The 1980–81 Oregon State Beavers men's basketball team represented the
Oregon State University
Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...
as a member of the
Pacific 10 Conference
The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...
during the
1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 28, 1980, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1981 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament championship game on Marc ...
. They were led by 11th-year head coach
Ralph Miller
Ralph H. Miller (March 9, 1919 – May 15, 2001) was an American college basketball coach, a head coach for 38 years at three universities: Wichita (now known as Wichita State), Iowa, and Oregon State. With an overall record of , his teams had ...
and played their home games on campus at
Gill Coliseum
Gill Coliseum is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Corvallis, Oregon, located on the campus of Oregon State University. Opened in December 1949,Heartwell, James C. ''The History of Oregon State College Basketball, 1901/02–1952/53.'' Corvallis, OR: ...
in
Corvallis, Oregon
Corvallis ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Benton County, Oregon, Benton County in central western Oregon, United States. It is the principal city of the Corvallis, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Benton Co ...
.
After winning their first 26 games of the season, Oregon State fell to No. 5 Arizona State in the regular season finale to finish at 26–1 (17–1 Pac-10), repeating as conference champion, and were ranked second in
both polls. Despite dropping the regular season finale, they did not drop in the rankings, and were seeded No. 1 in the
West region of the
NCAA tournament.
The Beavers received an opening round bye, and were shocked by No. 8 seed
Kansas State
Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public inst ...
, 50–48, at
Pauley Pavilion
Edwin W. Pauley Pavilion, commonly known as Pauley Pavilion, is an indoor arena located in the Westwood Village district of Los Angeles, California, on the campus of UCLA. It is home to the UCLA Bruins men's and women's basketball teams. Th ...
. The Wildcats would reach the Elite Eight before falling to eventual runner-up North Carolina. Oregon State finished the season at 26–2.
Roster
:
Schedule and results
, -
!colspan=9 style=, Regular Season
, -
!colspan=9 style=,
NCAA Tournament
:
Rankings
Awards and honors
*
Steve Johnson –
Consensus First-team All-American,
Pac-10 Player of the Year
NBA draft
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:1980-81 Oregon State Beavers men's basketball team
Oregon State Beavers men's basketball seasons
Oregon State
Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees through all 11 of the universit ...
Oregon State
Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees through all 11 of the universit ...
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...