PORTLAND — Gary Payton II had 12 points and 12 rebounds and Oregon State rallied to beat the Portland Pilots 65-58 in overtime on Saturday.
Payton hit a jumper that put Oregon State up 59-57 with 2:12 left in overtime. Portland’s Thomas Van Der Mars missed the first of two free throws with 1:08 to go, and Oregon State’s Jarmal Reid added a key block to keep the Beavers in front.
Olaf Schaftenaar and Payton added free throws to stretch the Beavers’ lead to 63-58 and the Pilots couldn’t catch up.
Victor Robbins led all scorers with 18 points for the Beavers (5-2), who won their second straight.
Bobby Sharp led the Pilots with 12 points (6-2).
After trailing by as many as seven points earlier in the half, Oregon State pulled ahead 45-44 on Langston Morris-Walker’s layup with 6:55 left. He padded the lead with a jumper, but Sharp hit a 3-pointer to tie it at 47 with 5:04 left.
The teams wrestled for the lead the rest of the way. Robbins made a pair of layups to put the Beavers in front, but Alec Wintering’s layup with 28 seconds to go tied it at 53 and sent it to overtime.
The Pilots were without their top scorer, guard Kevin Bailey, because of an injured left foot. Bailey was averaging 13.1 points. He was injured in Portland’s 83-71 victory Wednesday over crosstown rival Portland State.
The Beavers are playing their first season under head coach Wayne Tinkle, who spent the previous eight seasons at Montana, where he led the Grizzlies to Big Sky championships in 2012 and 2013.
Payton, a transfer from Salt Lake Community College, is the son of Beavers great Gary Payton, who went on to become a nine-time NBA star known for his 13 seasons with the Seattle SuperSonics.
The elder Payton attended the game.
Both teams got off to a slow start. The Pilots didn’t get a field goal until Jason Todd’s 3-pointer more than five minutes into the game.
Payton didn’t take his first shot until he made a layup to close the Beavers within 27-24 with 1:24 left in the half. The Pilots answered with Sharp’s 3-pointer and Portland led 30-24 at the half.
Payton, who had eight rebounds in the first half, collected his third foul early in the second.
Thomas Van Der Mars’ layup gave the Pilots a 33-26 lead, their biggest in regulation.
TIP INS
Oregon State: The Beavers prior losses came to Oklahoma State and Auburn at the MGM Grand Main Event in Las Vegas. … In addition to Gary Payton, former Beaver Charlie Sitton (1980-84) was also at the game.
Portland: The Pilots lone loss of the season came to Valparaiso in Nashville’s Challenge in Music City.
UP NEXT
The Beavers host Mississippi State on Dec. 13.
The Pilots host Sacramento State on Dec. 14.
