Editors Note: The date for the next game has been updated to show the correct day.
40 seconds before the end of the game, and the roar inside Gill Coliseum was deafening.
The stadium trembled, and fans swung their game towels in unison, electrifying the air with anticipation. Jersey-shaped towels spun in the air, accompanying the chorus of yells.
With the score tied and just half a minute left, every dribble junior guard Josiah Lake II took up the court carried incredible weight to it.
The Oregon State Beavers opened their first home game of the season with a bang, as Josiah Lake II’s floater set the tone, as the OSU Men’s Basketball team beat the North Dakota State Bison 67-65 at Gill Coliseum on Monday.
The Beavers played some aggressive offense, pushing the pace while their defense flustered the Bison. But they adjusted quickly, doubling guards Dez White and Lake II, forcing tough shots and turnovers that put a dampener on the Beavs’ momentum.
Marki Strickland emerged as the powerhouse for NDSU, firing efficiently and shooting 4-5 from the field. He also added electrifying moments, getting the crowd into the game with two thunderous dunks that swung the lead in favor of the visitors at halftime, 32-30.
Oregon State coach Wayne Tinkle candidly reflected on the challenge.
“They out-physicaled us at times, but we found a way to win in the end,” Tinkle said. “That’s what early season’s about—figuring out who you are.” He added that while the team looked “a little frantic,” their resilience stayed intact.
The second half saw Oregon State rekindle its aggressive offense once again. Dez White, who was quiet in the first, caught fire. He drained five straight points and found Samar for his second corner three, putting the Beavers back up 45-43.
Despite relentless full-court pressure from the Bison, the Beavers’ big men, Yaak Yaak and Johann Munch, answered with critical plays, including Munch’s shimmying spin to an and-one finish.
The game was a nail-biter, as it saw 12 lead changes. To add, as turnovers mounted late for both teams, tension mounted. North Dakota State knotted it at 61off back-to-back turnovers, but White’s clutch three-pointer swiftly swung the pendulum back.
The crowd at Gill Coliseum ignited again, waving towels and shouting as the score tied up again at 65 with just 20 seconds left.
Then came the defining moment. Lake, threading through traffic and defenders, rose for a left-handed layup with 2.1 seconds remaining, a shot that may have sealed the game. The Beavers’ final defensive stand held firm, extinguishing any hope of a Bison comeback.
“It means everything to me just because I know how hard this group worked during the offseason,” Lake said. “We didn’t play perfectly tonight, but like coach said, we did enough to win.”
Yaak Yaak, experiencing his first game in the electrifying Gill Coliseum atmosphere, echoed the team’s unit.
“The coaches believe in us, and we believe in each other. It’s a really connected group,” Yaak said.
Tinkle praised the defensive intensity, holding the Bison under 40 percent shooting and below 20 percent from three, though he recognized rebounding as an area to tighten up.
“They low-wedge you and push you in the back on rebounds. You’ve got to hold your ground and go get it,” he said.
With a roster containing many new faces, Tinkle knows chemistry will take time, but the “gritty home win is a great step.”
As the echoes of the crowd fade, Oregon State will turn its focus to Friday night’s game, buoyed by a thrilling opener that showcased the “deep potential” in the words of Tinkle that this team has this year.
The next home game this season will be against UIC (The University of Illinois Chicago) on Nov. 7 at 7pm in Gill Coliseum.