On the college basketball court… Oregon lost a chance for an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, giving up the Pac-12 title to UCLA with a 72-62 loss to Utah Saturday in Salt Lake City. Oregon ended the regular season in a three-way tie with Cal and Arizona for 2nd place. They’ll open the Pac-12 tournament Thursday in Las Vegas.
Oregon State wound up in a tie for last place with Washington State after beating Colorado 64-58 to wrap up the regular season. Those two teams will meet again Wednesday afternoon in the opening round of the conference tournament.
Turning to baseball… Tyler Smith’s three-run homer in the sixth inning broke a 3-3 tie and propelled number four Oregon State to a three-game sweep of Texas State with a 6-4 win yesterday in Corvallis. The Beavers, at 15-and-oh, are one of only four teams still without a loss. They’ll host San Francisco for a two-game mini series beginning tomorrow before opening Pac-12 play Friday against Arizona State.
In Eugene, Number 15 Oregon avoided a three game sweep by the second ranked Vanderbilt Commodores with a 7-5 win at PK Park yesterday. The Ducks will host Texas State for two non-league games beginning tomorrow before heading to Los Angeles Friday where they’ll open up conference play against USC.