Beavs picked to finish fifth in Pac-10 hoops

CRAIG ROBINSON AND the Beavers will have a much harder time surprising anyone this season. Oregon State, coming off a monster turnaround this past year and a CBI Tournament title, were picked today to finish fifth in the Pac-10 by the West Coast media who regularly follow the conference.

Oregon State was just three points behind the No. 4 pick, Arizona. It's a far cry from recent years past when the Beavs were the consensus pick to finish last.

The Beavers return all but one rotation player from last year, including Roeland Schaftenaar, Calvin Haynes, Seth Tarver, Daniel Deane and Josh Tarver. Rickey Claitt was lost to graduation but the Beavs brought in a highly regarded recruiting class, including 4-star prospects Angus Brandt and Roberto Nelson. Robinson said, however, that Nelson is still awaiting clearance from the NCAA.

The Pac-10 media poll, with first place votes in parentheses followed by total points:

1. California (25) 350
2. Washington (7) 330
3. UCLA (5) 302
4. Arizona 221
5. Oregon State 218
6. Oregon 175
7. Arizona State 144
8. Washington State 123
9. USC 109
10. Stanford 63