GAME NOTES: The Pac-12 Conference Tournament's first round rolls on Wednesday night as the 10th-seeded Colorado Buffaloes battle with the seventh-seeded Oregon State Beavers at MGM Grand Garden Arena.

The winner of this clash will advance to the quarterfinal round on Thursday to face the second-seeded Oregon Ducks.

Colorado saw a two-game win streak come to an end at the end of the regular season in heartbreaking fashion. The Buffaloes dropped a 96-91 overtime decision to Washington State on Saturday to close out the regular season, which set the team back to 7-11 against conference competition. Colorado is a healthy 7-2 in the Pac-12 Tournament all-time, with one championship in 2012 to its name.

Oregon State is experiencing an even more rough transition into the postseason. The Beavers lost three straight to end the regular season, and dropped six of their last seven altogether. Oregon State has never won a conference title, and is 8-15 in this tournament all-time.

Colorado and Oregon State met only one time during the regular season, which saw the Beavers come away with a 72-58 victory in Corvallis.

Washington State took a 45-38 lead into the intermission against Colorado on Saturday, but the Buffaloes battled back to tie the score at the end of regulation and send the game into overtime. But in the extra session, the Cougars hit on 9-of-10 from the free-throw line and made 4-of-7 shots from the floor to gain an advantage over the Buffaloes for the win. Despite the loss, Josh Scott had a tremendous game for Colorado with 32 points and 12 rebounds, while Askia Booker chipped in with 26 points and four assists.

It was Booker that capped the season as Colorado's leading scorer. The star guard netted 17.2 ppg for the Buffaloes, which ranked in a tie for third in the Pac-12 standings. He was followed by Scott, who missed some time during the season with an injury, at 13.8 ppg. Scott was also the team's best rebounder at 7.8 rpg, beating out Wesley Gordon's 7.1 boards per outing. As a unit, the Buffaloes connected on 43.2 percent of their shots from the floor for 67.7 ppg, while the defense allowed opponents to score 66.8 ppg. In the team's loss to Oregon State in the regular season, Xavier Johnson tallied 12 points and nine rebounds to lead Colorado, while Tre'Shaun Fletcher added 11 points and Gordon netted 10.

Oregon State finished off its regular season a week ago against in-state rival Oregon - the team the Beavers will face should they beat Colorado. The Ducks won a narrow 65-62 contest, as Oregon State honored its senior players by inserting them into the starting lineup. Gary Payton II came off the bench and narrowly missed a triple-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. he also recorded six steals to lead the team in the category. Malcolm Duvivier chipped in 18 points, Jarmal Reid netted 16 and Olaf Schaftenaar contributed with 11 points.

Payton was sensational in all areas this season. The 6-foot-3 guard and namesake of his father's defensive legacy led the team with 13.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 36 blocked shots and 92 steals during the regular season. His 95 total assists came in just behind Duvivier's 104 total helpers on the year. Duvivier chipped in 10.5 ppg for a Beavers squad that ended the season averaging just 60.5 ppg, but held opponents to 58.5 ppg. In the only matchup between the Beavers and Buffaloes in the regular season, Payton netted 24 points with seven blocks and six turnovers, while Duvivier added 17 points and Daniel Gomis contributed 10 points.

If the regular-season battle between these two teams is any indication of the outcome here, the Buffaloes may struggle against the defensive intensity and tenacity of Oregon State.