2006 Oregon State Beavers Basketball Preview

2006 Oregon State Beavers Basketball Predictions

It has been 16 years since the Oregon State Beavers (13- 18 overall and 5- 13 PAC-10) have been to the NCAA Tournament. Last year they finished ninth in their conference and didn’t see any post-season action. This young team will probably fare the same in 2006- 07.

The backcourt is filled with players that desperately need minutes. The most experienced guards are Wesley Washington (4.2 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 1.4 APG, 42.7 FG%, 68.9 FT%) and Angelo Tsagarakis (PPG, RPG, APG, FG%, FT%), and yet neither has done enough to evaluate their true potential. Redshirted point guard Josh Tarver and frosh 2- guard Seth Tarver will see some court time.

The trio of Sasa Cuic (13.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 0.9 APG, 49.0 FG%, 70.7 FT%), Kyle Jeffers (6.3 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 0.5 APG, 46.4 FG%, 61.3 FT%) and Marcel Jones (PPG, RPG, APG, FG%, FT%) have the most to offer in terms of minutes played. Cuic was instrumental in the homestretch and during the season led the PAC-10 in 3-point conversions (49%), while Jeffers became more physical. Marcel Jones really improved his production as a sophomore.

Jay John (55- 64 in 4 years) has been the head coach of only one basketball program—Oregon State’s. In 2004- 05, his Beavers notched their first winning season in 15 years, going 17- 15 and went to the NIT. But last season, after signing a 5-year contract extension, John’s team was 13- 18. This season, the coach has less to work with, having lost four important players, including two top scorers. He must show that this team is on the right track.

This young club has its work cut out for it. It will be difficult for the Beavers to break even this year, forget about posting a positive-win season. But if some of the juniors can mature and the younger talent step up a bit, Oregon State could prove to be a dark horse. However, for a team that was dead last or ninth in most offensive categories, it’s unlikely this team will do better than an eighth place finish.

If you want more info on the 2006 Oregon State Beavers College basketball team check out the NCAA's official basketball team page of the program or check out some rival previews from Maddux Sports of schools like the Arizona State Sun Devils and UCLA Bruins.