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October 27th: Montana Tech Orediggers | 2017-2018 Record: 12-18
An NAIA school from Butte, Montana, the Diggers will travel to Corvallis to kick off Oregon State’s 2018-2019 campaign with an exhibition clash at Gill Coliseum on October 27th. Montana Tech loses the bulk of their top performers from last year’s 12-win season, but will be mixing in a bevy of junior college transfers and potential impact freshmen as the season progresses.
November 6th: UC-Riverside Highlanders | 2017-2018 Record: 9-22
The Highlanders opening day victory over California last season ended as the highlight of the campaign, as UC-Riverside never really seemed to find their cohesion and purpose throughout the 2017-2018 season. Fast forward to this year and the Highlanders have a new head coach in former TCU assistant, David Patrick, who should re-energize a developing UC-Riverside roster.
November 10th: Wyoming Cowboys | 2017-2018 Record: 20-13
Wyoming has won 43 games in two seasons under head coach Allen Edwards, which included a 75-66 victory for the Cowboys over Oregon State in Corvallis last year and now, the Beavers and Cowboys will meet again in the Beaver State. A return match-up for these two schools will require Oregon State to travel to Laramie in 2019-2020, for what could be the series rubber-match.
November 16th: Old Dominion Monarchs | 2017-2018 Record: 25-7
The first game for Oregon State in the Virgin Islands Paradise Jam will feature the Beavers against an Old Dominion squad, who could be one of the sleeper squads in the tournament field. The Monarchs may have lost three of their starters this off-season but they return their top two leading scorers in B.J. Stith (14.2 PPG) and Ahmad Carver (14.2 PPG) from last year’s 25-win squad.
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November 17th/18th: Kennesaw State/Missouri | Paradise Jam Game #2
Depending on how the Beavers fare against Old Dominion in their opening round game, Oregon State could face two drastically different teams in their second clash in the Virgin Islands. Kennesaw State is still a program in rebuilding under legendary head coach Al Skinner, while Missouri has become a trendy destination for some top prospects headed to the SEC.
November 19th: TBD | Paradise Jam Game #3
Some team from the other side of the Paradise Jam bracket will be the Beavers third opponent in the field, reliant on how everything shakes out along the way. The potential match-ups include three mid-major programs in Eastern Kentucky, Northern Iowa and Penn, the latter of whom is due for a breakout year, as well as last season’s Elite Eight participants, Kansas State.
November 25th: Long Beach State 49ers | 2017-2018 Record: 15-18
Oregon State thwarted off a 49ers upset bid in Corvallis last season, finding a way past Long Beach State despite a prolific second-half from both teams which featured a combined 99 points scored overall. It seems that these two programs have learned each other’s ways over their past few clashes and this time around in the Golden State, things could go down to the wire.
December 1st: Missouri State Bears | 2017-2018 Record: 18-15
The Bears should be aided by an influx of new talent to the program under first-year head coach Dana Ford, headlined by Josh Webster (Texas Tech), the team’s likely day one point guard, and Jared Ridder (Xavier), an oversized sharpshooter. If a small cast of returning veterans can lead this group through the coaching transition, Missouri State can turn some heads in the MVC.
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December 9th: Saint Louis Billikens | 2017-2018 Record: 17-16
An early December road trip to Saint Louis has become a bit more dangerous for the Beavers, due to the fact that the Billikens were surprisingly picked first in the A-10 preseason poll. That probably has to do with the fact that head coach Travis Ford returns four of his top six talents to the Gateway, including Javon Bess (13.3 PPG) and Jordan Goodwin (11.5 PPG).
December 15th: Texas A&M Aggies | 2017-2018 Record: 22-13
A ticket that every Oregon State fan should get their hands on if they can, the Beavers are hosting Texas A&M at the Moda Center in Portland this season, as part of the gradually growing Dam City Classic. The Aggies are a potential Top 25 squad and sleeper contenders in the SEC, who will bring some of the stiffest non-conference competition to Oregon State’s slate.
December 17th: Pepperdine Waves | 2017-2018 Record: 6-26
Well, well, well...what a fun one this should be. Not only will Pepperdine bring usual Pac-12 mainstay Lorenzo Romar back to Corvallis in a head coaching role, they also sport a roster filled with one of the country’s most prolific rising sophomores in guard Colbey Ross (14.0 PPG) and freshman Andre Ball, a cousin of the famous “Ball Brothers” (Lonzo, LiAngelo, LaMelo).
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December 21st: Kent State Golden Flashes | 2017-2018 Record: 17-17
The Beavers visited Kent State during the 2017-2018 campaign, only to leave with heartbreak, in the form of a one-point loss at the hands of the Golden Flashes prolific guards. If Kent State’s exhibition thrashing of Robert Morris is any indication of the focus level of this year’s squad, another veteran core could lead Kent State to some stunning victories.
December 29th: Central Connecticut State Blue Devils | 2017-2018 Record: 14-18
The Beavers final non-conference tilt will hopefully end on a high-note against NEC challengers, Central Connecticut State. The Blue Devils are projected as a lower-to-middle of the pack team in their conference, as they enter the third year of the Donyell Marshall (yes, that Donyell Marshall era). Marshall has compiled a 20-41 record during his stay in New Britain.