Beavers improve to 2-0 with a win over Idaho State

The No. 24 ranked  Oregon State women’s basketball team surged in the second half to beat Idaho State 61-38.

After trailing by five points at the end of the first quarter, the Beavers (2-0) quickly adjusted to the Bengals (0-2) defense and shut down their offense then proceeded to outscore them 50-22 throughout the rest of the game.

“They try to take away the shots you want and make you take shots over them,” said head coach Scott Rueck. “They did that to us in the first half.”

Offensively the Beavers were lead by senior guard Sydney Wiese who finished with 13 points, but close behind were freshman guard Kat Tudor who had 12 points on 4-5 from behind the arc, and junior center Marie Gulich who finished with 11. The Beavers had eight players score in the game, while the Bengals only had six.

“In the second half we got into a rhythm,” said Gulich. “The offense started to flow after that.”

Idaho State outrebounded Oregon State especially during the first half, but one standout on the glass for the Beavers was freshman guard Mikayla Pivec. Pivec led the team in rebounds from the guard position as she finished the night with seven. Pivec also finished the game with 6 points going 2-6 from the field.

“We talked in recruiting about Mik (Pivec) rivaling Jamie (Weisner) in rebounding,” said Rueck.

On the defensive side of the ball the Beavers shined as they held Idaho State to only 27.1 percent on field goals, after allowing 50 percent in the first quarter. They also did so without committing shooting fouls as the Bengals only shot three free throws throughout the game. Wiese topped her previous personal record of five steals by leading the team with six against the Bengals, and Gulich led the team in blocks with five.

“We were in control defensively the entire night,” said Rueck.

Tudor and Pivec stood out again as they pushed the team’s energy after the slow first quarter. Wiese said Tudor “came ready to shoot” as she provided momentum swinging three point shots in the game and Pivec had the fourth most minutes in the game and had another huge night on the glass.

“I felt a shift in the second quarter,” said Wiese. “I thought (Pivec) and (Tudor) brought good energy on both sides of the floor.”

Rueck was happy with his team’s performance and how they handled adversity in the first half so early in the season. He said it was “good for us” to see a good defense early in the season.

“I was proud of our effort tonight,” said Rueck.