Talking Beaver women’s hoops, Along with a little golf, with Coach Scott Rueck …
Scott Rueck
I’ve known Scott Rueck since shortly after he took over the Oregon State women’s basketball helm in 2010 and have admired the program he has built from the rubble he inherited from his predecessor, LaVonda Wagner.
I have great respect for the way Rueck runs his program — based on a family-like environment, discipline, and defense — and his personal integrity. And he’s a fun guy to talk to. Since the Beavers’ 2019-20 season was abruptly ended due to the coronavirus after the Pac-12 Tournament in early March, I’ve missed the occasional opportunities to pop my head into his office in the OSU basketball practice facility to chat about a lot of things.
We spent more than an hour on the phone Saturday, reconnecting on a few personal matters but mostly discussing Scott’s second-favorite subject — Beaver women’s hoops.
First, though, I asked about his favorite subject — wife Kerry and their three children, Cole, Kate, and Macey.
The six months since the season was shut down have meant “a lot of family time,” says Rueck, 51. “I’ve put my energies into making sure our team needs are taken care of as best we can with so much uncertainty, but I’ve also had more time for the family. That’s been one of the real positives in this.”
Cole, an incoming junior at Corvallis High, is one of the rising stars on the Oregon junior golf scene. Scott and Cole have played a lot of rounds together, and Pops has had more time watching his son play tournament golf than ever before.
“Golf has remained an option because Oregon courses have stayed open the entire time,” Rueck says. “That’s one of Cole’s passions, of course. We’ve had some great times together on the golf course. It was sad that his sophomore spring high school season was canceled, but we’ve had a lot of good times out there with him. That’s been a silver lining through all of this.”
Rueck’s game has prospered, too.
“I’ve never had a handicap until this summer,” he says. “Cole signed me up. I feel like I’m a 12 or so, but it has me at eight. That’s too good for what I can do.”
In a decade coaching at his alma mater, Rueck has compiled a record of 228-106 --189-60 the last seven seasons. The Beavers are a remarkable 99-27 in the Pac-12 regular-season over the latter period.
That’s why last season was a disappointment. Oregon State went 23-9, including 10-8 to finish in a tie for fifth in the minefield that is Pac-12 women’s basketball.
That’s the most conference defeats for the Beavers since the 2012-13 season. Since then, they’d gone 13-5, 16-2, 16-2, 14-4, and 14-4 until last season. The only losses by more than single digits in 2019-20 were 76-64 to No. 2-ranked Oregon in Eugene and 68-57 to No. 7-ranked Stanford in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament. The Beavers ended the year ranked 14th.
“It was an injury-riddled year,” Rueck says. “That was the hardest part. It was a year when we were constantly adjusting. It was hard to find a good rhythm.”
Sharpshooter Kat Tudor missed preseason drills and the first two games while recovering from ACL knee surgery. In the second game, forward Taya Corosdale went down with a season-ending leg injury that required surgery. In early February, freshman post Kennedy Brown was lost for the season with an ACL knee injury. And freshman center Jelena Mitrovic, recovering from an offseason knee injury, never made the court.
"We practiced for a couple of weeks before we started easing in Kat,” Rueck says. “Not having Taya meant we had to throw Kennedy and Taylor (Jones) to the wolves. Our depth on the front line was diminished. We thought we were going to have Jelena at some point, but that never happened.
“When Kennedy went down, it was right when I felt we were hitting a stride. She was coming into her own and playing her best basketball of the year. When we lost her, it hurt us in many ways. She was our top rebounder, a player who could stretch the floor, and at her size, she was able to pass the ball and help run us through our system.
“Then we went small with Mikayla (Pivec) at the four. We were in transition from that point forward. That took a while to adjust in the best conference in (women’s) basketball.”
After the Beavers suffered their first four-game losing streak since 2013, they closed the regular season with three straight wins, then blew out Washington State 82-55 before falling to the Cardinal in the Pac-12 Tournament.
