Oregon benefitted from another cohesive team performance, where only center Nate Bittle shot the ball more than nine times. Sharing the love and playing team basketball leads this team to more dominant wins as it did on Sunday. When asked about the efficient night, head coach Dana Altman said the following.
“We’re just trying to find our tempo, and what we need to look for from three,” Altman said.
The biggest difference between Sunday’s game and the last game against Portland was the patience shown and the team’s ability to wait for the right shot. Against the Pilots, shots were forced and the team looked uncomfortable settling for contested looks. Sunday, the Ducks fought to move the ball.
The Ducks set the tone early with aggressive and relentless defense. Troy was unable to get good looks at the rim early, turning the ball over and miscommunicating posed a problem in the first five minutes. Oregon started the game with an emphasis on attacking the hoop, with its first 3-point attempt coming at the 13:07 mark.
Georgetown transfer, Supreme Cook saw his first minutes with the Ducks this year after knee surgery this offseason. The senior made an immediate impact on the offensive glass, as well as catching a big inbounds alley-oop for his first Ducks bucket. Cook gave the ducks a much-needed infusion of size and paint scoring off the bench.
“Supreme did his job. He knows and takes pride in what he is,” coach Altman said. “He gave us a big lift.”
Keeshawn Barthelemy continued his hot shooting streak from the win against Portland, hitting the Ducks’ first 3 of the game. Barthelemy led the Ducks in scoring with a team-high 15 points on three first-half triples.
“Keshawn gave us a big lift that first half – he really did a good job,” Altman said.
In the last few minutes of the first half, Troy began looking comfortable in transition, attacking the paint and succeeding on consecutive fastbreaks. It Capped off the first half with a buzzer-beating fastbreak slam.
As the opponent increased its physicality, the Ducks held their lead and matched the downhill aggressiveness of Troy with strong rim protection and relentless offensive attack, finishing the half 3-for- from the field.
Ducks missed the presence of guard Ra’Heim Moss, who was sidelined unexpectedly today. Through three games, Moss has demonstrated that he is the premiere perimeter defender for the Oregon Ducks. The six-foot-four Toledo transfer is averaging 1.4 career steals per game and provided a defensive spark for this experienced Oregon team. Altman told the media after the game that Moss sat out with some knee soreness from Friday’s practice.
Out of the half Oregon’s size down low continued to pose a problem for Troy. Offensive rebounding was a real strong suit for the Oregon big men Bittle and Cook. Bittle did a fantastic job of contesting cleanly and rejecting shots without initiating contact. Despite the strong defensive performance, coach Altman expects more from his senior center.
“I think there is a lot more there with Nate, I think he can be a lot more active,” said Altman.
Troy’s persistent press on the inbounds forced some Oregon turnovers and easy buckets for Troy, Oregon almost giving out four on two fastbreaks at a certain point. Troy failed to rally but managed to capitalize on Oregon’s mistakes as they forced 17 turnovers.
Oregon’s only true freshman Jamari Phillips played meaningful minutes in Sunday’s matchup, exhibiting persistent defense and confidence in his shot with a 3 in the late minutes of the game. The absence of Moss has allowed Phillips to have a bigger role in the rotation.
Brandon Angel continues to adapt to his role in Altman’s rotation, becoming more comfortable as the help man and by using his size to impact Troy’s drives and using his length to contest jump shots.
Starting Sunday, Oregon forward Jadrian Tracey showed out defensively with two steals and was held to just six points but showed tremendous touch and patience waiting for shots to come his way and running the offense proficiently as a starter.
Shooting seemed to be the biggest problem for the Ducks last year. Just as everyone wondered if the same issue would arise, the Ducks struggled to shoot the long ball again. Going 7-for-22 from behind the arc as a team was enough to get them past Troy, still scoring 82 points, but fans will have to see if the Ducks can replicate a win like this against proven opponents in Big Ten play.
Oregon will go on to play Oregon State in Corvallis, Oregon at 7 p.m. this Thursday. The Beavers come into the game sitting at 4-0, just like the Ducks. The Beavers have been dominant in non-conference play, with their smallest margin of victory being 19 points versus Cal State Fullerton.
The Ducks’ next game in Matthew Knight Arena is a couple of weeks out, slated for Dec. 3 vs former Pac-12 rival UCLA.