Beavers can’t complete road sweep

OSU outrebounded 40-30 in defeat at California after beating Stanford on Thursday

A second half comeback and 22 points from Tres Tinkle kept the Beavers in the game against California on Saturday, but the Bears rebounded late for the home victory in Haas Pavilion.

OSU turned a 57-42 deficit with 12:45 left in the game into a 65-59 score in a span of 6:24, and freshman forward Tinkle ended up just one point shy of his career high.

The Beavers never got closer than six points after the run, however, and Cal held on for the 83-71 win. Still, OSU returns to Corvallis with one win on the road trip, beating Stanford on Thursday 62-50 for the Beavers’ first road Pac-12 victory of the season.

OSU is now 15-9 overall and an eighth-place mark in the Pac-12 at 6-7. The next game is a week away in Saturday’s matchup in Eugene for the 346th Civil War. OSU won the first game of the year against now-No. 11 Oregon, 70-57, and the Ducks lost both games this week at Stanford and Cal, but Oregon still tops the conference at 9-4.

Rebounding proved to be a significant catalyst in both road games this week. The Bears led that category 40-30 on Saturday, while the Beavers won the battle of the boards 33-26 over Stanford in Thursday’s win. Other than a 12-for-22 effort from the free throw line for OSU on Saturday—Cal went 22-for-46—OSU matched Cal in most statistical categories: a 40-36 lead in points in the paint, 4-4 in steals, 2-2 in blocks, 31-35 deficit in bench points and 9-12 deficit in turnovers. Cal shot 47.2 percent from the field and OSU at 45.0 percent.

For OSU, freshman guard Derrick Bruce’s 11 points and three 3-pointers were career highs in 14 minutes. Bruce, a reserve guard averaging 7.6 minutes and 2.2 points per Pac-12 game this year, did not play Thursday versus Stanford, his fourth game without any minutes in the last 13 contests.

OSU senior guard Gary Payton II started quiet offensively, getting his first points 12:57 into the game. His first three field goals were all dunks, and then a pair of elbow jumpers got him to 10 points just four minutes into the second half. He did not score again, however, and did not attempt a free throw. Payton II has gone four of his last six games without a made free throw, but has scored in double figures in four straight contests.

Senior forward Olaf Schaftenaar did not score, while freshman guard Stephen Thompson, Jr. had 10 points to join Tinkle, Bruce, and Payton II in double figures.

Cal’s junior guard Jabari Bird, after posting 24 points in the Bears’ Thursday win over Oregon, had 23 points Saturday versus OSU.

OSU never trailed in Thursday’s win over Stanford and never led in Saturday’s loss to Cal.

The Beavers will not have a weekday game this upcoming week, until Saturday for their third consecutive away game. The Civil War in Eugene will tip off at 7 p.m.

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