Oregon State Beavers adds SG Kendal Manuel

The Oregon State Beavers surprised many around the nation in head coach Wayne Tinkle’s first season at the helm, and don’t expect anything to change as the Beavers enter the 2015-16 season.

The program announced that they will add shooting Kendal Manuel to an already loaded incoming recruiting class.

Manuel is no stranger to the Tinkle family having played grassroots basketball with Tinkle’s son Tres, who will also be a freshman in the fall.  The Montana native was the state’s second ranked player, but appears to be more of a long term project for Tinkle and his staff.

Coach Tinkle has the Beavers moving in the right direction and the addition of an extremely strong recruiting class could elevate Oregon State to the top of the Pac-12.

Because they are bringing in seven players, coach Tinkle has taken a unique approach to spreading the program’s money around electing to bring Tres and fellow coaches son Stephen Thompson Jr., both four star recruits, as walk-ons and thus paying the school’s full tuition.

This gives his staff more flexibility with the remaining recruits and establishing more depth throughout the roster.

In 2014-15, the Beavers finished 17-14 , however, showed signs of rebirth for a program that has not qualified for the NCAA Tournament since the 1990 season.

Despite several departures, Oregon State is looking at the real possibility of playing post season basketball, but Tinkle’s squad needs to improve on an every day basis and show the selection committee that they can compete with the nation’s finest.

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*Featured Photo (above) credit to USA TODAY Sports

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