Corvallis, OR – The Oregon State Beavers hosted the USC Trojans Saturday afternoon at Gill Coliseum with both squads looking to rebound from tough losses this past Thursday. The Trojans came ready to play by putting on a shooting clinic in front 6,526 fans. As a team they shot 64 percent from the field, making 31-of-48 shots to cruise to a 75-55 conference win.
Jonah Mathews of USC got things started in the first half scoring 10 points including nailing two 3-pointers. At one point during a 15-1 run, the Trojans made seven shots in a row. They took a 30-8 lead with six minutes remaining in the half. The senior captain finished the contest with 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting and two steals.
Defensively, the Trojans were not allowing anything easy for the home team. Their size and length forced Oregon State into taking tough shots as the Beavers started the game shooting 2-for-15 from the field. The Beavers fortunes turned around when USC’s freshman big man Onyeka Okongwu received his second foul with six minutes remaining in the half.
With Okongwu on the bench, Tres Tinkle and Kylor Kelley of Oregon State sparked a 20-6 run of their own to trail by only 36-28 at the half. Kelley, a seven foot senior, ended the half by completing a 3-point play on a drive to the hoop. Kelley finished with 10 points (3-of-7 FG) and grabbed four rebounds.
Oregon State’s Tinkle had an off night, making 6-of-16 shots and tallying 16 points. He did move up into second place on the Beavers all-time career scoring list passing Steve Johnson. The senior also pulled down five rebounds and had two assists in the losing effort.
USC put the game out of reach for good after Oregon State closed the gap to six points. They went on a 14-0 scoring run. The Trojans looked to their star Okongwu to finish the contest. The potential first round pick showed off his talents by scoring in transition, in the pick and roll and displaying his spin move to finish at the rim. He recorded 18 points (7-of-8 FG), pulled down eight rebounds and had two blocked shots in 25 minutes of action.
USC’s freshman point guard Ethan Anderson had a solid game as well. He finished with 11 points (5-for-7 FG), six rebounds and six assists. The Trojans moved the ball well by assisting on 20 of the team’s 31 made field goals to come away with a split against the Oregon schools.
Oregon State (12-8, 2-6) will travel to Palo Alto, California to take on Stanford (15-3, 4-1) USC (16-4, 5-2) will next host Utah (12-7, 3-4).
This article was written by Chad Mart, a correspondent and scout for NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.
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