Oregon State Basketball: 2019-20 season preview for Beavers

Tres Tinkle headlines Oregon State’s deep returning cast

Any conversation about the Beavers’ roster must begin with Tres Tinkle. The do-everything forward led the team in scoring, rebounding, and steals last year on his way to second consecutive All-Pac 12 First Team selection. He also finished second on the team in assists, tallying nearly four per game. Tinkle opted to return to Corvallis for his senior season under his father’s tutelage after initially entering his name into the NBA Draft process.

And while two all-league trophies looks really good on the mantel – and a third is something of a foregone conclusion at this point – Tinkle will have his eyes set on a bigger prize this season. The 6’8” senior has had his name thrown around in early conversations about the Pac-12 Player of the Year race, including grabbing a preseason nod from CBS analyst Jon Rothstein:

But for Tinkle to flourish, he’ll need the pieces around him to excel, too. The main supporting pieces for the Beavers are junior guard Ethan Thompson and senior center Kylor Kelley. The younger Thompson brother narrowly edged out Tinkle and Stevie Thompson for the team lead in assists as a sophomore last year, also finishing third in scoring. He’ll need to step into a much larger offensive role now that his brother – and the 16 points he scored nightly – have left Gill Coliseum.

For his part, Kelley was a revelation for Oregon State last year after the injury to Rakocevic. A junior college product out of Lane Community College in Eugene, Kelley destroyed OSU’s single-season blocks record with 104 swats. The previous record, held by Toronto Raptor center (and recent NBA champion) Eric Moreland, was just 73 blocks. His offense started to catch up with his defensive play near the end of the year. Kelley will need continued success in that department if the Beavers are going to keep up with the rest of the teams in the Pac-12.

The Beavers other main rotation pieces will be juniors Alfred Hollins and Zach Reichle, as well as sophomore guard Antoine Vernon. Hollins and Reichle often alternated starts at the wing position, while Vernon contributed valuable backcourt minutes as a freshman. Vernon is the most likely candidate to start at guard alongside Thompson this season, while Hollins will likely begin the season as the fifth starter. Reichle will likely reprise his primary role as the first shooting option off the bench. Junior center Payton Dastrup, a transfer from BYU, will be eligible and available off the bench after sitting out last season.

Some of these upperclassmen, however, could have their minutes threatened by an influx of talent from this year’s recruiting class.