The Oregon State men’s basketball team suffered a 78-56 blowout defeat at the hands of the red-hot University of Oregon Ducks on Saturday night in Eugene, Ore.

The rivalry match up started out well for the Beavers, who led by as many as four points in the opening minutes.  But after taking a 17-16 lead with 9:15 to play in the first half, it was all downhill from there.

After picking up his second foul of the game with 11 minutes remaining in the first half, head men’s basketball coach Wayne Tinkle had no choice but to sit Oregon State senior forward Warithe Alatishe until halftime. During that span of game time, the Oregon Ducks went on a 31-13 run and took a commanding 44-25 lead going into the break.

Oregon State showed dim signs of life at certain points in the second half, cutting the lead to 57-41 off a Oregon State junior guard Jarod Lucas three with 12:23 left to play.  The Beavers were never able to get it any closer, however, and the Ducks never let their arch rivals back into the game.

The Beaver offense never found much rhythm in a game where they shot just 30% from the field and 28% from beyond the arc.  On the other side of the court, the Ducks were highly efficient, shooting 55% from the field.  Oregon also imposed their will on the boards, grabbing 17 offensive rebounds compared to the Beavers’ 10.

Off the bench and for the Ducks, senior forward Eric Williams Jr. had a phenomenal game for the home team, going 6-7 from the field and finishing with 14 points in 26 minutes of action. Senior guard Jacob Young led Oregon scorers with 17 points, and senior guard Will Richardson added 15, shooting 3-5 from beyond the arc.

Senior center Roman Silva was a bright spot for the Beavers, leading the team with 17 points and also grabbing six rebounds.  Junior guard Jarod Lucas finished second on the squad with 12 points, and junior guard Dexter Akanno put up 10 to round out the Beavers’ double-digit scorers.

Entering the rivalry match up on Saturday night, Oregon State knew that they faced a tough task ahead of them.  After coming off a nine day break, the Beavers stared down an Oregon team who had recently swept the LA schools on the road, both of whom were ranked in the top ten.

With the loss Oregon State drops to 3-15 on the season and 1-7 in PAC 12 play.  Up next the Beavers will head on the rocky mountain road trip to face the University of Utah Utes on Thursday and the University of Colorado Buffaloes on Saturday.