Oregon State’s top two scorers say they’re returning in 2023-24.
Jordan Pope and Glenn Taylor Jr. each vowed to return to play for the Beavers next season following their loss to Arizona State in the first round of the Pac-12 men’s basketball tournament Wednesday night at T-Mobile Arena.
“We’re both with the Beavers,” said Taylor, who scored 17 points in the 63-57 season-ending loss.
Pope said he is “200%” committed to return to OSU.
“We have a good group of guys,” Pope said. “We can do something really, really special. I believe we have the potential to be a top-20 team and I believe in all my teammates, I believe in the coaching staff. And it’s a great fit for both sides me, Glenn, everyone else on the team, coach (Wayne) Tinkle, all the other coaching staff and, yeah, we plan to be here, so there’s no question about that.”
Pope, a freshman, led Oregon State (11-21) in scoring with 12.6 points per game and Taylor, a sophomore, averaged 11.6 points this season.
Their returns give the Beavers two players to build around as they attempt to snap a skid of back-to-back losing seasons.
“We got a lot of the culture back, but part of our culture is winning and that’s the next piece,” Tinkle said. “These guys know it. They know that when we challenge ‘em it’s because we believe in ‘em. But you see it in their effort every day, how they get along with each other, what the fight they take to the court, what they’re doing in the classroom and the community. But winning’s the next piece we need to add.
“We definitely felt like we let some slip this year, but we took a big step in the right direction for sure. There’s going to be a lot of questions, that’s the landscape we’re in. … But we’ll get back, these guys deserve a couple weeks off and I know that we’re going to bring back a core group that’s all about the Beaver way. We’ll add the right pieces. And when we get that obviously you look over the course, we’ve had a couple tough years. We’ve done great things and we’ll get back there for sure.”
— James Crepea reported from Las Vegas