Utah Begins Pac-12 Tournament With Oregon State In First Round Action

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The Utah Utes basketball team will square off with the Oregon State Beavers for the first time ever in the Pac-12 Basketball Tournament at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The Utes finished their regular season with a 16-14 overall record and 7-11 in Pac-12 play. They are the No. 9 seed in the conference tournament.

Oregon State ended their 2019-20 regular season with a record of 17-13 and a 7-11 mark in conference play. The Beavers are the No. 8 seed in the Pac-12 Tournament.

It’s the first time ever that Utah and Oregon State will face off in the Pac-12 Tournament.

Utah has played in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament 3 times and are 2-1 in those games. Since 2011, Oregon State has appeared in the first round of the conference tournament 7 times and are 3-4 on opening day of the Pac-12 Tournament.

Both teams played each other twice in the regular season and the Utes and Beavers split the series. Utah beat Oregon State 81-69 in the Pac-12 opener in Salt Lake City on January 2. The Beavers returned the favor with a 70-51 victory over the Utes in Corvallis on February 13.

Utah leads the all-time series against Oregon State, 16-12. Since becoming conference foes in 2011, the Utes are 7-7 against the Beavers.

College basketball analyst Casey Jacobsen of FOX Sports and the Pac-12 Network joined the Crimson Corner podcast to preview Utah and Oregon State as well as the entire Pac-12 Tournament.

Utah Getting Experience For Young Players

The Utes have the third youngest team in all of college basketball with 12 newcomers and 11 freshmen. The entire season has been a new experience for Larry Krystkowiak’s team. These first-year players have played against some great teams and have experienced some growing pains. Now that they are about to play in the Pac-12 Tournament, the competitive level significantly increases.

The sophomores leaders on the team took over in Utah’s regular season finale win in overtime against Colorado. Both Gach scored a career-high 28 points including the three free throws with 0.6 seconds remaining to give the Utes the win. Gach was named Pac-12 Player of the Week after that performance. Timmy Allen added 10 points and 8 rebounds in 41 minutes against Colorado. Allen was named second team All-Pac-12.

Junior college transfer Alfonso Plummer dropped 21 points in his first start with the Utes.

Dialed in☎️#GoUtes🏀🔴 #Pac12Hoops pic.twitter.com/mbojXfaJ5r

— Utah Basketball🏀 (@UtahMBB) March 10, 2020

Oregon State’s Dynamic Duo

The Beavers are led by two players in Tres Tinkle and Ethan Thompson. Tinkle is the son of head coach Wayne Tinkle. He recently became the all-time leading scorer in Oregon State history. Tinkle leads the team with 18.4 points and 7 rebounds per game average. Thompson is second on the team in points with 14.9 and leads the Beavers in assists with 4.5 per contest.

In their loss to the Utes in Salt Lake City on January 2, Tinkle had 19 points and 6 rebounds on 6-17 shooting from the field. Thompson added 15 points on 5-10 field goal shooting but was 0-3 from beyond the arc. The Beavers as a team shot 38 percent from the floor, 3-21 for 14 percent from the three-point line and went 14-19 at the foul line.

When the Beavers beat the Utes in Corvallis on February 13, Tinkle struggled with 11 points and 8 boards on 4-11 shooting. Thompson recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 assists. Oregon State shot 47 percent from the field, 38 percent from downtown and was 14-15 at the charity stripe.

🛬 Vegas#Pac12Hoops #GoBeavs pic.twitter.com/FjOxLGtdzX

— Oregon State Hoops (@BeaverMBB) March 10, 2020

The Utes and Beavers will tip-off the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas on Wednesday with the game starting at 1 p.m. MT. The clash will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Network. The winner will face No. 1 seed Oregon on Thursday at 1 p.m.

The Crimson Corner podcast is the one-stop for all things University of Utah Athletics hosted by Utah insider Trevor Allen. Ute fans will find interviews with current players, coaches, and staff alongside expert analysis of every game, story and angle coming out of the University of Utah.

You can download and listen to the podcast, here.