Written Story by Jakob Salao

Eugene, Ore.— Oregon’s Men’s basketball team opened their season with an 80-45 victory against the Florida A&M Rattlers. The matchup was the first in a new partnership between the Pac-12 and the Southwestern Athletic Conference in what’s known as the Pac-12/SWAC Legacy Series. Along with bringing Historically Black Colleges and Universities into a partnership with the Pac-12, it will also give Oregon the opportunity to play against Florida A&M away next season. 

Oregon’s lineup saw four returners make the start: Guard Will Richardson, Guard Rivaldo Soares, Forward Quincy Guerrier, and Center N’faly Dante. The last spot was filled out by Guard Keeshawn Barthelemy, the Junior transfer from Colorado. These players got the start, but this didn’t mean that Head Coach Dana Altman forgot about the other players that joined Oregon over the off-season. The Ducks saw an efficient rotation between their starters and bench players like Guard Tyrone Williams, Center Kel’el Ware, and Center Nate Bittle throughout the game. 

Dante led the Ducks in scoring as he put up 16 points on 7/11 shooting along with a team-high 4 steals and 10 rebounds, 4 of which came on offense. It’s the start that many hoped to see when Dante made his return to the Ducks this season, and he certainly did not disappoint anyone in the crowd. 

Freshman Kel’el Ware also had 8 points with 5 rebounds in 19 minutes. Though he did not lead the team in any of his stats, Ware still had a solid outing for the Ducks. His 7’0 presence in the paint was key to the Duck’s victory. He was able to out-rebound and bully his way past defenders consistently. 

The Duck’s defense wasn’t rattled by Florida A&M. In the first half, Head Coach Altman would consistently send out full-court presses against the Rattlers, and there was nothing the Rattlers could do to get past the staunch defense. In the first half, Florida A&M shot just 9/25 (36%) from the field compared to Oregon’s 13/32 (40.6%), allowing the Ducks to jump out to a 36-25 lead. 

However, the Rattlers were able to apply that same pressure right back to the Ducks in the second half as both teams would end the game shooting at a clip of 37.5% and 46% respectively. The Ducks seem to have some trouble shooting, as they were able to get open looks, especially behind the arc, but were unable to convert on those opportunities, shooting 6/25 (24%) from 3pt range, including a dismal 1/14 (7.1%) in the first half. Only 4 Ducks drained a shot from long range: Richardson, Barthelemy, Ware, and Bittle.

However, Oregon showed true dominance in the paint, scoring 42 points in the paint and tallying a total of 44 rebounds as a team with 18 offensive rebounds. The ability of the Ducks to grab these boards was what kept them in the lead for most of the game and it gave Oregon the ability to score after missed shots much more consistently. 

Oregon is set to take on their next opponent, UC Irvine, in Matthew Knight Arena on 11/11 at 8:00 p.m. 

Audio Story by Ben Schoenfield