Oregon Weekly MBB Release - WSU, UW - University of Oregon Athletics

For the complete release with full notes, statistics, etc., view the PDF version

EUGENE, Ore. -- The University of Oregon men's basketball team (9-3), winners of five of its last six outings, will open Pac-12 Conference play this week with games against Washington State (8-4) and Washington (6-5). The Ducks-Cougars will play at Spokane Arena with tip-time scheduled for 6 p.m. (PT). The UO-UW contest is at Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion in Seattle and is set to tip-off at 7 p.m.

The Ducks lead the all-time series with Washington State, 158-123. UO has won four out of the last five meetings, the most recent being a 69-53 home win a year ago. Oregon lost 77-63 at WSU last season. The Ducks' last win on the road against WSU was on Dec. 31, 2009, a 91-89 double-overtime victory at Friel Court in Pullman (which was the conference opener for both schools). Oregon is 10-6 against the Cougars in neutral-site contests.

Washington has a 183-106 edge in the series history with Oregon. UW took two out of three games from UO last season, including a 69-51 victory in the semifinals of the conference tournament. The Ducks defeated then No. 20 Washington in Eugene, 81-76. UW won the game in Seattle by a score of 87-69. UO's last win in Seattle was on Jan. 2, 2010, a 90-79 victory.

The Ducks are 23-20 overall in conference openers dating back to the 1968-69 season with the formation of the Pac-8 Conference.

WASHINGTON STATE LIVE COVERAGE
• TV: OSN on Comcast SportsNet NW; Rich Cellini, pxp; Jordan Kent, analyst
• Radio: Oregon IMG Sports Network; Brian Prawitz, play-by-play
• GoDucks.com: Live audio, video and stats
• Satellite radio: SIRIUS 94 (WSU broadcast)
• Twitter: @Geraghty_UO for in-game updates, stats, etc.

WASHINGTON LIVE COVERAGE
• TV: ESPN2; Dave Fleming, pxp; Sean Farnham, analyst
• Radio: Oregon IMG Sports Network; Brian Prawitz, play-by-play
• GoDucks.com: Live audio and stats
• Satellite radio: TBA
• Twitter: @Geraghty_UO for in-game updates, stats, etc.

Complete media information (radio affiliates, TV schedule and information) is located on page 3 of this release.

JOSEPH KEY ADDITION TO OREGON LINEUP
Since becoming eligible to compete on Dec. 10, senior guard Devoe Joseph has averaged team-bests with 14.3 points and 1.7 steals per game, while playing a team-high 31.5 minutes per contest. Joseph has scored in double-figures in each of the six games.

In his UO debut against Fresno State, Joseph came off the bench to score a team-high 18 points in 29 minutes. Joseph followed that up with 13-point, six-assist effort against Portland State. He also scored a team-best 16 points in the home loss to Virginia.

Joseph tallied a season-high 19 points and a career-high five steals in UO's win over Prairie View A&M. A night later he nearly registered a double-double with 10 points and a career-best eight rebounds in the win over Stephen F. Austin.

Joseph, from Toronto, Canada, played three seasons and 76 total games at Minnesota before transferring to UO last December.

SIM HAVING STRONG SENIOR SEASON
Senior guard Garrett Sim has scored a team-best 154 points (12.8 ppg) in logging a team-high 368 minutes (30.7 mpg). He ranks second in the conference in free throw percentage (.872, 34-of-39), while ranking fifth in 3-point percentage (.478, 22-of-46) and eighth in both 3-pointers made (22) and overall field goal percentage (.557, 49-of-88). As of Dec. 18, Sim's free throw percentage ranked 13th nationally.

In 114 career games, Sim has 818 points (fifth) and 198 assists (seventh) which both rank in the top 10 of the Pac-12's active career leaders. In addition, Sim's 134 career 3-pointers ranks second and his 83 career steals ranks sixth.

Sim is on pace to match Joevan Catron's modern school record for games played (133). With a 12.8 points per game average this season, Sim is also on track to become the 31st player in school history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark.

DUCKS FEATURE BALANCED SCORING ATTACK
Five different Ducks have led the team in scoring this season: Tony Woods (once: 12 pts at Vanderbilt), Garrett Sim (five times: 17 pts vs. Eastern Washington; 20 pts at Nebraska; 16 pts vs. BYU; 13 pts vs. N.C. Central; 20 pts vs. Prairie View A&M), E.J. Singler (four times: 21 pts vs. SE Missouri State; 19 pts vs. Portland State; 13 pts vs. NC. Central; 12 pts vs. Stephen F. Austin), Johnathan Loyd (once: 24 pts vs. UTEP) and Devoe Joseph (twice: 18 pts vs. Fresno State; 16 pts vs. Virginia).

Ten of UO's 11 active players have reached double-figures in scoring. This has been done nine times by Singler, eight times by Sim, six times by Joseph, twice by Woods, Olu Ashaolu and Jeremy Jacob, and once by Loyd, Carlos Emory, Brett Kingma and Tyrone Nared.

In addition, three different Ducks have dropped 20 or more points in a game this season (Sim twice, Singler and Loyd).

