Oregon State Men’s Basketball was unable to hold down the Arizona State Sun Devils on Sunday night at Gill Coliseum, losing with a final score of 74-71.

This loss puts the Beavers’ overall record at 17-11 and their Pac-12 record at 9-7.

In the game, OSU center Gligorije Rakocevic and guard Stephen Thompson Jr. played their last game in Gill as they celebrated senior night with the rest of their team. Head Coach Wayne Tinkle said he is proud of the way his seniors have helped build the foundation for Beaver Basketball.

“The character and the integrity from day one has helped us lay the foundation for this program and what we want to stand for,” Tinkle said. “I couldn’t be more proud of them and I know that they’re not going to go out quietly.”

The game started off with OSU getting the ball after the tip off. Junior Tres Tinkle put up the most points in the first half with 11, followed by 10 points from sophomore guard Ethan Thompson.

Throughout the first half, the Beavers and the Sun Devils were neck and neck, but OSU pulled ahead to make the score 37-30 at halftime.

Though the Beavers began the second half with a seven point lead, it wasn’t long into the second half where the Sun Devils tied the score. About eight minutes into the second half, ASU Head Coach Bobby Hurley received a technical foul, granting OSU’s Tres Tinkle two free throws.  

During the last few minutes of the game the Beavers fell short to the Sun Devils. According to Stephen Thompson during the last five minutes of the game the team was unable to connect shots that they needed to make in order to get ahead.

“I think the biggest thing down the stretch is they made shots when they had to and we didn’t,” Stephen Thompson said.

With 52 seconds left in the second half, the Beavers were down 71-67. Coach Tinkle said one of their concerns going into the game was what a physical team Arizona State can be. He added that he was proud how the players adjusted to ASU’s tough rebounding that they saw in their previous meeting.

“I thought our guys really answered the call with that. It shows that these guys are fighters,” Coach Tinkle said.

Rakocevic, who had five rebounds and two points in the game, said in order to move forward and get a win, the team has to work together.

“We still have two games in our season so we all have to get on the same page and do whatever our coaches ask us to do and that will get us where we want to be,” Rakocevic said.

In the end, the Beavers were unable to pull through, resulting in a loss with a final score of 74-71.

“Another tough one, but I am proud of our guys and how they battled,” Coach Tinkle said.

The Beavers next game is in Seattle against the University of Washington March 6 at 7 p.m.