“Under the circumstances, the team performed well,” Rueck says. “We stayed with it. We had some tough losses in the Pac-12 season and, from a record standpoint, it was not what we had hoped. But the team competed hard, adapted, and we were playing good basketball at the end of the season.”
Then the NCAA Tournament was canceled. Abruptly, the season and the careers of OSU seniors Tudor, Pivec, Maddie Washington, and Janessa Thropay were over.
“I felt terrible for our seniors,” Rueck says. “It looked as if we were going to be a host site, so I felt bad for our fans. It was almost numbing. It was so beyond comprehension. It was hard to know how to feel — a mournful period, for sure.”
Oregon State’s seniors are gone, including Pivec, perhaps the greatest all-around player in program history. Also departed are reserve center Patricia Morris and guard Destiny Slocum, like Pivec a two-time All-Pac-12 selection who chose to move on to Arkansas as a grad transfer.
It’s the first time Rueck has lost a player due to the grad transfer rule. Slocum’s decision caught the coach by surprise, but it probably wasn’t a shock. It’s a trend in men’s basketball that is likely to be seen more in women’s basketball in future years.
“I’m very grateful we had Destiny for three years,” Rueck says, “and wish her the best moving forward.”
Oregon State returns only three players with more than a year’s experience in the program — junior forward Corosdale, senior guard Aleah Goodman and junior guard Jasmine Simmons. The Beavers welcome five recruits — Rueck’s largest class in many years — including grad seniors Ellie Mack from Bucknell and Jovana Subasic from Washington State.
Ellie Mack
“I’m excited,” Rueck says. “It’s not so much that we’re a young team as we are new together.
“But I’m someone who has never minded youth. The year is so long, a team can evolve. Some of my most memorable and successful seasons have been with young rosters.”
Before we talked personnel, I asked Rueck about what he and his coaching staff — including assistants Jonas Chatterton, Brian Hollsinger, and Katie Faulkner — have been able to do since the OSU facilities were closed down in March. Until things re-opened and the players converged on Corvallis on July 20, they were on their own.
“It was extremely strange for all of us,” Rueck says. “Communication became a premium just to stay together because we couldn’t see each other. The team did a phenomenal job. Our leadership — Aleah and Taya — stepped up.”
For five weeks, the Beavers worked out at the practice facility in small groups — two players per basket, four players in the gym at one time, with coaches present — focusing on individual skills for four hours a week.
“Doug (Aukerman, OSU senior associate AD for sports medicine) set the parameters, and we worked as best we could within them,” Rueck says. “Social distancing. No contact. No live-action.”
Smoke from the state’s raging wildfires forced Rueck to cancel workouts last week.
“We’ll have one more week before fall term begins,” he says. “Once we’re into school, it’s four hours a week until we start practicing. From that point, we’ll have them 20 hours a week.”
Under normal conditions, Rueck starts preseason drills at the beginning of October. That will be pushed back this season, though it’s still unclear by how much. A proposal before the NCAA oversight committee — of which OSU AD Scott Barnes is a member — has a Nov. 25 start date in its plan. That would likely mean practice beginning sometime in early November.
“We’re in a wait-and-see situation based upon what (the NCAA) will tell us,” Rueck says.
It’s possible Pac-12 teams will play a conference-only schedule. Rueck hopes that is not the case.
“There are models going forward to the NCAA for approval that include a non-conference schedule,” he says. “There are so many things to be worked out for so many reasons in regards to the virus. It’s going to take a lot of work. But my hope is there are non-conference games and a full Pac-12 season.”
Oregon State’s homecourt advantage over the past six years has been one of the best in the country. Does Rueck think fans will be allowed next season?
“That’s a subject I don’t even know has been discussed yet,” he says. “Everything else has taken priority — just getting people back on the floor.
“You know I love Beaver Nation. It’s something I’m passionate about. It’s hard to imagine Gill Coliseum without our fans. I’m hopeful we can have at least some fans in the stands for our games. I’m hopeful we can find a way.”
