Last year was different.
Last year, the Oregon State Beavers went 5-27 with only one win during Pac-12 play. They lost twice to the Oregon Ducks, who went 33-6 and earned a spot in the NCAA Final Four.
This year, the Beavers came into the 349th Civil War on Friday with a 9-5 record. They opened Pac-12 play the same way as the Ducks, with a loss to Utah and a win over Colorado.
The Beavers now control the state as they beat the Ducks, 76-64, for the first time since Jan. 3, 2016.
“It’s the Civil War game,” Oregon State head coach Wayne Tinkle said. “You don’t have to say much more than that to get the guys riled up. … The guys really took it to the floor. They took it to the court and they were not going to be denied. That’s what really made me proud.”
The loss dropped an Oregon (10-5, Pac-12 1-2) four-game winning streak over the Beavers (10-5, 2-1).
Oregon simply could not keep up as Oregon State outshot the Ducks in every category.
From making 31.4 percent of their field goals and only 4-of-14 three-point attempts in the first half, the Ducks couldn’t find their momentum.
“The way we have been losing we feel like we have been letting games slip away from us,” Oregon’s Paul White said. “Just not putting our best foot forward. We just need to find our identity.”
Layups from Paul White and Victor Bailey Jr.,  got the Ducks trailing the Beavers by only one point at the half.
“We had a hard time getting into our groove.” Bailey Jr. said. “They looked more comfortable heading down the stretch. … It looked like we had some open looks and they weren’t going in. And they got some second-chance points and you look up and theirs are going in.”
The second half started with the same tease as the first for the Ducks, as Mikyle McIntosh would make a three that lead the teams into a battle of back-to-back ties.
A Beaver layup at the half’s 15 minute, 52 second mark by Stephen Thompson Jr. gave Oregon State a lead that lasted them the rest of the game. The Beavers would lead as much as 14 over the Ducks, before ending the game on a 12-point deficit.
“They just outworked us, there is no other way to say it,” Oregon head coach Dana Altman said. “We took some really tough shots, at times bad shots. Our ball movement wasn’t really good from any of our players. I’m just really disappointed in our efforts.”
Thompson Jr. became Oregon State’s 40^th player to join the 1,000-point club, as he ended the game with 16 points. Tres Tinkle led the Beavers with his seventh-career double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds.
The rivals will play each other once more in this season, as they will meet in Eugene later this month.
As for the Ducks, they will take their farthest, and possibly hardest, road trip of the season next week when they travel to the state of Arizona. Oregon will play No. 4 Arizona State on Thursday, Jan. 11 at 7 p.m.
Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter: @maggie_vanoni