GAME PREVIEW

• Sacramento State (2-8) is back on the road for a Tuesday matchup at Oregon State (7-2). Tip at Gill Coliseum is set for 7 p.m. This season marks the 75th anniversary of Gill.
• Sacramento State is coming off a 69-62 home loss to UC Davis, while the Beavers had a 67-55 home win over UC Irvine. Both teams played on Saturday.
• Tuesday will mark the Hornets' lone road game between now and Jan. 15. After Tuesday, the team will embark upon a season-long five game homestand.
• The Hornets have lost four straight, while the Beavers have won three straight.
• At 7-2, Oregon State is off to its best start since the 2019-20 squad was 8-1.
• Sacramento State is 1-5 all-time vs. Oregon State, and the teams will be playing for the first time since the Hornets beat the Beavers in Corvallis, 65-63, on Nov. 21, 2009.
• Hornet fans remember that game well as that victory ended a 39-game road losing streak for Sacramento State. In addition, it started a run that saw Sacramento State beat three Pac-12 schools over a six-year span, including Utah (2012) and Arizona State (2015).
• With the recent pillaging of the Pac-12, Oregon State is now playing a WCC schedule.
• Of the six meetings between the Hornets and Beavers, five have come in Corvallis. The first meeting between the teams occurred Jan. 2, 1992, which also marked the first season of Div. I play for Sacramento State.
• That 2009 matchup was the only time the teams have played in the last 20 years.
• Sacramento State is 1-4 on the road this season, including a 63-61 win at Air Force on Nov. 27. That also marked the team's last victory as the Hornets are still seeking their first win during the month of December.
• Of Oregon State's nine games, eight have come at home and the Beavers are 7-1 at Gill.
• The Beavers' lone two losses have both come by three points, and each of the wins during the current three-game winning streak have come by double figures.
• Of the Hornets' eight losses, seven have come by 10 points or fewer. In fact, the team is 0-7 in games decided between six and 10 points.
• Sacramento State will go up against what has been one of the top defensive units in the country as the Beavers rank sixth in nation in scoring defense (58.2 ppg) and ninth in field goal percentage defense (.373).
• The Hornets have used different starting lineups in three straight games after switching up the lineup just twice in the first seven contests.

MULTIMEDIA OPTIONS

• Every game the remainder of the season (home and away) will stream on ESPN+. Ann Schatz and Mary Murphy will be on the call for Tuesday's game.
• For the fourth straight season, all Hornet home games, and games played at a Big Sky Conference venue, will stream on ESPN+. The subscription-based service streams on watchespn.com and the ESPN App.
• Links for all multimedia options, including live stats for every game, can be found next to each game on the men's basketball schedule at hornetsports.com.

A LOOK AT THE LAST GAME

• UC Davis outscored the Hornets by three points in the first half (35-32) and four in the second half (34-30) on the way to 69-62 victory over Sacramento State on Saturday.
• In the 122nd meeting between the rivals, the Aggies held a lead for 22:52 while the Hornets had an advantage for 14:16 of clock. That included Sacramento State jumping out to a 15-3 lead before the Aggies began chipping away at their deficit.
• UC Davis had the game tied at 28-28 at the 5:32 mark of the first half, and led the final 20:55 of the contest. That included the entire second half, as the Hornets remained close throughout but could not get over the hump.
• Sacramento State trailed, 67-62, with 1:56 remaining, but did not score again. A pair of UC Davis free throws marked the game's only scoring during the final 1:55.
• Both teams made 23 field goals (UCD 48% FG, SAC 42% FG), and the Hornets buried three more 3-pointers (7-for-22), but the game was won at the free throw line. The Aggies connected on 19-of-27 (70%) from the charity stripe while the Hornets were just 9-for-13.
• Jacob Holt scored 13 points during the Hornets' game-opening 15-3 spurt, but was limited to four points the rest of the way. He had team highs in points (17) and rebounds (7) and led the Hornets in scoring for the fourth straight game. He was joined in double figures by Julian Vaughns (15 pts, 3-4 3FG) and EJ Neal (10 pts, 2-3 3FG).

INTERNATIONAL ROSTER

• The Hornets' roster is one of the most international in the nation.
• Sacramento State has players representing six different countries - Australia (5), United States (5), Canada (1), England (1), Finland (1) and South Sudan (1).
• In addition, Sacramento State has players from four of the seven continents - North America, Africa, Europe and Australia.
• The Hornets' head coach, Michael Czepil, is from Melbourne, Australia, and took the team on a trip to Sydney, Gold Coast and Melbourne during the summer.

THE CZEPIL ERA HAS BEGUN

• Sacramento State is under the guidance of interim head Michael Czepil (Zep-pull). David Patrick, who coached the Hornets the previous two seasons, stepped down on May 22 to become the associate head coach at LSU.
• Czepil spent the previous two seasons on Patrick's staff as the associate head coach.
• A native of Melbourne, Australia, Czepil entered the season with 14 years of collegiate, international and professional coaching experience.
• He arrived at Sacramento State after spending four seasons at UC Riverside (2018-22), including the final two as the team's associate head coach.
• Czepil has had a big influence on all areas of the Hornet program the last two seasons, including recruiting, on-floor coaching, player development and scouting.

EFFECTS OF THE KOVATCHEV INJURY

• After starting the first four games of the season, sophomore guard Alex Kovatchev has missed six straight games with a leg injury, and is out indefinitely.
• Although Kovatchev's numbers are not eye popping, he was a big part of what the Hornets do. A very good defender, Kovatchev's strength was always being in the right place at the right time, both offensively and defensively.
• During the four games with Kovatchev in the lineup, the Hornets were outscoring their opponents by 8.7 ppg (71.5-62.8) while shooting 47% FG and 36% 3FG. Without him, they are being outscored by 8.0 ppg (63.5-71.5) while shooting 40% FG and 34% 3FG.

