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Crisis Averted: Oregon State Will Not Finish As Worst Team In School History

With Sunday night’s win over Utah, the Beavers have avoided finishing as the worst team in the 116-year history of the Oregon State basketball program.

By The_Coach
NCAA Basketball: Oregon State at Utah Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

It’s probably not the accolade that head coach Wayne Tinkle and company ever thought they’d hope to be avoid at the end of the season, but it gradually became the place in history they simply had to avoid to salvage anything from what has been a whirlwind 2016-2017 season. Simply put, with Oregon State’s win on Sunday night over Utah, the Beavers will avoid finishing as the worst team in the 116-year history of the Oregon State basketball program.

Worst Seasons In Oregon State Basketball History

  1. 1995-96: 4-23 (.148) | Head Coach: Eddie Payne
  2. 2016-17: 5-23 (.179) | Head Coach: Wayne Tinkle*
  3. 1918-19: 3-13 (.188) | Head Coach: H.W. Hargiss
  4. 2007-08: 6-25 (.194) | Head Coach: Jay John / Kevin Mouton
  5. 1993-94: 6-21 (.222) | Head Coach: Jim Anderson

[*If OSU loses their next four games (three remains regular season contests and one in the Pac-12 Tournament, their record would be 5-27 overall (.156)]

Even if Oregon State fails to find another victory anywhere down the line this campaign, the Beavers (at worst) would fall to 5-27 overall (.156%), which would still place them statistically above head coach Eddie Payne’s 4-23 outfit during the 1995-1996 campaign. The victory over Utah also broke the team’s fourteen game losing skid, which dated back to the start of this season’s conference play schedule, while also securing that this year’s squad will avoid joining the 2007-2008 Oregon State version of the Beavers, as the conference’s only team to end their league slate without a win.

Going forward, it’ll be interesting to see if this Beavers group can keep the good times rolling, as they head to Stanford on Wednesday night, in what is expected to be a brutal Pac-12 road contest. The Cardinal are coming off a surprise victory over rival California on Friday night, after losing five of their six previous games. Stanford is currently 13-13 (5-9) on the season and holds a 4-3 record in home Pac-12 contests this season.