Gazette-Times Reporter

Josh Tarver couldn't hide or block out the bad memories because fans and friends asked him about last season nearly every day during the offseason.

Eight long months of flashbacks and frustration from the helplessness have ended for the Oregon State men's basketball team.

A new season begins today in Washington, D.C., against Howard. With that comes the opportunity to put the first winless Pacific-10 Conference season in the distant past.

"That bothers you when you can't do anything about it in the offseason," said Tarver, a junior guard. "The season is here, so now we can show people we have gotten better, we are disciplined on the court and can win games."

During the offseason the Beavers hit the weight room, worked on their shot and found a new coach, Craig Robinson.

A new motion offense has been installed. It's still a work in progress understanding what's asked of them, but at least the players are enthused.

"I really love this offense," forward Omari Johnson said. "Everybody will be able to make shots. It will be easier to get shots. There won't be hands in the face. It will be easy to get to the basket."

Getting the players excited was the first issue to address. Now that Robinson has accomplished that, it's on to the season.

To surpass the six wins from last season, they have to face the always challenging Pacific-10 Conference and deal with difficult nonconference opponents such as Nebraska, Iowa State, Nevada and Fresno State.

"We just want to show people we can do things with a different system, a different coach and we have a system that works," guard Rickey Claitt said. "People will doubt us, but we want to make some noise this year and prove people wrong about this team, about we weren't a good group. We are going to turn some heads this year."

Since practice began a month ago, Robinson has instilled a strict work ethic in fast-paced practices. The players responded well to the rougher approach.

The consensus among them is that they know how hard they have to work now to find success, which was missing in the past.

"We are working harder," Tarver said. "We understand having a set offense the whole year will help. Guys understand we have to play hard on offense and defense the whole time. We understand that now."

The Beavers had mixed results in two exhibition games. The offense scored points, but it was difficult in the first game. There was improvement in the second.

The game plan started properly, but it broke down quickly at times. It wasn't often that the offense was run completely.

What Robinson wants is a meticulous approach of passing, cutting to get open and finding the open shot.

"Coach wants us to run through all our stuff," Tarver said. "We are not a good shooting team yet, but we are getting there. The more we learn this offense, the more wide-open shots we'll get. And the more shots we'll knock down."

Even if they can get open, getting the ball through the hoop is not a given. The Beavers shot a dismal 37 percent from the field and 65 percent from the free-throw line last season. There were no new recruits, so an improvement comes from the offseason preparation.

Tarver says players must still take more shots away from practice to make it routine, so they aren't thinking too hard in games and relax.

"We are never going to win games if we don't make shots," Tarver said. "It's just a mental thing. I don't know if guys get frightened.

"You just have to play the same way you are in practice. This offense will get you wide-open shots; it's just a matter of you knocking it down."

As for predictions for the season, it's the first year of a vast rebuilding project. It's going to take Robinson some time to get the players he needs, and for them to learn the system.

The Beavers were predictably picked to finish last in the Pac-10 preseason poll.

Players on this season's roster don't consider it a lost cause. They are still competitive and want to win for their pride.

"You have to have the mindset anyway," Tarver said. "People understand this is a rebuilding year with a new system, new coach, but that doesn't affect how hard we worked in the summer.

"The guys on the team want to win this year. We did what we needed to do in the summer to get better."

Beavers MEN'S BASKETBALL report

TODAY: at Howard

TIPOFF: 4 p.m.

WHERE: Burr Gymnasium (2,700)

RECORDS: Oregon State 0-0; Howard 0-0

SERIES: Oregon State leads 1-0

TV/RADIO: None/KEJO (1240 AM)

UPDATE: This is the season opener for both teams. OSU's home opener is Nov. 24 against Yale. … The Beavers won both their exhibition games and improved from the first one to the second. … They are on a 21-game losing streak, dating back to Dec. 19. The last win was against Northern Colorado, 65-56. … Players are adjusting to the new motion offense and have tightened up the defense. … F Omari Johnson and F Daniel Deane were the most consistent players in the exhibitions. … C Roeland Schaftenaar and G Lathen Wallace had significant jumps in their play from the first exhibition to the second. … "We feel like we are ready," Johnson said. "The second exhibition game showed we have a lot of upside. I expect a win this game." … Howard is one of the weakest teams in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and had a 6-26 overall record last season, 3-13 in the MEAC. -. Scoring points was an issue last season with an average of 56.8 ppg. … The Bison billed this as one of the biggest games in the program's history in order to sell tickets for the slim possibility that president-elect Barack Obama shows up to watch his brother-in-law, Craig Robinson, coach the Beavers. … OSU won the only meeting in the series 84-67 at home Dec. 19, 2006.