Jan. 6, 2009

Complete Oregon State Notes

Oregon State (9-3, 0-2)
vs. Arizona State (8-6, 0-2)

January 8, 2009
7 p.m. PT
Corvallis, Ore.
Gill Coliseum (10,400)

Radio Broadcast: KLOO 1340-AM, KKAD 1550-AM, osubeavers.com
Play-By-Play: Todd Mansfield

The Game
Oregon State returns to legendary Gill Coliseum to square off against Arizona State. The game starts at 7 p.m. PT on Thursday.

The matchup is the Beavers' first Pacific-10 Conference home game after opening league play last weekend in Los Angeles.

Media
The game will be carried live on KLOO 1340-AM in the Corvallis area and KKAD 1550-AM in Portland. Fans can also catch the game live on Beaver Nation Online (osubeavers.com). Because of technical difficulties with BNO, links on osubeavers.com will go straight to a free broadcast hosted by Yahoo!

Todd Mansfield will be behind the mic doing the play-by-play.

Last Game
Talisa Rhea led Oregon State with 17 points and Alex Mitchell contributed with 14 but the Beavers lost to USC, 78-54, on Sunday in Los Angeles.

Both Rhea and Mitchell were 5-for-10 from the field. Rhea also knocked down two three-pointers and five free throws for her seventh double-digit scoring effort of the season.

Mitchell, meanwhile, posted her ninth double-digit game of the season.

On The Horizon
Oregon State stays at home for a Saturday night tilt with Arizona. That game, also at legendary Gill Coliseum, starts at 7 p.m.

After facing off against the Wildcats, Oregon State hits the road to face Washington State Jan. 15 and then Washington on Jan. 17.

Scouting Arizona State
Arizona State takes an 8-6 record on the year into Thursday night's game, but the Sun Devils are 0-2 in Pac-10 play after getting swept at home by Stanford and California.

That sweep, however, came by just four points as the Cardinal won by three and California by one. The two losses sent Arizona State to a three-game losing streak.

Briann January is the team's leading scorer at 13.4 points per game, and is followed closely by Dymond Simon, who is at 13. Sybil Dosty leads Arizona State in rebounding with 8.0 rebounds per game. Overall, ASU out-rebounds its opponents by 7.4 per game.

Arizona State Series
Arizona State holds a 28-19 advantage in the series, but Oregon State is 12-11 in games played on its home turf. The Sun Devils carry an 11-game win streak into Thursday's contest.

Last Game vs. ASU - Jan. 31, 2008
Talisa Rhea had 14 points and three rebounds while Tiffany Ducker had six points to go with five rebounds, but the Oregon State women's basketball team fell to Arizona State, 66-42, Thursday night at Wells Fargo Arena.

Rhea led all Oregon State players (10-11 overall, 3-7 Pacific-10 Conference) with 14 points on 6-of-14 shooting while Mercedes Fox-Griffin, Ashley Allen, and Ducker all recorded six points apiece. Julie Futch was also active on the boards with five to tie her for the team lead. Four Beavers were tied with two assists a piece as the team collected nine assists as a whole.

Alex Mitchell led OSU with two steals.

Oregon State shot 44.2 percent from the field, connecting on 19-of-43 baskets. Rhea connected on one three-pointer while Oregon State was 3-for-4 from the free-throw line.

As a team, the Beavers recorded four blocks to Arizona State's two. Oregon State also narrowly lost the rebounding battle by a 27 to 22 count.

Game 12 Recap - Jan. 4
Talisa Rhea scored 17 points and Alex Mitchell finished with 14 but the Oregon State women's basketball team lost to USC, 78-54, at the Galen Center.

For Mitchell, it was her second straight game in double figures and ninth of the year with 10 or more points. Mitchell was 5-for-10 from the field and finished with four rebounds while making all four of her free throw attempts.

Rhea, meanwhile, hit the double-digit mark for the seventh time this season. She was also 5-for-10 from the field and knocked down two three-pointers. She also was 5-for-6 from the charity stripe.

She also had four rebounds for the Beavers.

"Fill Gill"
Thursday night's game with Arizona State is a "Fill Gill" night for the Beavers, with every general admission seat going for $1. Fans can purchase tickets at the ticket office at legendary Gill Coliseum, by calling 1-800-GOBEAVS or by visiting osubeavers.com.

Home
Oregon State returns home for its first Pac-10 home games of the season. The game will be the seventh home game of the season for the Beavers, who are 6-0 so far at Gill Coliseum.

A seventh victory at legendary Gill would equal the team's win total from last season, when the Beavers were 7-7.

Lead Important At The Half
Oregon State has outscored its opponents, 436-285, in the first half of games this season and has taken a lead into its locker room in nine of the team's 12 games this season. That is key as the Beavers are 9-0 when doing so.

From The Stripe
Oregon State enters the game with Arizona State as the Pac-10's best shooting team from the free-throw line. The Beavers are shooting at an impressive .750 clip, with Mercedes Fox-Griffin (second), Talisa Rhea (fourth) and Brittney Davis (ninth) all placing in the top 10 individually.

The .750 mark puts Oregon State 22nd nationally. Utah leads the nation at .826.

Other National Rankings
The Beavers figure prominently in other categories, most notably in scoring defense, where their 53.5 points per game allowed is 20th nationally. They are also 20th in scoring margin (+18.0) and 28th in field goal percentage (.445) and rebounding margin (+7.8).