Oregon State fans were hoping for a miracle. Perhaps Kevin Mouton could lead the Beavers to a Pac-10 victory in his first game at the helm.
40 minutes later, we find out that's not the case.
Terrible passes, errant shots, forced shots, turnovers, and more missed shots plagued the Beavers. A late first half surge (15-2) pulled the Beavers to within two at halftime, but then a 17-2 USC run after in the beginning of the second half depleted every ounce of helium out of the Beavers balloon.
The Beavs were outscored 19-41 in the second half.
These numbers tell the whole story: 18-for-65 from the field, 4-for-14 from the line, and 4-14 from behind the arc.
That equates to 47 missed field goals, and ten missed free throws.
So obviously, Bobby D's during season move isn't paying off yet. I don't think it was expected to, but how/who do/can you coach a group of guys like this? They're obviously frustrated, and they show it on the court. For example, Marcel Jones was 1-for-11 from the floor. That's 9.1%. How many of those shots were forced? A lot. Was he visible frustrated? Uh, yeah. Most of the guys were.
There were bright spots, however. Lathen Wallace led the Beavers with 11 points. Sean Carter played hard, as did Lathen Wallace. The effort is still there, I believe. These guys want to win. But they can't. Take a look for yourself:
The Beavers next opponent is Kevin Love and UCLA. They'll come into Gill at 17-2 and as the #8 team in the nation. They probably should be higher than that, but, ya know. Upsets happen, and the Bruins were beat by USC last Saturday. Their only other loss of the season came by two points to Texas.
GO BEAVERS!
--JB--