CORVALLIS — Scott Rueck stood on stage in front of a few hundred Oregon State women’s basketball fans Sunday afternoon, talking with joy about the Beavers landing an NCAA Tournament berth.

There was much to discuss. A 24-7 record. A No. 3 seed. Home tournament games, starting against No. 14 Eastern Washington at 5 p.m. Friday at Gill Coliseum (TV on ESPNU). A team that looks capable of making a dangerous run to the Elite Eight, maybe more.

Rueck has done this many times before during his 28-year coaching career, and surely he’d do it again. But circle back to a year ago, and there were doubts. It’s not that Rueck had forgotten how to coach, or couldn’t attract talent to Oregon State.

It’s college basketball’s unknowns that have escalated. The transfer portal. Name, image and likeness.

For an OSU program accustomed to making annual appearances in the NCAA Tournament, coming up empty in back-to-back years raised questions and doubt. Last season’s 13-18 record left for uneasy feelings heading into the spring.

“It felt like we were doing things right, but it wasn’t quite good enough. And then with the world that we live in, who knows exactly how an offseason is going to go,” Rueck said.

Then came the exit meetings, where each player meets with the coaches. Once they finished, Rueck didn’t exhale. He smiled.

Everyone on the roster said they were coming back. They stuck to their word.

“Every single exit meeting was positive,” Rueck said. “It was remarkable because everybody was getting better throughout the year. We just weren’t good enough, but you could see the progress. That work ethic and that commitment is evident in the way they conducted themselves in every way. That gave me a lot of hope going forward.”

Many players had options. The Beavers had a couple 5-star recruits just coming off a freshman season. There were shooters and veterans who surely could have made a seamless transition to a winning program and made a difference.

Instead, they decided to make a difference at an Oregon State program with a track record of its own.

“We saw the potential. We had that belief that we could be the team that we’ve turned into, and even more. I think there’s still so much room for growth,” junior guard Talia von Oelhoffen said. “We believed in the culture that Coach Rueck has built and in the staff and with each other. And that we could get back to where we were a few years ago.”

It’s no secret why Oregon State has shown dramatic improvement this season. For the first time in three years, there’s continuity. Learning Rueck’s system doesn’t happen overnight. But most of the roster now has some seasoning, and they began to flourish midway through the 2023-24 campaign.

“There’s nothing like having a junior or a senior that’s been in your program and been through the wars,” Rueck said. “It’s become more and more rare, sadly, because I don’t think people understand the magic that happens for a person when they stick with it through all the highs and lows.”

Which leaves Rueck feeling grateful for what has happened this season. He specifically pointed to von Oelhoffen and junior guard A.J. Marotte, the only Beavers who have been on the roster for the past three years.

“I’ve got to give this team all the credit in the world. For Talia and A.J., to weather the last two years and to stay committed, look at how they’re being rewarded with that,” Rueck said. “It makes me really proud of them. Happy for them. I just want to be a part of it with them.”

Eastern Washington (23-5) won the Big Sky regular season and conference tournament championship.

Oregon State was assigned to play in the Albany 1 (New York) Regional. The top seed is South Carolina (32-0). If the Beavers win their first two games in Corvallis, Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games are played in Albany.

Also assigned to the Corvallis pod are No. 6 Nebraska and No. 11 Texas A&M. They’ll play a first-round game at 7:30 p.m. Friday (ESPNU), with the winner advancing to Sunday’s second round to play the Oregon State-Eastern Washington winner.

This is the Beavers’ 13th NCAA tournament appearance. OSU had a stretch of seven consecutive appearances that ended after the 2021 tournament. The Beavers played in the WNIT in 2022 and didn’t qualify for postseason play in 2023.

The Beavers play host to first- and second-round games at Gill Coliseum for the fifth time in school history, and first time since 2019.