SLOW STARTS

• In four of the last five games, Sacramento State found itself trailing by at least eight point during the opening minutes of the contest.
• That includes a 9-0 deficit at Air Force, 8-0 vs. Mercyhurst, 18-9 at Denver, and 12-4 vs. Omaha. Sacramento State used two different starting lineups during those three games, but it has not changed the rough starts.
• However, that streak came to an end when the Hornets jumped out to a 15-3 lead in the opening stages of Saturday's game vs. UC Davis.

YOUNG ROSTER

• Last season, Sacramento State was one of four Div. I teams in the nation to play their freshmen over 40 percent of the team's total minutes.
• Each of those freshmen are back this season and are now sophomores - Emil Skytta, Alex Kovatchev, Bowyn Beatty, Bailey Nunn and Michael Wilson.
• Of the team's nine returners this season, six are sophomores and one is a redshirt freshman. Of the team's 14 total players, only five are upperclassmen (two seniors, three juniors). Kiir Kiir Chol Deng is the other sophomore, but is working his way back from injury.

HOLT ON A HEATER

• Senior forward Jacob Holt has been very good thus far, leading the Hornets in multiple categories, including scoring (15.9 ppg) and rebounding (6.3 rpg). He has paced the team in scoring in four straight, and seven games overall this year.
• He is 44-for-59 (75%) from the charity stripe, and averaging 5.9 attempts per game.
• Holt has three 20-point games, has scored in double figures in each of the last eight contests, and his 15.9 ppg average ranks sixth in the Big Sky.
• Holt had a career-high 25 points at Cal, 24 at Denver, and 20 vs. CSUN.
• In his second year with the Hornets, the transfer from Santa Clara averaged just 6.7 points and 4.6 rebounds a year ago as he often dealt with foul trouble.
HOISTING FROM DISTANCE

• Sacramento State is not afraid to shoot from long distance, as the team is averaging 8.9 made treys per game, the 81st best mark in the country.
• The team has buried at least seven 3-balls in all but one game (four at Denver).
• Five Hornets have connected on double-figure 3-balls, including true freshman Lachlan Brewer who is 12-of-22 from distance. Four players are shooting at least 37%, including Brewer (.545), Julian Vaughns (39%), EJ Neal (38%) and Jacob Holt (37%).
• The Hornets are shooting their threes at a respectable 35% rate (89-258).

DEFENSIVELY SPEAKING

• Sacramento State is allowing just 68.0 points per game, and currently ranks second in the Big Sky (89th in the country) with a .410 field goal percentage defense.
• The team also guards the 3-point line well, as opponents are shooting just 30% from distance, the third best mark in the Big Sky and 71st in the nation.
• However, the Hornets have allowed an uptick in points and shooting percentages over the last four games. During that four-game stretch, the opposition is scoring 71.3 ppg while shooting 48% from the field and 37% (36-97) from the 3-point line.

PLENTY OF CLOSE GAMES

• Of the team's nine games vs. a Div. I opponent, eight have been decided by 10 points or fewer. Though the team is 1-7 in those contests, they have been in games at the end. In fact, after Saturday's loss, the Hornets are now 0-7 in games decided by 6-10 points.
• The one outlier in those games was the 80-59 loss at Denver.
• Last season, of the Hornets' 21 games against a Big Sky opponent (including the conference tournament), 16 were decided by single digits, and the Hornets went 5-11 in those games. Eleven of those were decided by five points or less (4-7 in those outcomes).
• In the team's three Big Sky Tournament games, the Hornets posted an eight-point win over Idaho in the first round, five-point win vs. Eastern Washington in the quarters, and a three-point loss to Montana State in the semis.

FINAL SEASON IN THE NEST

• Sacramento State will embark upon its final year in the Nest. Next season, the team will move into the The Well on campus.
• The project is set to convert a portion of The Well, an on-campus fitness facility, into a venue for both the men's and women's basketball teams. The Well sits next to the football field on the south end of campus. Seating capacity will likely be around 3,000.
• Built in 1955, the Nest is currently one of the oldest facilities among all NCAA Div. I institutions with a seating capacity of only 1,012.
• The Hornets have played in the Nest every year since 1955, except four seasons (1996-00) when they played at downtown Memorial Auditorium. Those four seasons were also the team's first four in the Big Sky Conference.

LATE GAME

• Sacramento State saw late-game opponent runs hurt their chances to win games against Fresno State and CSUN.
• Against CSUN, the Hornets held an 11-point halftime lead, and held an advantage for over 30 minutes of game clock. However, the Matadors closed the final 3:46 on an 15-2 run to win by a 79-69 margin.
• In the loss at Fresno State, the Hornets held a seven-point halftime lead. A back and forth second half ended with the Bulldogs going on a 6-0 run over the final 1:37 to win, 64-57.

QUICK NOTABLES

• Shooting guard Julian Vaughns, second on the team at 11.2 ppg, has been a little hit and miss. He has scored in double figures six times, averaging 15.0 ppg in those contests. In his three single digit games, he is averaging 3.7 ppg, including zero at Denver.
• Shooting guard EJ Neal has scored at least nine points seven times (six double figure efforts), and also has two games where he scored zero points (UC San Diego, Mercyhurst).
• Point guard Bailey Nunn has seen a dramatic increase in minutes, averaging a team-high 35.4 minutes over last five games. He averaged 20.6 minutes during the first five games.