Oregon State’s 12-player roster — not including 6-9 Andrea Aquino, who has not been cleared due to a prevailing heart condition and is unlikely to play — features six players 6-3 or taller. The Beavers may be the nation’s tallest club. Does Rueck believe size is still at a premium in a game that is trending more and more toward the 3-point shot?
“I think it is defensively,” Rueck says, adding with a laugh, “you’re talking to a little short guy who understands the deficits of a lack of length. I’ve always liked size. Our Final Four team (in 2016) was the biggest in the country.
“Not everybody loves bigs, but it’s an advantage in the most important ways. Length and the ability to shoot the ball — which this team has — is what everybody wants. We also have the capabilities to be a very good defensive team. The fact we have an inside presence could potentially help that. Taylor is an outstanding defender around the basket. I believe Jelena can be the same.
“And I’ve never had a group of bigs who shoot from the perimeter as well as this one.”
The floor leader will be Goodman, the 5-9 guard from LaSalle who was the Pac-12 Sixth Player of the Year as a sophomore and averaged 8.8 points while shooting .440 from 3-point range last season, ranking fourth in the Pac-12.
“Aleah is our only four-year player, our most experienced player,” Rueck says. “She’s a coach on the court; her mind operates that way. I’ve been nothing but impressed by the way she has conducted herself this offseason. She has a great opportunity to run the show for us.
“You need a leader who understands how to communicate concepts to her and holds her teammates to a high standard. She is more than ready.”
Corosdale is a two-year starter who will likely reclaim her spot at power forward.
“It’s tough sitting out and having to watch, as Taya did last season,” Rueck says. “I’ve really enjoyed my conversations with her, all she has learned and the perspective and maturity you gain through hardship. I see the benefits of that coming out of her. She has so much to offer, and she’s going to realize that as we go.
“Her rehab has gone well. She is fully recovered, but she hasn’t played in a long time. She has shot the ball extremely well this summer. She’s an incredible natural rebounder. We missed that last year, that and her shooting and rebounding.”
The 5-11 Simmons has played sparingly her first two seasons.
“Jas is an amazing athlete who has been biding her time behind Mik and Kat the last couple of years,” Rueck says. “She has worked hard on her shooting in the offseason and — a lot like Mik — has had to understand the importance of becoming a shoot-first guard. I’m excited about what she is going to be.”
The 6-4 Jones, an All-Pac-12 Freshman pick last season, will be a starter on the front line.
“I can’t imagine a post player working harder than Taylor anywhere,” Rueck says. “Her freshman year has motivated her to work for more. She plays at one speed — all out. She is looking to extend her range. That’s what she has been attacking through the offseason. You look at (ex-OSU center) Marie Gulich — nobody could guard her as a senior because she was deadly out to 17 feet. Taylor has taken on the challenge to get there, too.”
Brown, who underwent knee surgery on March 16, is likely to redshirt.
“You never know, but I’m not planning to have her this year,” Rueck says. “Everything is on schedule with her rehab, and she’s able to run a little bit and is shooting the ball a bunch.
“But I’m not going to rush her back. The preseason is more important than people think. Missing an entire preseason and offseason and trying to come into a team that already playing at full speed is a hard thing. It’s not ideal, for sure. You have to keep the long term in mind.”
The only other returnee is 5-6 walk-on Noelle Mannen, a 5-6 sophomore from Beaverton’s Valley Catholic.
“We lost three important guards from last year’s team,” Rueck says. “Noelle has a great opportunity to compete for playing time.”
Rueck told me before last season that Mitrovic, a native of Serbia, would be a “significant factor” by season’s end. That never happened; she sat out the entire season. This year, Mitrovic should at least earn a spot in the regular rotation.
“Everything was rough for her last year,” Rueck says. “It just took so long for her to rehab and get ready. By the end of the year, we saw her practicing with much more normalcy, and you could see the impact she is capable of having.
