Oregon State
BYU
Beavers Cage Cougars, 71-61
November 30, 2014 | Women's Basketball
LAIE, Hawaii – The No. 19/20 Oregon State women's basketball team passed its biggest test of the season so far, as the Beavers defeated BYU 71-61 on Saturday in Laie, Hawaii to move to 5-0 on the year.
“BYU is a veteran team, and they're a team that expects to win every night,” said Oregon State head coach Scott Rueck. “They came out and threw punches with us at the beginning, but we were able to overcome it. I think this is a great win for us against a very good opponent. This is one of those games that helps a team form its culture. It was a gut-check, and it was a big victory for our program.”
Junior Ruth Hamblin recorded her third double-double of the season, scoring 16 points and pulling down 15 rebounds, one short of a career-high. Hamblin finished the day shooting 8-for-12 from the floor, and tallied a pair of blocks. Fellow junior Jamie Weisner recorded the 11th 20-point game of her career, scoring 20 on 8-for-13 shooting from the floor, 3-for-6 from three-point range. The guard also chipped in defensively, coming up with three steals.
Sophomore Sydney Wiese scored in double-figures for the fourth time this season, knocking down three long-balls on her way to 11 points. She also continued to distribute the ball, dishing out six assists to bring her season total to 30.
Junior Samantha Siegner made a big contribution to the winning effort, playing a season-high 24 minutes as she scored nine points and pulled down five rebounds. She also made her presence felt defensively, helping slow down the BYU (3-3) offense.
Senior Ali Gibson hit a pair of three-pointers to tie her with former teammate Alyssa Martin for third on Oregon State's career list with 150. She finished the game with eight points, three assists and a block.
The Beavers (5-0) shot 43.5 percent in the contest (27-for-62), including 47.6 percent (10-for-21) from downtown.
Morgan Bailey led the way for the Cougars, scoring 26 points.
An early seven-point run allowed BYU to jump out to a 16-9 advantage. The Cougars would lead by as many as eight, but the Beavers used a 14-2 run to retake the lead at 31-27 with three minutes left in the first half. Oregon State would continue on from there, scoring 17 of the period's final 21 points to take a 34-29 advantage into the intermission.
Weisner scored nine points on 4-for-6 shooting in the opening stanza, while Wiese hit a pair of three-pointers to finish the frame with eight points. Hamblin pulled down eight rebounds in the first 20 minutes of action.
The Beavers picked up right where they left off in the second half, as Hamblin and Weisner hit back-to-back layups to help OSU stretch the edge to double-figures at 41-31. Oregon State would jump out to a 13-point lead just over five minutes into the closing frame. The Cougars were able to get it back within seven, but the Beavers bounced back with nine unanswered to extend the edge to 16 with six minutes to play.
Oregon State would not look back from there, as it took the win by double figures.
The Beavers are back in action Thursday at 11 a.m., when they host Idaho for Oregon State's “Beavers Beyond the Classroom” game.
