It wasn't pretty but the first game of the 2011 Pac-10 Tournament is over at Staples Center in Los Angeles. The Oregon State Beavers outlasting the Stanford Cardinal, 69-67, in a slugfest.
It started off slow, with Stanford shooting just over 11 percent in the half as Oregon State took a 26-18 lead at the break. Stanford recovered in the second half, finishing the game shooting 32.8 percent from the field. Oregon State was just a bit better, shooting at a 25.7 percent clip for the game. The damage was done at the free throw line with Oregon State and Stanford combining to shoot 63 free throws. Oregon State hit 25 of 35 while Stanford connected on 19 of 28.
It became a free throw shooting contest for the Beavers as Stanford frantically tried to close the gap with quick three-pointers as time wound down. Stanford was content to trade twos for threes, with Jeremy Green almost single-handedly keeping the Cardinal close with his shooting.
Oregon State moves on to face the Arizona Wildcats in the quarterfinals at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday at Staples Center.
Updated 2011 Pac-10 Tournament bracket:
First Round: Wednesday, March 9
No. 9 Oregon St. Beavers defeats No. 8 Stanford Cardinal, 69-67
No. 7 Oregon Ducks vs. No. 10 Arizona St. Sun Devils, 11:30, Fox Sports Net
Quarterfinals: Thursday, March 10
No. 4 USC Trojans vs. No. 5 California Golden Bears, 3:00, Fox Sports Net
No. 1 Arizona Wildcats vs. Oregon St. Beavers, 5:30, Fox Sports Net
No. 2 UCLA Bruins vs. Oregon/Arizona State, 9:00, Fox Sports Net
No. 3 Washington Huskies vs. No. 6 Washington St. Cougars, 11:30, Fox Sports Net
Semi-Finals: Friday, March 11
Quarterfinals game 1 winner vs. quarterfinals game 2 winner, 9:00, Fox Sports Net
Quarterfinals game 3 winner vs. quarterfinals game 4 winner, 11:30, Fox Sports Net
Championship Game: Saturday, March 12
Semi-finals winners, 6:00, CBS
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