Oregon State men’s basketball is 4-0 for the first time since 2015 after defeating Cal State Fullerton
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Oregon State men’s basketball is 4-0 for the first time since 2015 after defeating Cal State Fullerton

Oregon State took a tough road Friday night, but the Beavers are 4-0 for the first time in nearly a decade after rallying in the second half to beat Cal State Fullerton 70-51 at Gill Coliseum.

Oregon State trailed by as many as eight points early in the second half before outscoring the Titans 41-14 over the final 16 minutes to pull away.

The last time OSU started a season 4-0 was in 2015-16, a season the Beavers turned into a trip to the NCAA Tournament. This was the toughest of the four wins, as Cal State Fullerton gave OSU a scare by shutting down its scorers for most of the first half.

Nate Kingz scored 22 points and Michael Rataj had 18 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Beavers. The only shots Kingz took were three-pointers, as he shot 6-of-9 from behind the arc.

Oregon State shot 8 of 27 from the floor in the first half, but heated up in a big way after halftime. OSU shot 13 of 21 in the second half, including 7 of 12 from three-point range. The Beavers outscored Cal State-Fullerton 45-19 in the second half.

OSU managed a comfortable win despite getting just one point from starter Parsa Fallah, who was dominant through the Beavers’ first three games.

The stage is set for Oregon State’s biggest test of the young season, as the Beavers play host to Oregon at 7pm on Thursday at Gill Coliseum.

Davis Bynum led Cal State-Fullerton with 12 points. The Titans are 0-4, with losses to Stanford, Grand Canyon, Colorado and Oregon State.

Oregon State, which won its first three games by margins of 23, 28 and 36 points, appeared headed for another laugh when it took a 7-0 lead three minutes into Friday’s game. But OSU’s offense went cold the rest of the half, as the Beavers made just six baskets through halftime and trailed 32-25.

Fullerton led 37-29 with 16 minutes remaining when Oregon State went on a blistering run that was only halted by the final horn. The Beavers hit seven straight shots to take a 47-45 lead with 11 minutes left. From there, OSU poured it on, as the Beavers made 12 of their last 16 shots. The Titans missed 11 shots in a row and made just two baskets in the final 11 minutes.

Nick Daschel can be reached at 360-607-4824, [email protected] or @nickdaschel.

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