Arizona game tomorrow night

The Arizona game is coming up and for the first time all season I think I'm excited about a home game. After that impressive win over Cal, I'm really wondering what Beavers team will show up. We do play well at home so that is a plus.

Greg over at the OregonLive.com Beavers Blog also points out that the Beavers have done relatively well against the Wildcats in recent seasons.

OregonLive.com: Beavers Weblog

Ok by quite a bit I mean they have won at home three times in the last seven seasons, their only three wins against Arizona in the last 15 years. For some reason though the beavs always seem to play well against Arizona, and they are 4-0 at home so far this season.

Probably the biggest difference between years past and now is that before the Arizona game could make our season. Now, it's another game we have to win to get to post-season.

I must say that I like the new Behind the Beavers Beat blog that's going on over at OregonLive. They have some really good posts most of the time. Now if they could just get their RSS feed fixed...

Behind the Beavers Beat

Here are some shooting numbers that are worth considering as the Beavers prepare to face the Arizona Wildcats on Thursday at Gill.

Oregon State's field-goal shooting percentage in first three Pac-10 games: 51.0 percent (75 of 147).

OSU's three-point shooting percentage in first three Pac-10 games: 42.5 percent (17 of 40).

OSU's free-throw percentage over same stretch: 70.0 percent (35 of 50).

OK, the free-throw shooting need work, but shooting numbers are impressive, especially considering all three games were played on the road.

[...]

Before the Cal game, when Coach Jay John talked about the Bears' height and their shot-blocking ability, it sounded as if we might see the Beavers resorted to a bunch of three-point shots, but that's not what happened. The Beavers worked their three-man weave along the top of the three-point arc, pulled the Cal big men out from under the basket, and created open shots from a variety of spots, including some uncontested lay-ups.

The Beavers made 7 of 11 three-pointers, but they also had a 22-20 edge in points in the paint.

If the Beavers can continue to shoot over 50% and play any kind of defense at all, they should get back to the NIT at the very least, IMO.

One thing going against the Beavers in the return of Jawann McClellan to the Wildcats. He's their best outside shooter and could throw a few daggers into the Beavers upset chances. The good news is that it's his first game back and he may not be completely in sync yet.

Corvallis Gazette-Times - Beavers’ task gets bigger

McClellan averaged 5.8 points and 3.0 rebounds a game last season, making 24 of 61 3-point shots (39.4 percent). The Wildcats (10-4, 3-1) have missed his steady outside shot since Salim Stoudamire moved on to the NBA.

“Now that we’ll have McClellan back, he’s going to be a huge contributor for us,” Arizona coach Lute Olson said. “He’s our best perimeter shooter as far as consistency is concerned. He’ll be one of our top two rebounders because he’s aggressive to the ball.”

Well, the Beavers will need all the help they can get. The crowd needs to be loud early and often. Go Beavs!