Beavers Punch Ticket to Pac-12 Tournament Final

Saturday, March 4

Seattle, WA

6:00 PM

Oregon State

29-3, 16-2

UCLA

23-8, 13-5

UCLA

Oregon State

March 04, 2017 | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score Game Notes

Oregon State beats UCLA 63-53

By: Athletic Communications

SEATTLE, Wash. – The No. 6/6 Oregon State women's basketball team punched its ticket to the Pac-12 Tournament Final for the second-straight year Saturday night, as the Beavers earned a hard-fought 63-53 win over No. 15/15 UCLA at KeyArena in Seattle.

"That was incredible," said Oregon State head coach Scott Rueck. "I've got so much respect for that UCLA program – they are very well coached and really hard to play against. To beat that team takes a big-time performance, and that's what we got tonight. I'm so proud of the courage it takes to make the plays that we did. Our players came through in a big way, to earn a big win for our program."

The victory is the Beavers' seventh over a ranked opponent this season.

Senior Sydney Wiese again led the Beavers, going for 19 points on 7-for-13 shooting. Junior Marie Gulich tallied a double-double with 10 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. The center also made a big block in the closing minutes to help seal the win.

Freshman Mikayla Pivec continued her strong tournament, scoring 14 points and pulling down eight rebounds. Senior Gabriella Hanson recorded 12 points, four rebounds and three assists.

Oregon State shot 45.1 percent in the game, including 60 percent in the fourth quarter, and held UCLA to 30.7 percent shooting in the contest. The Beavers also held a dominant 50-31 advantage in rebounds.

The teams traded punches in the early going. The Beavers would go in front 11-7 on a step-back 3-pointer from Wiese, as she tallied seven points in the opening 10 minutes. Pivec would close out the first quarter with a 3-point play to put Oregon State up 16-11.

UCLA battled back in the second quarter, going in front just over three minutes into the frame. The Bruins would lead by as many as seven, before taking a 30-27 edge into the break.

The Beavers wasted little time in the third quarter, leveling the score at 32 just two minutes into the second half on a 3-pointer from Hanson. Oregon State would take the lead two minutes later on a pair of free throws from Gulich. The Beavers' defense clamped down from there, as they held the Bruins to eight third-quarter points. OSU took a 44-38 lead into the closing frame.

UCLA was able to narrow the gap to three in the fourth, but Oregon State exploded down the stretch, leading by as many as 13 before taking the win by 10.

Oregon State now advances to the Pac-12 Tournament Final for the second-straight year. That game will be played Sunday at 6 p.m.

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