The Beavers certainly look good in turquoise.
Wearing turquoise uniforms for the second annual Nike N7 game, which honors Native American Heritage, the Oregon State University men's basketball team (1-0) cruised to an 86-62 victory over Cal State Bakersfield in its season opener.
"To have a performance like that on the Nike N7 Game, which means a lot to a lot of different people was really nice," said head coach Craig Robinson. "But we still have stuff to work out."
The first thing Robinson said the team needed to work on was limiting turnovers. The Beavers had 22, but were helped out by the fact that they forced the Roadrunners to turn the ball over 27 times.
On the defensive end, Oregon State was led by guards Ahmad Starks and Jared Cunningham, who had five and six steals respectively.
Starks finished with 16 points, but his defense was the subject of Robinson's postgame comments.
"[Ahmad] was an offensive player in high school and at the beginning of last year," Robinson said. "Now, he's not quite as good as Jared, but he is catching up on the defensive end."
The real star of Saturday night's show was Joe Burton. Playing a solid all-around game, the junior forward scored in a variety of ways, including a 3-pointer in the first half and a Kareem-esque hook shot in the second half. He finished with 16 points, five rebounds, five assists and five steals. Burton also played 33 minutes, the most of any Beaver.
Robinson had nothing but praise for Burton.
"Joe Burton came back this year a completely different guy," Robinson said. "It's for the better and it's not just on the basketball court. He has devoted himself in the classroom, he has devoted himself to [the] weight room and he has worked on his conditioning."
The game had adding meaning for Burton, who was born on the Soboba Indian reservation in Soboba, Calif., and is the first Native-American to receive a sports scholarship in the Pac-12 since it expanded to 10 teams in 1978.
"It's an honor to put this jersey on, play the game of basketball, and to be in college, learning and getting knowledge for the future," Burton said. "I'm just acting as a role model to the young Native Americans and to the reservation."
The Nike N7 game and the Nike N7 fund seek to honor Native American heritage and promote sports to Native American communities across North America.
The fact that Oregon State was able to pull out a win added to significance of the game.
Last season, Oregon State routinely struggled in winnable games against lesser opponents.
If this year's squad wants to achieve its goal of making it to the big dance, they are going to need to continue to win games like Saturday's.
As Cal State Bakersfield began to make a run in the second half, cutting Oregon State's lead to single digits, it began to feel like the 2010 season all over again. But this year's team would not let the game get away from them.
"Last year we would have crumbled," Burton said. "This year, we have chemistry, and our demeanor is to stay calm and poised."
The Beavers got the season off on the right foot and they look to keep things rolling tonight when they take on West Alabama, Monday at Gill Coliseum.
Alex Crawford, sports writer
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