“She can step out and hit a 3. She is an excellent passer with great hands and the strength to catch the ball inside and make good decisions with her back to the basket. And she’s an imposing presence on defense. I believe the sky is the limit for her.”
Mack will likely have the biggest immediate impact of the newcomers. The 6-3 forward was the Patriot League Player of the Year on a Bucknell team that was 24-6 and riding a nine-game win streak when the season was canceled during the conference tournament. She averaged 15.0 points and 7.4 rebounds while shooting .507 from the field, .432 from 3-point range, and .815 from the foul line. Mack signed with the Beavers sight unseen. She’d never been to the West Coast and wasn’t able to make a recruiting visit because of the pandemic.
“Ellie is coming from a program that is used to winning a lot,” Rueck says. “She is excited to see what she can do in a Power Five conference. Ellie is similar to Taya in many ways. She has a stronger body than Taya, but they are both so guard-ish with good size and versatility. Ellie is going to have a massive impact on our program.”
Subasic, also a Serbian native, averaged 8.4 points and 4.0 rebounds at Wazzu last season. She shot .465 from the field and .400 from 3-point range.
“Two years ago, ‘Yo’ hit four 3s against us in Gill,” Rueck says. “She’s an excellent shooter who has good handles and the size to guard both post positions.”
The three incoming freshmen will all have a chance to earn rotation spots.
Sasha Goforth
Sasha Goforth, a 6-foot five-star guard from Fayetteville, Ark, was ranked as the No. 7 player in the nation last season by Blue Star and No. 16 by ESPN.
“Sasha is one of the best athletes we’ve ever had in our program,” Rueck says. “She plays with such a great motor. She’s a catch-and-shoot guard with the ability to get to the rim.
“We haven’t had a lock-down defender at the wing since (2017 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year) Gabby Hanson. Sasha has that ability to go with a nice offensive skill set.”
She is the second recruit to sign out of high school with Oregon State (Brown was the first) to be a McDonald’s All-American. Goforth was also a Jordan Brand All-American."
Savannah Samuel
Savannah Samuel, a 6-1 guard from Woodstock, Ga, was ranked No. 29 nationally by ESPN. She was Regional Co-Player of Year in 2020.
“We saw her late compared to most,” Rueck says. “When Coach Katie first reached out, Savannah said, ‘I was wondering if you guys would call me. People tell me I’m an Oregon State type of player.’
“She is similar to Sasha in many ways. She’s long and versatile. You could see her play anywhere from 1 to 4 during her career. She is a gifted athlete who can shoot the 3, has a beautiful mid-range game, and the ability to elevate as a defender. We’re adding two guards I would identify as excellent defenders.”
The other freshman, 5-9 guard Teresa Faustino, from Barreigo, Portugal, was the MVP for the GDESSA club team that won the 2018-19 national title. She averaged 17.7 points and 4.3 assists that season.
“Teresa can talk basketball all day long with you,” Rueck says. “Her favorite player ever is Manu Ginobili. She described him as ‘poetry in motion.’ She spoke eloquently in English about how much she appreciated his game.
“She just got here three weeks ago and I haven’t had the chance to see her on the court, but she’s a true point guard with a great feel for the game and international experience. She gives us depth at a position where we needed it.”
There are a lot of unknowns about the upcoming season, and some with Rueck’s 11th Oregon State team. The coach says he’ll approach it with plenty of optimism.
'We do have some questions that will need to be answered,” he says. “We’re hopeful of a preseason for that reason. We could definitely benefit from some non-conference games. But I like the pieces that we have. I like our new young players, and the grad transfers bring a maturity and experience to us that will adapt quickly to this group and to Pac-12. We could be as pretty good team as it comes together.
“The general vibe in the gym is unselfishness, which is what we’ve been known for through the years. That gives me a lot of hope for the team we can become. I know this: They’re just great people. So far, we’ve had a blast together.”
Readers: what are your expectations for the 2020-21 Beaver women’s basketball team? Share your comments below.
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