road team from the bluffs overlooking the Willamette River led by as much as ten, 36-26. But the Beavers came back with a fury.
With just over 5 minutes left in the first half, Oregon State R-Soph guard Liutauras Lelevicius nailed a three pointer which slashed the margin to 3. Then a second-chance layup by Lelevicius shaved the deficit to 1, 39-38. A Michael Rataj three-pointer with just over ninety seconds remaining secured Oregon State's first lead of the night. Lelevicius followed up with another triple.
The halftime buzzer silenced the Beavers 15-0 run, and they now led 46-39. In the opening period, Oregon State shot 67.9% from the field (19-28). Rataj outshined all scorers with18 points on an unbelievable 8-of-8 shots, and Salem's pride Nate Kingz continued his breakout campaign with an impressive 13 plus-minus rating, thanks to an offensive rebound, block, and two steals.
Just 7 seconds into the second half, Parsa Fallah lifted the Beavers lead to 9. Another Rataj three-pointer launched the lead into double digits, Oregon State on top 54-42.
Both sides battled back and forth. At the under-12 timeout, the Beavers led 60-52. The Pilots efforts were bolstered by 5-5 free throw shooting at that point. The under-8 timeout saw Portland claw back, trailing Oregon State 66-62. That's when Parsa Fallah shut the door. The orange & black's star big man drew an old-fashioned three-pointer with a layup through contact, plus an and-1 free throw. After an offensive rebound, another Fallah lay-up pushed the Beavers advantage back to 9.
From there, the Beavers surged ahead further. The lead grew as high as 15 with just over 3 minutes remaining. Thankfully for the home fans, Pilot shooting couldn't reach their first half heights, and the Beaver defense held firm. At the final buzzer, Oregon State led 89-79.
Michael Rataj earned a game high 28 points on a professional 12-of-15 shooting. Nate Kingz, Parsa Fallah, and Liutauras Lelevicius each scored 15 points. Isiah Sy notched 14 points thanks to four clutch three-pointers. The traveling Pilots shot 51% from the field, but Wayne Tinkle's Beavers overpowered them with a 61% field goal percentage.
The win lifts Oregon State to 11-3 overall and 1-0 in West Coast Conference play. The Beavers next game is Thursday January 2nd at Loyola Marymount. Coverage will stream on ESPN+.
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