Corvallis, OR -The UTSA Roadrunners battled Oregon State for the third time in history with the Beavers prevailing last year 88-78 in Houston. Oregon State defensively closed out the game strong holding the Roadrunners without a field goal for the final 2:37 of the game to secure a 73-61 victory to end their 3-game losing streak. The Beavers’ Ethan Thompson led all scorers with as game-high 22 points (5-13 FG, 3-7 3FG, 9-10 FT). At one stretch closing out the game, he scored nine points in the final seven minutes of play. Thompson is solid in half-court sets and ranks nationally #54 in drawing fouls per forty minutes while shooting 47.6% from on 3s.
The Beavers were clearly outplayed in the first half and led only 6:42 of the game. They really got off to a poor start being down 13-0 (0-9 FG) before 6-3 sophomore guard Jarod Lucas ended the slump with a three-pointer at 14:35. Oregon State came back and tied the game at 30-30 with one-minute remaining before two free throws by Alley Jr. and a layup by freshman guard Jordan Ivy Curry (7 points) gave UTSA a 34-30 halftime lead. The nation’s highest returning scorer (26.8 ppg) 6-0 senior guard Jhivvan Jackson had a miserable shooting game finishing with just 10 points (3-18 FG, 1-10 3FG, 3-6 FT). The quick athletic guard plays very aggressively on both ends of the floor with toughness and energy. He’s very fast with the ball in his hands, and does have an unlimited shooting range.
6-7 junior forward Warith Alatishe who leads the Pac-12 in rebounds (10) and 2nd in blocks came up with a huge one with 4:55 (53-52) remaining in the game as the Roadrunners were making a final push. He finished with 13 points (5-9 FG, 3-4 FT), three assists and three rebounds. Oregon State had a balanced scoring attack with guard Lucas contributed 13 points making 8-9 free throws and grabbing six rebounds while 6-5 senior guard Zach Reichle who is nationally ranked #56 in assist rate had four today in addition to his ten points, six rebounds and poised play in the final minutes of the game.
For the Roadrunners 6-6 combo junior forward Cedrick Alley Jr. (University of Houston transfer) was solid all afternoon on both ends of the floor as he paced the Roadrunners with 14 points (4-6 FG, 1-2 3FG, 5-5 FT), five rebounds and one assist. Oregon State’s scheduled Pac-12 opener vs. USC on December 20th has been postponed due to COVID-19 concerns.
KEY GAME STATS
Free Throw Shooting: OSU 84% (26-31) – UTSA 76% (13-17)
Assists: OSU 15 – UTSA 9
Fast Break Points: OSU 11- UTSA 6
Points in Paint: OSU 24 – UTSA 22
Bench Points: OSU 26 – UTSA 22
Oregon State (3-3) next host Stanford (3-2) on December 31st while the UTSA Roadrunners (2-3) host Our Lady of the Lake (1-1) on December 20th at 1:00 pm.
This article was written by Lorenzo Leaks, a scout and correspondent for NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.
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