It hasn’t been the most difficult first four games for the Oregon State men’s basketball team, but when you win, you feel good regardless.

The Beavers are 4-0 to begin the season for the first time since 2015 following home wins against Utah Tech, Weber State, Western Oregon and Cal State Fullerton.

Now comes the first true test, as Oregon State hosts 4-0 Oregon at 7 p.m. Thursday on ESPN+. But before then, let’s look at what stands out from the early slate of games.

Early coronation for Kingz

One of the reasons why the Beavers were able to survive last Friday against Fullerton was the play of guard Nate Kingz.

The Salem native missed all of last season with an ACL injury, so with this being his first action for the Beavers, there were questions of what he would provide.

The answer to that is consistent shooting. He’s scored double digits in every game, including 22 against Fullerton. He’s shooting 63.2% from the field and 56.5% from beyond the arc, providing a necessary shooting touch for this offense.

“I feel like it’s been good, but it’s really because my teammates are finding me, helping me on screens, talking to me,” Kingz said following the win over Western Oregon on Nov. 12. “I’m just being selfless, giving it up to the open man. Just playing team basketball.”

Fallah’s good first impression

One of the big concerns from last season was the play on the interior. Through four games, forward Arsa Fallah is trying to remedy those concerns.

The Southern Utah transfer has made an instant impact, scoring 13 points in his debut followed by 16 against Weber State.

“He’s a load down there. He likes physicality. He wants to hit first. As we always say, ‘Be the hammer, not the nail,’” assistant coach Chris Haslam said following the game against Weber State on Nov. 8. “But he does a great job carving out space and he has great footwork. His ability to finish over both shoulders, pivots, he has great balance for his size. He’s a tough matchup and our guys do a great job of getting him the ball on time.”

He scored eight points in limited minutes against Western Oregon due to it being a convincing win, but Friday’s game against Cal State Fullerton shows how important he is already.

Fallah got into foul trouble and didn’t play much at all in the first half. And the offense suffered. A lot of it was due to missing shots but he has already asserted himself as a big piece of the puzzle.

He finished with one point in 17 minutes, as the Beavers eventually got it going for the 70-51 victory. But him being on the floor producing has already proven to be an important part of this team’s success.

Leaders leading the way

It was clear in the preseason and it’s clear in the early going that junior forward Michael Rataj and senior guard Damarco Minor are the leaders of this team on and off the floor. They have helped bring this group together in different ways.

Rataj has been consistent to start, with performances of 15, 15, 13 and 18 points through four games. He’s also averaging 9.5 rebounds per game.

It hasn’t been the easiest start for Minor. He had 23 in the opener against Utah Tech, but three, 10 and nine points since then. He is, however, finding other ways to help, including eight assists against Weber State and averaging 4.3 rebounds per game as a point guard.

But maybe most importantly, they’re both doing the work off the floor.

“Credit to our leaders (Rataj and Minor), bringing us together behind closed doors,” guard DaJohn Craig said. “Always close with each other, whether it’s at the gym getting shots or just hanging out. I think the chemistry is really good, continuing to grow.”

Although it’s only four games, Rataj has been happy to see the work paying off.

“One hundred percent. We put a lot of new people in here, changed our way,” Rataj said. “We put a lot of work in during the offseason, so I feel like that’s coming to show right now.”

By the numbers

Four games against some sub-par competition is a small sample size when comparing it to a full season, especially with a new team, but when looking at this year to last, some numbers jump out right away.

Shooting has been a little better, 50% compared to 44.2% from the field and 34.7% to 32.8% from beyond the arc. The Beavers are turning it over less, 10.3 a game this year compared to 12.3. And they’re rebounding better, 37.5 a game this year compared to 32.5 last year.

But three things really stand out — assists, steals and blocks.

This year, Oregon State is averaging 17.8 assists per game, compared to 11.1 last year. The team is stealing the ball 10.3 times per game this year compared to 6.0 last year.

And the Beavers are blocking 7.5 shots a game, compared to 3.7. That’s highlighted by the performance against Western Oregon, where they set a program record with 14 blocks as a team.

It’s been a decent start for the defense, but coach Wayne Tinkle sees the high number of blocks as a sign there’s still work to do.

“We’ve improved our athleticism, length and depth,” Tinkle said after the win over Western Oregon. “I’m not happy with our on-ball defense that puts us in a position where we have to block shots, but it’s good to know that it’s there.”

What’s next

Oregon (4-0) comes to Gill Coliseum on Thursday, the first true test of the season. The Ducks are coming off a win over Troy on Sunday, but did struggle with West Coast Conference member Portland on Nov. 12, having to come back to win 80-70 in overtime.

After facing Oregon, the Beavers will go on the road to take on a solid North Texas team that beat Minnesota on the road last Wednesday.

After taking on Oregon State, the Ducks will head to Las Vegas next week for the Players Era Festival. They are set to face Texas A&M on Tuesday, San Diego State on Wednesday and Creighton on Nov. 30.