For the Beavers, how Sweet (Sixteen) it is
Talia von Oelhoffen contributed 19 points and eight assists as Oregon State downed Nebraska 61-51 in NCAA Tournament second-round action Sunday at Gill Coliseum (courtesy Dominic Cusimano)
CORVALLIS — That trip to Albany, N.Y.? It’s happening now.
Oregon State is headed to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2019 and for the fourth time in Coach Scott Rueck’s run with the Beavers.
“I’ve had the time of my life this year,” Rueck said Sunday after the Beavers’ 61-51 second-round NCAA Tournament victory over Nebraska at Gill Coliseum. “To move on to the ’16,’ it’s what everybody hopes to be a part of. To do it the way this group does it — to capture an entire fan base like they have — I’m excited for everyone.”
Oregon State (26-7) faces the winner of Monday’s 11 a.m. PST Mississippi-Notre Dame matchup in a Sweet Sixteen game at Albany next weekend.
The Beavers got it done Sunday before a noisy, appreciative crowd of 7,227 with a sensational start and steady, sturdy defense against a Nebraska team that never found its shooting range.
“If you had told us we would hold Oregon State to 61 points, we would have taken it,” Nebraska coach Amy Williams said. “We had a good defensive plan and effort, but they made things difficult for us at the other end. It was not our best offensive showing of the season.”
Nebraska (23-12) shot .313 from the field. The Cornhuskers missed 16 of their first 17 attempts from 3-point range, then made three in a row after the issue had been decided. Two days earlier, in a 73-51 win over Eastern Washington, OSU had held the Eagles to .300 shooting, including 6 for 27 on 3-point tries.
“This group chases so hard on the 3-point line,” Rueck said. “We don’t get tons of steals, but we make it difficult to be comfortable shooting, always. That was evident today.”
A key matchup was at center, Oregon State’s 6-4 sophomore Raegan Beers matched up with Nebraska’s 56-3 junior Alexis Markowski, the latter having totaled 16 points and six rebounds in the Cornhuskers’ 61-59 first-round win over Texas A&M. Beers had a quiet 10 points and six boards and sat the entire fourth quarter after drawing her fourth foul. Markowski never got going, finishing with six points and six rebounds while going 4 for 17 from the field.
“Our defensive game plan came down to, can we guard (Markowski) one-on-one?” Rueck said. “I thought we could slow her. I didn’t know if we could stop her.
“We know what (the Cornhuskers) want to do (on offense). We also know what they don’t want to do, and we try to make them do that the whole time. Our defensive positioning inside was really good all day.”
Talia von Oelhoffen, who scored a game-high 19 points, credited OSU’s scouting report.
“The job our staff does on the scout, preparing us for who we want to take shots and what shots we want to force them into, is big,” the junior guard said. “Running (the Cornhuskers) off the 3-point line was part of the scout. It’s easy to be successful when they do that work for us.”
Oregon State blocked 10 shots. “That made us hesitant to go in the paint and do what we do,” Williams said.
Four of the blocks were by Timea Gardiner, the 6-3 sophomore who came to Oregon State with the reputation of a shooter but is fast adding defense to her repertoire. She divided time with Beers and Kelsey Rees on Markowski and harassed the Nebraska forward into a 1-for-8, two-point performance.
Timea Gardiner had 15 points and seven rebounds, but it was her defensive work that keyed the Beavers’ win over the Cornhuskers (courtesy Dominic Cusimano)
“TG’s growth on the defensive end, not only from her freshman year but from the beginning of this season ’til now, is phenomenal,” von Oelhoffen said. “When she is (defending) one-on-one in the post, I have so much trust in her. I have all the faith in the world that she’s going to get a block or make her miss.”
Gardiner missed the first three months of her freshman season with a leg injury.
“That slowed her progress coming into this year,” Rueck said. “Rebounding and defense were the focal point coming in, and to Timea’s credit, she embraced it with humility. She looked at game (video) and said, ‘Yeah, I have to step up in those areas.’ It was eye-opening for her to learn that those things are necessary. She has become one of our best defenders and has been one of those who sets the tone for us on the boards.”
It wasn’t just Gardiner on defense against Nebraska, of course. The Beavers swarmed.
“They did a lot of ‘over-helping,’ ” Markowski said. “They made a lot of things difficult.”
With fire in their eyes, the Beavers burst to a 19-6 lead in the game’s first five minutes.
