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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) -- Deaundra Tanner couldn't hear the buzzer,
but he knew his shot was in time and on the money.
|  | | Deaundra Tanner shares a moment with the Corvallis crowd after his buzzer-beating 3-pointer shocked No. 3 Arizona. |
Tanner's 3-pointer as the clock ran out in overtime gave Oregon
State a stunning 70-69 victory over No. 3 Arizona on Thursday
night.
"It felt real good, and I followed through. It was nothing but net," said Tanner, who had 20 points. "It was the biggest shot I've ever made, easily."
The Beavers (13-14, 5-11 Pac-10) defeated Arizona for the second straight time at home following 17 consecutive losses overall to the Wildcats.
Michael Wright had 20 points and 15 rebounds for the Wildcats (24-5, 13-2), who may have lost their chance at a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The teams traded turnovers in the final seconds before Arizona's Jason Gardner had his shot blocked by Jason Heide with 14 seconds left.
Tanner rebounded, but on the final possession the ball came loose. His team trailing 69-67, Heide wound up with it and dished off to Tanner, who stepped behind the 3-point line and let the shot fly from the corner.
"I knew that Jason was going to pass it to me, so I was just standing ready to shoot," Tanner said.
With the roar of the crowd, the horn seemed to have sounded
before Tanner got the shot off, but replays showed there was 0.2
seconds left when the shot left his hands. After it swished
through, the fans poured onto the court. Arizona and coach Lute
Olson did not protest.
"They just kept battling, and eventually they hit the shot that beat us," Olson said. "That's not an easy shot to make, and we had pretty good pressure on him. We were hoping that Heide could shoot that thing from the inside, and that's (a two-pointer), and
we've got another opportunity to win it."
It was Oregon State's first win over a team ranked as high as
No. 3 since Dec. 2, 1989, when the Beavers defeated No. 2 Arizona
84-61, in what was Oregon State's most recent winning season.
The teams went to overtime tied at 60, and Gardner sank two
straight 3-pointers to start the extra period.
"I don't know how many people were here, but I think all but the 14 guys on our team had given up on us," Oregon State coach Eddie Payne said.
With a sparse crowd of 5,538 cheering them on, the Beavers
climbed back with a layup by Clifton Jones and a 3-pointer by Josh
Steinthal that cut it to 66-65 with 2:11 left. Wright made three
free throws in two trips to the line, but his last shot missed,
leaving Arizona with a 69-67 lead and setting up the thrilling finish.
"We just didn't keep our composure," Wright said. "We let
them crawl back in the game -- just like overtime, we were up six
and they came storming back."
Gilbert Arenas and Gardner each had 16 points for the Wildcats,
who lost here last year 60-59 when they were ranked No. 9. Two
years ago, Arizona pulled out a 71-70 thriller in Corvallis when Miles Simon hit
a driving jumper at the buzzer.
The Beavers took a 60-57 lead in regulation on Brian Jackson's two free throws with 15.9 seconds left.
Gardner launched a 3-pointer and fell to the floor in front of
the Wildcats' bench. A foul was called on Jimmie Haywood, but there
appeared to be little contact.
Gardner made all three free throws with seven seconds left to tie it. The Beavers pushed the ball past halfcourt and called a timeout with 1.5 seconds left to set up a final play, but Richard Jefferson leapt high to intercept the inbound pass toward the basket.
Wright scored nine points in the first eight minutes of the
second half, all from close range, and a fastbreak dunk by Arenas
put the Wildcats ahead 48-41 with 11:34 to go.
The Beavers rallied, scoring nine straight points. Tanner hung
in the air for a short jumper, got fouled and hit the free throw to
tie it at 48, and a tip-in by Jason Heide gave the Beavers a 50-48
lead with 8:05 left.
"It seemed like the second half they were 9-of-10 on layins," Olson said. "If you're giving up 10 layins, you're in trouble, big-time."
Jefferson, who played for the first time since breaking his right foot in a victory at Stanford Jan. 8, played nine minutes and was held scoreless on two field goal attempts.
The Wildcats also were without star center Loren Woods, who isn't expected to return until the NCAA Tournament because of an injured back.
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ALSO SEE
Mens College Basketball Scoreboard
Arizona Clubhouse
Oregon State Clubhouse
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