via Oregon State Athletic Communications
CORVALLIS – Six Beavers scored in double-figures as the Oregon State men’s basketball team defeated Pepperdine 83-73 Saturday evening at Gill Coliseum.
Josiah Lake II led the Beavers with 18 points, eight assists and five rebounds. Olavi Suutela had 11 points and 11 rebounds for his first career double-double, and Johan Munch nearly matched him, finishing with 10 points and 12 boards. It marked the first time two Beavers have had double-doubles in the same game since Tres Tinkle and Ethan Thompson did so in the 2018-19 season.
Keziah Ekissi came up with 15 points off the bench, going 5-for-7 from the floor and 4-for-6 from beyond the arc. Jorge Diaz Graham finished with 13 points and eight rebounds, while Isaiah Sy tallied 12 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
As a team, the Beavers shot 45 percent from the floor and out-rebounded the Waves 49-27. Oregon State set a season-high with 19 offensive rebounds.
Pepperdine’s Aaron Clark led all scorers with 32 points on 10-for-22 shooting.
With the win, OSU moves to 15-14 on the season and 8-8 in WCC play, with two games remaining in the regular season.
The two sides traded punches early on, with the Beavers taking an 11-8 advantage into the contest’s first media timeout. Oregon State opened up a seven-point lead at 15-8, but eight-straight Wave points put Pepperdine in front.
The Beaver offense went cold in the latter phases of the first half, as the Waves headed to the locker room in front 42-36.
Oregon State used a 9-0 run early in the second half to retake the lead. The teams went back-and-forth from there. The two sides were level at 62 at the under-eight media timeout. Six unanswered points put the Beavers up by seven with three minutes to play.
The Waves were able to get within four from there, but Oregon State extended the advantage in the final two minutes to claim the 10-point victory.
The Beavers will play their final home game of the regular season on Wednesday when San Diego visits Gill Coliseum.
