By: Sam Greenville and Cole Rothman
This game had all the billing coming into the evening: ESPN, celebrity appearances, potential top 10 draft picks, and a Pac-12 rivalry renewed into the start of a new decade as the #24 ranked University of Arizona Wildcats (11-4) came into Matthew Knight Arena to square off against the 9th ranked Oregon Ducks (13-3) in a game that became a war of attrition and a treat for all those in attendance. This showdown had all the glitz and glamour and quickly turned into a nail biting, flip-flopping, overtime thriller that ended with a raucous Matthew Knight Area screaming for joy as the Ducks made a crucial stop (twice) with 10 seconds left and the ball in the hands of the Wildcats. Oregon would only lead for 5 minutes, be tied for another 5, and trailing for the other 35 minutes. Spectacular, mesmerizing, astonishing; these words can all be used to describe this spectacle, but when it comes down to it, the only word that feels right is classic.
Will Richardson lead all scorers with a career high 21, and converted on the what-would-be game winning lay up in overtime with a magical finish at the rim. However this would be a total team effort for the Oregon as four Ducks finished the game with double digit scoring efforts (Pritchard, Duarte, Dante, Richardson) and shot just 40 from the field. For the Wildcats, Nico Mannion was the leading scorer with 20 points and had his way for a majority of the game, along with a high energy rebounding effort by Zeke Nnaji (14). For all the hype surrounding this match-up it simply showcased two of the best teams not only in the Pac-12, but also two teams that have expectations to make deep runs into tournament play come March. If tonight was anything, it was indication to the rest of the country that these two teams out West could certainly make a case for being in that elite class of collegiate basketball.
Surrounded by all the cheering and adulation, head coach Dana Altman still recognizes how much work there is to be done for the rest of the season and mentioned in the postgame to his team, “Fellas I’m really proud you found a way to grind this out but there’s so much more there, and if you don’t put demands on each other and on ourselves we won’t find out how good we can be.” Altman expecting more from his team is true indication that complacency and being satisfied is one of the biggest opponents to this team this year if they want to continue playing the way they have so far this season.
Audio Story:
Post-game Audio