The epitome of brutality. The defining loss of a spiraling program. The start of the unraveling of a team that was destined to be one of the roughest ever under head coach Wayne Tinkle. No matter what way you look at it, Oregon State’s 87-86 overtime loss at the hands of in-state foe Portland on Thursday at Gill Coliseum might stand out as the game that defined the 2020-2021 Beavers.
Sure, guard Ethan Thompson did his regular thing, continuing to pick up the slack in the absence of forward Alfred Hollins (who is planning to depart the program), as the senior guard tallied 31 points on a strong 9-17 day from the field.