Sacramento State defeats Oregon State 65-63
Associated Press
11/21/09 8:45 PM EST
CORVALLIS, ORE. — Sacramento State led by 22 points at halftime and withstood a furious rally to defeat Oregon State 65-63 on Saturday.
"I just think it was mental and physical toughness that allowed us to persevere," Sacramento State coach Brian Katz said.
Sultan Toles-Bey led Sacramento State with 17 points and six rebounds. Justin Eller scored 12 points off the bench and Michael Selling had 10 rebounds for the Hornets (3-2), who surpassed their win total from last season, when the team went 2-27.
Seth Tarver had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Beavers (1-3) and Calvin Haynes added 11 points.
Joe Burton put the Beavers ahead 60-58 after a bucket with 2:41 remaining.
Toles-Bey responded with a layup. After the Beavers missed a shot, Toles-Bey was fouled and made both free throws to put the Hornets ahead for good with 1:34 left.
The Beavers had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds, but Haynes missed a short jumper, and Lathen Wallace couldn't get up a shot.
It was Sacramento State's first win against Oregon State in six tries. The Hornets are 2-30 all-time against Pac-10 opponents.
Katz downplayed the significance of the victory.
"Every game is a big game to us," Katz said. "We have two goals: to get better every day in practice and win the next game. This just happened to be the next game."
Sacramento State led 44-22 at halftime after making 9 of 15 3-point attempts.
"The team was just playing defense, playing defense really well, and our offense was just flowing," Toles-Bey said.
In the second half, Oregon State turned up the defensive pressure, and the Hornets tried to spread the floor on many possessions to protect the lead.
"I haven't seen pressure like that in a long time," Katz said. "A lot of teams would have folded up and gone home, and they didn't do that."
OSU fans came into the year with high hopes, given the team's four returning starters and freshmen from a highly-ranked recruiting class.
Last year, the Beavers finished 18-18 and won the College Basketball Invitational postseason tournament.
