Beavers focusing on game with Bears

That’s the entire focus of the Oregon State men’s basketball team this week heading into the Pacific-10 Conference Tournament in the Los Angeles Staples Center.

A potential meeting with fourth-ranked UCLA looms if there’s a first-round win, but it’s one step at a time for OSU.

The next loss puts the finishing touches on a challenging season as the ninth-seeded Beavers begin the postseason against No. 8 California at 6:12 p.m. on Wednesday.

“I’m very excited for the Pac-10 Tournament,” forward Jack McGillis said. “It’s a whole new season. We are just focusing on beating Cal. You can’t rule out our history playing Cal. We’ve been close and it gives us more confidence playing them.”

The Golden Bears won both meetings this season by a combined seven points and needed overtime to slip by the Beavers in the last game.

Since the first-round contest is evenly matched, OSU takes in hope and a desire to end a two-game losing streak.

Players say they can win the tournament, which means a four-game win streak. That would give OSU an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.

Chances are slim, but they wouldn’t say, or think, anything else.

“The main thing is we have to make sure everyone is on the same page,” guard Wesley Washington said. “Some people are not as confident as they should be. I’m not just talking about players. I’m talking fans, too. They have to buy into to what we are doing, and we’ll make it happen. Everybody keeps talking about next year this, and next year that. We are going to into this game to win. Not just one, but all the games up and coming.”

For this week to be successful — in reality — all the Beavers must do is win the first game and not be embarrassed by UCLA on Thursday.

“The Cal game — I’m not going to make a big deal of it — but if we are able to beat Cal, we have a group of kids who since the L.A. trip (four weeks ago) feel they have played well,” coach Jay John said. “If they can go to a neutral site and beat a team that beat them twice, that’s something tangible in closing the season.”

The Beavers have played better in the second half of the Pac-10 season, except in blowout losses against Oregon and UCLA. They were overmatched from the start of the conference season, but made many contests interesting.

John can break down stats and periods of time in games where there’s improvement. However, results speak louder.

“If we don’t beat Cal, it’s not a backbreaker for the young guys,” John said. “They still see they fought and battled against a number of teams. They all know they are going to get better. They are going to work, and buy into working harder and they get better. I can’t always say that about everybody on our team. I can say that about the younger guys. Their makeup is different.”

Winning a second game is more difficult because the Beavers would play the top seed, a UCLA team with national title aspirations. The Bruins beat them by 47 points in their last meeting.

The tournament isn’t setup for the underdog even with the momentum of a first-round win. Once the Beavers step off the court Wednesday, they have less than 19 hours before tipoff against a rested juggernaut.

So that’s why the first game is so important for this team at its stage of development.

“It’s an obvious demonstration of continued improvement,” John said of a victory. “I think that’s already been there. We don’t need to have that to validate it. But to do it, it’s something for the kids. We don’t have to invent a good feeling. We are playing the next day.”

PAC-10 TOURNAMENT

At Los Angeles Staples Center

Wednesday

• California vs. Oregon State, 6:12 p.m. (FSN)

• Washington vs. Arizona State, 8:42 p.m. (FSN)

Thursday

• Oregon vs. Arizona, 12:20 p.m. (FSN)

• Cal-OSU winner vs. UCLA, 2:50 p.m. (FSN)

• USC vs. Stanford, 6:20 p.m. (FSN)

• Washington-ASU winner vs. Washington State, 8:50 p.m. (FSN)

Friday

• Semifinal 1, 6:20 p.m. (FSN)

• Semifinal 2, 8:50 p.m., (FSN)

Saturday

• Championship game, 3 p.m. (CBS)

 

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