by Olivia Arciniega
EUGENE, Ore – After an arguably disappointing second half of January, the Oregon men’s basketball team (13-5, 5-2 PAC12) hopes to finish the month with two critical conference wins. Both Arizona schools travel to Eugene in hopes of continuing their conference winning streaks.
The Ducks suffered two brutal losses to Utah and Colorado in the last two weeks. More recently against Utah, Jermaine Couisnard had another stellar performance, putting up 26 points and going 7-10 at the 3-point line. N'Faly Dante made his return from injury evident with a double-double (23 points and 10 rebounds). As notable as their performances were, they were overshadowed by the missed last second chances to pull out a win. Still, Oregon remains tied atop the Pac-12 with both Arizona and Arizona State, all teams with a 5-2 conference record.
The first game is Thursday, January 25th at 6:00 pm PT. against Arizona State. Coming in at 11-7 overall, this game could be a toss up that puts Oregon to the test, both offensively and defensively. Oregon has a 17-8 record against Arizona State under Coach Dana Altman, but split the series last year against each other. This year, the Sun Devils are no stranger to playing a fast paced game, being a Top-20 team in the nation in fastbreak points. On top of this, they lead the Pac-12 in turnovers caused, and play a strong, lock down three point defense. Oregon is going to have to utilize the paint and mid range shots to put up points against this scrappy team.
Arizona has been having a fantastic season, entering this week at 14-4 and ranked ninth in the NCAA. However, despite their recent unlucky run, the Ducks could make this game interesting. History is on their side at Mathew Knight, where Oregon has beat the Wildcats six straight times. On top of this, it’s important to note Arizona’s two conference losses against Stanford and Washington State. Although Stanford arguably had their best game all year, shooting 64% from the three point line and a season best 58.1% from the floor, Arizona could not respond, losing 100-82. This loss dropped the Wildcats from fourth to tenth in the nation.
About two weeks ago, the Wildcats were unable to stop Issac Jones and Washington State, losing 73-70. Arizona shot 34.7% that game from the field. As of now, they have a two game road losing streak, which the Ducks hope to turn to three.
However, Oregon can’t look past Arizona’s dangerous offense, led by Caleb Love, Pelle Larsson, and Oumar Ballo. Love averages 18.2 point per game, decisively leading the team in points on the season with 327. He’s dangerous outside the arc as well, sitting at fourth in the conference in threes made. Larsson and Ballo are players to watch as well, both the second and third leading scorers on the team. Ballo also leads the team in rebounds, both offensively and defensively.
Arizona is the fourth ranked team in forced turnovers, and is the third most efficient scoring offense in the NCAA. While it poses a strong challenge, Oregon needs to play to the Wildcats’ weak link like Stanford and Washington State were able to master. They face the Wildcats on Saturday, January 27th at 2:30 PM PT.
Oregon has all the weapons needed to take the lead in the conference. It’s going to come down to one thing: maintaining a strong defense. On average, Oregon allows 90 points per game in losses, and an average 67 points per game that they win. If the Ducks cannot contain the teams from the desert, it might be a rough weekend. However, there is reason for optimism. Oregon still has many weapons to utilize. Oregon’s freshman class is strong, with Jackson Shelstad being one of the 23 freshmen in NCAA Division I averaging at least 13 points a game (one of six in the PAC12). Dante has made his return, and looks to continue building off of his last game success. Jermaine Couisnard is a strong, consistent guard as always, coming in leading the Ducks points per game and total steals. Even if their starters are shaky, Oregon has some strong options on the bench, ranking first in the PAC12 for bench points per game.
PREDICTION: Oregon will come out strong and beat Arizona State. It‘ll be a close game in the first half, but as the Ducks adapt to their tough defense, they’ll be able to utilize the right players and slow the Sun Devil’s offense down.
Unfortunately for Oregon, the Wildcats pose too tough a task for the Ducks. The game likely won’t be a blowout, but the dangerous Love, Larsson and Ballo combination might be too much for the Ducks to handle.
Final Score Predictions: Thursday vs Arizona State: 72-64; Saturday vs Arizona: 80-68