Hellgate's Tres Tinkle commits to Oregon State

MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) - Missoula Hellgate senior Tres Tinkle has made a verbal commitment to play basketball at Oregon State, where his father was named head coach in May.

The 6-foot-7 forward averaged 21.1 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.8 steals as a junior, when Hellgate finished second at the state Class AA tournament. He led Hellgate to the state championship as a sophomore and recently decided to finish his high school career at Hellgate.

Tinkle says Stephen Thompson Jr. of Torrance, California - whose father is an assistant coach at OSU - also committed to playing for the Beavers starting with the 2015-16 season.

The early signing period begins on Nov. 12.

Coach Tinkle cannot comment on recruits until after they sign their letters of intent, but as a father he says he’s glad his son has made his decision and he can focus on his senior year both athletically and academically.