A slew of sloppy plays and falling just short defined the Oregon men’s basketball team’s season, and again on Thursday as its Pac-12 Tournament run came to a sputtering close.
“We try to set a standard at Oregon,” head coach Dana Altman said. “I felt like for the first time in a long time, we didn’t meet that standard.”
A slow, grind-it-out battle is what Altman envisioned. And as usual, when it mattered most the 12-year coach got his way – until a 12-0 run foiled Altman’s plans and gave the Colorado Buffaloes much-needed momentum.
After only scoring 18 points in the first 12 minutes, the Buffaloes offense caught fire, simultaneously, the Ducks' offense went cold. The Buffaloes caught the Ducks at 25 and never conceded the lead after that point. They kept their Pac-12 Tournament hopes alive, beating the Ducks, 80-69.
Oregon (19-14) kept a tight seven-man rotation. Ultimately it was their crutch.
Evan Battey took advantage of the lack of man power. He went right at N’Faly Dante and got the Ducks big man in foul trouble. Dante, who was a force with 5 blocks Wednesday against Oregon State, couldn’t impose his will due to the foul trouble.
Battey also exposed Dante’s inability and unwillingness to step out to the three-point line and defend. The big man took the space on the perimeter personal dropping in two 3-pointers. Battey scored a team-high 19 points and Jabari Walker had 18 for the Buffaloes.
“Evan is a matchup nightmare the way he’s shooting the three-ball,” Colorado coach Tad Boyle said. “It was apparent with Dante on the pick and pops.”
Dante picked up two fouls on back-to-back possessions, forcing Altman to put him on the bench for five minutes at a crucial juncture.
Colorado (21-10) benefitted from Dante’s cautiousness. It held a 12-point advantage in the paint and outrebounded the Ducks by 13.
Quincy Guerrier and Jacob Young were the only consistent bucket-getters for the Ducks. Guerrier did his best to keep his team afloat, netting timely 3-pointers that stymied the Buffaloes runs on his way to a season-high 25 points.
Guerrier was 4 of 10 from three, but his ability to break down his man coverage and get to the basket helped the Ducks find an offensive flow.
Young followed suit, although it took until the second half for Young’s offense to return to what it was Wednesday.
In the end, though, the Ducks lacked offensive firepower. They shot 34.3% from the field and 29.6% from deep. The Buffaloes struggled offensively out of the gate, but took control of the tempo down the stretch.
More important to their offensive output, they eluded the Ducks full-court press and took care of the ball. Oregon is at its best when pressuring the opponent’s ball handler and forcing turnovers.
After turning the ball over a combined 35 times in their first two matchups with the Ducks, the Buffaloes prioritized ball security and only had 8 turnovers in Thursday’s game.
With the loss, the Ducks are most likely headed to the National Invitation Tournament for the third time under Altman.
"I'd be very disappointed if we get the invitation on Sunday if our guys weren't excited about playing,” Altman said. “We're not too good to be in the NIT. It's not the NCAA Tournament, but it's an opportunity to play.”
The 32-team NIT field will be unveiled Sunday at 5 p.m. during a selection show on ESPNU.
