Oregon State Beavers
Pac-12 (26-4, 16-2)
Oregon State has continued its rise up into one of the top ten programs in the nation this season. That is in large part due to a very balanced offensive attack and relentless defense that could play with anyone in the nation on a given night. The fans have also bought in, as the crowds at Gill Coliseum have continued to grow and create an excellent home court advantage for the Beavers.
Big Wins: 12/16 at North Carolina (70-55), 1/25 at Arizona State (68-57), 2/28 California (73-55)
Bad Losses: 12/28 at Tennessee (63-74), 2/6 at Washington (67-76), 2/26 Stanford (58-69)
Coach: Scott Rueck
Why They Can Surprise:
Oregon State will have the advantage of being at home for the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament and that should set them nicely to get to the Sweet 16. The ability to have great balance offensively from the perimeter and in the post gives the Beavers a great shot against anyone on any given day. The backcourt of Sydney Wiese, Ali Gibson and Jamie Weisner is one of the best in the country and can torch a defense from behind the three-point line. Down in the post, Ruth Hamblin is relentless offensively and does a nice job of controlling things on the boards. She teams up with forward Deven Hunter to lead a very stout Oregon State defensive team. They also will be tournament tested after giving South Carolina a nice battle in the second round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament in Seattle.
Why They Can Disappoint:
If a team can get attack the post and get Hamblin in foul trouble, it will then force the Beavers to play more honest defensively and create more comfortable open looks offensively. In the loss to Tennessee, Lady Vols post player Isabelle Harrison scored 20 points and collected 12 rebounds and it was almost impossible to stop her at times. Another way Oregon State could disappoint would be if they ran into a backcourt that was just in a zone shooting the basketball like what happened in the Washington loss when Kelsey Plum and Jasmine Davis combined for 38 points. Those are the two most likely scenarios that could cause the Beavers to fall in the NCAA Tournament.
Probable Starters:
Sydney Wiese, Sophomore, Guard, 12.5 ppg, 5.6 apg
Jamie Weisner, Junior, Guard, 13.7 ppg, 2.0 apg, 6.3 rpg
Ali Gibson, Senior, Guard, 8.4 ppg, 2.5 apg
Deven Hunter, Junior, Forward, 8.2 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.9 apg
Ruth Hamblin, Junior, Center, 12.9 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 3.8 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Gabriella Hanson, Sophomore, Guard, 7.0 ppg, 1.3 apg
Marie Gulich, Freshman, Center, 3.3 ppg, 2.9 rpg
Samantha Siegner, Junior, Forward, 3.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 73.4 (32nd in nation, 2nd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 56.0 (26, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.0 (9, 1)
Field-Goal Defense: 34.1 (4, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.4 (9, 1)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 38.2 (7, 1)
Free-Throw Percentage: 67.7 (205, 7)
Rebound Margin: 9.4 (13, 1)
Assists Per Game: 19.0 (5, 1)
Turnovers Per Game: 14.2 (58, 6)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2014 NCAA First Round win over Middle Tennessee State
2014 NCAA Second Round loss to South Carolina
2012 NIT First Round win over UC Davis
2012 NIT Second Round win over Saint Mary's
2012 NIT Third Round loss to Washington
2009 NIT Second Round win over Portland State
2009 NIT Third Round loss to New Mexico
2006 NIT Opening Round win over Santa Clara
2006 NIT First Round loss to Wyoming
2004 NIT First Round win over Gonzaga
2004 NIT Second Round win over Nebraska
2004 NIT Quarterfinal loss to Creighton
2003 NIT First Round win over UNLV
2003 NIT Second Round loss to Fresno State
2002 NIT First Round win over Hawaii
2002 NIT Second Round loss to Oregon
*all team stats through 3/5
See All Women’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
