Last Saturday, with 1.4 seconds to play, the Oregon State Beavers were looking to shock the Cal Golden Bears at Haas Pavilion. They inbounded the ball to Angelo Tsagarakis, who launched a deep three to tie the game and force overtime. Unfortunately, the Beavers went on to lose the game, 84 to 80.
"It has a very sour taste," explained Tsagarakis. "It's one of those shots you wish could be talked about for a long time as being a game winner or something that helped us win."
Big three point shots, however, are nothing new to Tsagarakis, who broke the school record his Freshman year with 45 three-point field goals, but things haven't been all that Angelo expected going into the season.
"The season was kind of up and down for me especially coming in with back spasms," he explained. "The back spasms slowed me down, they didn't help me to be 100% and I had to fight through that, spending endless hours in training rooms, trying to be up for practice, and be able to sustain full practice, be able to play."
Born and raised in France, Angelo grew up idolizing such NBA greats as Michael Jordan, Allen Iverson, Jason Kidd, and Gary Payton. As a Senior in high school, he compared his ability to that of NBA legend Reggie Miller.
Once a highly recruited guard from Casa Grande High School in Petaluma, California, and teammate of fellow Beaver Kyle Jeffers, Angelo led the Gauchos with 23 points his senior year as the team captain, and was named Sonoma County League MVP.
Before coming to Corvallis, Tsagarakis played on the French Under-20 National Team, averaging 14 points per game in the European Championship qualifiers, as well as participating in the French Nike Camp, while earning the MVP in 1999.
"The thing about Angelo is he has amazing body control. He can take a Kobe Bryant-type fadeaway, but he's always square to the basket. He's also got a real quick release. There's so many ways he can score I'm not sure how you defend him. I'm glad I don't have to worry about it," said Angelo's high school coach, Chris Russotti.
Angelo was forced to sit out his Sophomore year after dislocating his right shoulder before the beginning of the year, which resulted in surgery and a red shirt season.
Coming into his junior year, the French phenom looked to showcase his shooting talents and land a key role on the Beavers basketball team, possibly scoring valuable playing time. However, beginning the season on a cold streak, Angelo looked to quickly turn things around.
"I was in a shooting slump at the beginning of the season, and I came out of it. I think it was a positive for me to come back from that bad start when I was 1 for 16 and come back and be closer to 45 or 46 percent."
Tsagarakis' luck finally changed four games into the season when the Beavers got blown out at home by Nevada. Angelo led the Beavers with 11 points in 16 minutes while coming off the bench.
"The thing that Angelo is able to do that not very many people can do is come off the bench and be ready to shoot right away," said Beaver coach Jay John. "Not everyone is capable of doing that."
This being his junior season, Angelo averages three points while logging 10 minutes per game, and a 2 to 1 assist to turnover ratio.
"This is what sports are about. It's about battling through bad times and still fighting to come back and keep improving and competing," Tsagarakis said.
"It has a very sour taste," explained Tsagarakis. "It's one of those shots you wish could be talked about for a long time as being a game winner or something that helped us win."
Big three point shots, however, are nothing new to Tsagarakis, who broke the school record his Freshman year with 45 three-point field goals, but things haven't been all that Angelo expected going into the season.
"The season was kind of up and down for me especially coming in with back spasms," he explained. "The back spasms slowed me down, they didn't help me to be 100% and I had to fight through that, spending endless hours in training rooms, trying to be up for practice, and be able to sustain full practice, be able to play."
Born and raised in France, Angelo grew up idolizing such NBA greats as Michael Jordan, Allen Iverson, Jason Kidd, and Gary Payton. As a Senior in high school, he compared his ability to that of NBA legend Reggie Miller.
Once a highly recruited guard from Casa Grande High School in Petaluma, California, and teammate of fellow Beaver Kyle Jeffers, Angelo led the Gauchos with 23 points his senior year as the team captain, and was named Sonoma County League MVP.
Before coming to Corvallis, Tsagarakis played on the French Under-20 National Team, averaging 14 points per game in the European Championship qualifiers, as well as participating in the French Nike Camp, while earning the MVP in 1999.
"The thing about Angelo is he has amazing body control. He can take a Kobe Bryant-type fadeaway, but he's always square to the basket. He's also got a real quick release. There's so many ways he can score I'm not sure how you defend him. I'm glad I don't have to worry about it," said Angelo's high school coach, Chris Russotti.
Angelo was forced to sit out his Sophomore year after dislocating his right shoulder before the beginning of the year, which resulted in surgery and a red shirt season.
Coming into his junior year, the French phenom looked to showcase his shooting talents and land a key role on the Beavers basketball team, possibly scoring valuable playing time. However, beginning the season on a cold streak, Angelo looked to quickly turn things around.
"I was in a shooting slump at the beginning of the season, and I came out of it. I think it was a positive for me to come back from that bad start when I was 1 for 16 and come back and be closer to 45 or 46 percent."
Tsagarakis' luck finally changed four games into the season when the Beavers got blown out at home by Nevada. Angelo led the Beavers with 11 points in 16 minutes while coming off the bench.
"The thing that Angelo is able to do that not very many people can do is come off the bench and be ready to shoot right away," said Beaver coach Jay John. "Not everyone is capable of doing that."
This being his junior season, Angelo averages three points while logging 10 minutes per game, and a 2 to 1 assist to turnover ratio.
"This is what sports are about. It's about battling through bad times and still fighting to come back and keep improving and competing," Tsagarakis said.