“We talked about throwing the first punch,” Markowski said. “Playing from behind, especially on (an opponent’s) home floor, is really difficult. We fought to the end, but that lead was just too big from the jump.”
Oregon State’s offense stagnated; Nebraska wasn’t getting much done on offense, either. OSU led 28-21 at halftime and 35-29 after three quarters.
“It was like two different games,” Rueck said. “The first and fourth quarters seemed great; the middle two seemed weird. But that’s basketball.”
With Beers on the bench, Oregon State started the final period with a flurry. Lily Hansford nailed a 3-pointer. Von Oelhoffen hit one. Then Gardiner followed. Bingo, bango, bongo. Nine straight points and the Beavers were suddenly on top 44-29. The Cornhuskers got no closer than eight points the rest of the way.
The Beavers shot only .407 from the field and made but 10 of 33 attempts from the 3-point line. In the third quarter, they went scoreless over 11 possessions.
“At times, we missed shots,” von Oelhoffen said. “We had a really long drought. With some teams, that can cause you to unravel or feel pressure. But when you are taking care of business on the defensive end, it lets you relax a little bit on offense and knock down shots. You know you are going to get stops. That’s what it takes to win in March — when you have so much trust in your defense.”
Von Oelhoffen had appeared reluctant to shoot against Eastern Washington, going 2 for 8 from the field and finishing with more turnovers (six) than points (five). She came out firing on Sunday, hitting 5 of 11 attempts from beyond the arc while also dishing eight assists.
“I knew they were going to clog the paint and key on Rae,” von Oelhoffen said. “I knew I would have to be aggressive and hit shots. I knew coming in that if I were open, I had to knock down shots.”
Gardiner had eight points on 3-for-3 shooting — 2 for 2 from 3 — in the first half. She missed five in a row to start the third quarter. Gardiner finished with 17 points and seven boards.
“I told her and Lily, ‘Keep shooting,’ ” von Oelhoffen said. “TG can miss 10 shots in a row, and I’m still hitting her on that pop-out every single time. I’m in her face if she doesn’t shoot it. That’s what (Gardiner and Hansford) do. They’re shooters. We have to keep shooting and rely on our defense when the ball’s not going in.”
Said Gardiner: “We pride ourselves on defense. That’s what we do. Coach Scott has held us to a different standard this year than last year. We know how we can defend teams. We’re not done yet.”
Pundits predict a victory for No. 2 seed Notre Dame over No. 7 seed Ole Miss. If so, it would facilitate renewal of a rivalry that has seen Oregon State on the short end, albeit in competitive situations.
Rueck’s teams are 0-4 against the Fighting Irish, losing in December 2015 in South Bend (62-61), in November 2017 in Corvallis (72-67), in November 2018 in Vancouver, B.C. (91-81) and in November 2021 in Daytona Beach, Fla. (64-62). This season, Notre Dame is ranked ninth nationally, Oregon State 12th. The Beavers, a preseason pick to finish 10th in the Pac-12, have seemingly overachieved with a team with no seniors.
“We don’t look young,” Rueck said after Sunday’s win. “We had moments that weren’t pretty today. Give Nebraska credit for that. But we look like a team that’s been there, done that. Only two of our team (von Oelhoffen and Rees) have ever played in (an NCAA Tournament game) before. That’s a credit to the atmosphere they create for each other.”
Williams, whose Cornhuskers beat No. 1 seed Iowa 82-79 on Feb. 11, has respect for the Beavers’ versatility.
“They have power and size inside that can bang you around and be physical,” she said. “They have length where it’s tough to go over the top. And they can mix in speed. Those things in conjunction, it’s hard to get used to (playing against) on both sides of the floor. You’ll get powered in the paint with Beers, and they can play Gardiner at the ‘5.’ That same versatility on the defensive end is disruptive.”
Asked what he would wish for in the Sweet Sixteen contest regardless of opponent, Rueck thought for a moment.
“I’d love to win the boards,” he said. “Defensive field-goal percentage is something I always look at. Today, we had two long, ugly stretches from an offensive standpoint. We were a little unfocused the way we executed. We didn’t handle the lead great. But our defense never stops. When we are making you shoot below your average percentages, we’ll have a shot at winning that game.”
And that’s all Beaver Nation can ask. Their team is playing with house money the rest of the way.
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