CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) — Oregon State senior guard Mikayla Pivec knows the Beavers will need to play better moving forward after receiving a test from Pacific in the second round of the preseason WNIT.
Pivec, an All Pac-12 selection last season, led the seventh-ranked Beavers with 18 points and 17 rebounds in a 69-57 victory Monday night.
Up next is a semifinal matchup Thursday against No. 18 DePaul.
"DePaul, we know they're a consistent tournament team, they have offensive scorers form all five positions," Pivec said. "And to be able to win we're gonna have to execute a lot better than we did today."
OSU (2-0) committed an uncharacteristic 23 turnovers against Pacific (1-1) and was unable to put the Tigers away, despite extending the lead to 59-43 in the fourth quarter on Destiny Slocum's layup with 6:16 remaining.
Pacific closed to 62-54 on Brooklyn McDavid's basket with three minutes left, but the Tigers would get no closer.
McDavid scored a career-high 32 points on 14 of 20 from the field, scoring most of her points on mid-range jumpers against OSU's taller post players. She had 18 points in the first half.
"I just know if I keep the rhythm, it's gonna go in," McDavid said.
Aleah Goodman and Slocum added 17 points apiece for the Beavers.
OSU, a perennial Pac-12 power, has advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament the past four seasons, including a Final Four appearance in 2016.
Pacific is coming off their first winning season since 2014-15.
"The preseason you schedule teams that are expected to do well in their own conferences," OSU coach Scott Rueck said. "They come in with the expectation to beat us. They've got an opportunity to get a top 10 win so you're gonna get big-time performances."
OSU shot 48 percent from the field compared to 34.4 percent for Pacific, and outrebounded the Tigers 42-33.
McDavid was the only player in double figures for Pacific. Valerie Higgins, the Tigers' leading scorer last season and a first team all-WCC selection, was limited to five points on 2 of 13 shooting.
"We're a little better than we even showed tonight," Pacific coach Bradley Davis said. "Give a lot of credit to Oregon State, they defended really well."
BIG PICTURE
Pacific: The Tigers, who reached the second round of the postseason WNIT last season, continue to progress under fifth-year coach Bradley Davis. Pacific was competitive against a team that advanced to the Sweet 16 last season.
Oregon State: Freshman forward/center Taylor Jones, who had 20 points and 10 rebounds in her college debut Saturday against UC Irvine, was in early foul trouble and finished with six points and two rebounds in 12 minutes before fouling out in the fourth quarter.
UP NEXT
OSU will be at home against DePaul in the semifinals of the WNIT on Thursday.
Pacific plays Saturday at Drexel in a consolation game.
