Oregon State Beavers
2021-22 record: 3-28, 1-19 in the Pac-12
Head coach: Wayne Tinkle
Tenure at Oregon State: Ninth season
Career coaching record: 274-228
Home court: Gill Coliseum
Starters: G Dexter Akanno, G Christian Wright, F Tyler Bilodeau, F Glenn Taylor Jr., C Chol Marial
Bench: G Donovan Grant, F Jayden Stevens, C KC Ibekwe
Overview: After a miraculous run to the Elite Eight of the 2021 NCAA tournament as a No. 12-seed, the fall from grace these Beavers have endured in the year since is frankly astounding. Head coach Wayne Tinkle has rightfully received props for the work he has done to turn the Corvallis, Ore., program from a bottom-dweller in the stacked Pac-12 to a respectable member of its peloton, but Oregon State enters 2022-23 on the lowest low of Tinkle’s tenure.
In 2021-22, the Beavers won three games—yikes.
Moreover, those wins came against a pair of minnows in Portland State and Nicholls and Utah, a regular neighbor of Oregon State’s in the Pac-12 table. It has been a while since the Beaver State truly was competitive, as local rival Oregon has stamped its webbed feet all over Oregon State in recent years. Even in 2020-21, when the Beavers made the Elite Eight and ultimately had the last laugh on the Ducks, Oregon won the conference, edging out the likes of Arizona, an Evan Mobley-led USC and eventual Final Four participant UCLA.
This year, Oregon State has almost completely overhauled that flailing group—much of which helped orchestrate its 2021 run—in favor of a sprawling new class. The clearest standouts are Georgia transfer guard Christian Wright, who featured in every game for the Bulldogs last season and logged a combined 33 points against then-No. 18 Memphis and then-No. 2 Auburn. Dexter Akanno returns for his junior year as does Glenn Taylor Jr. for his sophomore year, while Tyler Bilodeau hopes to anchor the Beaver offense after an impressive career with Kamiakin High School in Kennewick, Wash.
Oregon State is a bit of an unknown entity this year—an Elite Eight appearance followed by a three-win season will do that. If Tinkle works his magic and gets this group playing, however, there is potential for a few surprises. It’s called March Madness for a reason.
Team ceiling: The pieces fall in the right places, the squad overhaul redefines the team’s ethos and the Beavers swim their way back to the middle of the Pac-12. A run in March feels optimistic, as does an NCAA tournament appearance, but you never know.
Team floor: 2021-22 happens again.
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Andrew Long is a Trinity junior and sports editor of The Chronicle's 119th volume.