BLOCKED SHOTS A FACTOR FOR 2011-12 DUCKS
UO has a 5-1 record in games where they tally five or more blocked shots. The only loss came in the season-opener at No. 7 Vanderbilt. In 11 of the 12 outings this season, Oregon has recorded at least two blocks.

Opponents are shooting just 42 percent on field goals (148-of-352) in the games where UO tallies five+ blocks, with Oregon maintaining a 35-21 edge in blocked shots in those six outings (5.8 bpg).

Seven different Ducks recorded a block this season, led by Tony Woods who has 15 blocks (1.3 bpg). Woods ranks tied for seventh among league players. He had a career-high five blocks in the win over PSU, the most blocks for an Oregon player since Dec. 31, 2009 (5 blks, Michael Dunigan at Washington State). The Ducks as a squad rank fifth in the Pac-12 in blocks (3.9 bpg).

OREGON BENCH PLAYING BIG ROLE IN 2011-12
Oregon's bench has produced more points than the opponent in seven of the 12 games this season. UO is 5-2 in games where the bench holds that advantage (with the losses coming at No. 7 Vanderbilt and at home to Virginia). On the year, the Ducks' reserves have out-scored their opponent, 279-236 (23.3 ppg - 19.7 ppg) for a +3.6 scoring margin. The Oregon bench also has a 199-168 rebounding advantage (16.6 rpg - 14.0 rpg) over the opponent's reserves.

UO's bench has accounted for 33.7 percent of the offense this season (scoring 279 of the 829 total points). The reserves have also grabbed 47.8 percent of the rebounds (199 of the 416 total rebounds).

In his three games as a reserve, Devoe Joseph averaged 15.7 points per outing and while maintaining a 3.7 assist-to-turnover ratio (11 asts, 3 to). Olu Ashaolu has averaged 8.5 points per game and is shooting 65.5 percent in the six games he's came off the bench for the Ducks.

UO INKS THREE PLAYERS DURING EARLY SIGNING PERIOD
Dana Altman announced the signing of three prep standouts to National Letters of Intent. Joining the Ducks beginning in 2012-13 are Dominic Artis (Richmond, Calif. / Findlay Prep), Ben Carter (Las Vegas, Nev. / Bishop Gorman HS) and Damyean Dotson (Houston, Texas / Jack Yates High School). It is the second straight season that Altman has signed a strong recruiting class. UO brought in a consensus top 25 recruiting class a year ago according to Scout.com (No. 20), Rivals.com (No. 21) and ESPN.com (No. 23).

Dominic Artis (5-11, 175, G): Will play his senior season at Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nev. … Played freshman through junior seasons at Salesian High School in Richmond, Calif. … Averaged 14 points and 4.1 assists per game as a junior at SHS … As a freshman in 2009, helped lead SHS to California's Division IV state title … Played AAU basketball for the Oakland Soldiers … Also considered UCLA, California, St. Johns, Florida State, Memphis and Georgia Tech.

Ben Carter (6-8, 215, F): Is entering his senior season at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nev. … Helped lead BGHS to a 25-6 overall record as a junior … A member of the BGHS squads that won a state title in his sophomore season (playing alongside current UO player Johnathan Loyd) … Played AAU basketball for the Las Vegas Lakers … Also considered USC, UNLV, San Diego State, Utah and New Mexico.

Damyean Dotson (6-6, 190, G): Is entering his senior season at Jack Yates High School in Houston, Texas … Member of JYHS team that was a consensus No. 1 ranked prep team in the nation in 2010 … Helped lead JYHS to back-to-back state titles in freshman and sophomore seasons … Played AAU basketball for Houston Hoops … Also considered Arkansas, Georgetown, Colorado, Texas Tech and Baylor.

OREGON ATHLETICS OFFERS FLEXIBLE TICKET PACKAGES
Oregon Athletics has several mini-plan ticket packages for the 2011-12 men's basketball campaign. Two of the featured mini-plans, the GREEN and the YELL-O, offer an affordable and flexible option to enjoy the inaugural Pac-12 Conference season.

Tickets can be purchased online at goducks.com. In-person sales are also available at the Moshofsky Center Ticket Office (Monday-Friday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m.) or the Matthew Knight Arena Box Office (Monday-Friday from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m.).

The GREEN mini-plan is made up of weekend games against California (Jan. 8), UCLA (Jan. 21) and Washington State (Feb. 11). The Cal Golden Bears return four starters from a team that reached the second round of last year's Postseason National Invitation Tournament. Tradition-rich UCLA entered the season ranked in the top 25 in all of the notable preseason publications. In addition, Northwest rival WSU rolls through town in mid-February for what should be a pivotal league game.

As part of the YELL-O mini-plan, Duck fans gain access to home games against Oregon State (Jan. 29), Washington (Feb. 9) and Utah (March 3). The Civil War presented by Pacific Source & your Northwest Ford Dealers is one of the toughest tickets to secure year in and year out. The Huskies, who lost at Matt Arena last season, are one of the conference's top teams. And the Utes, making their inaugural trip to Eugene as a Pac-12 foe, will close out the regular-season schedule on the Ducks' Senior Day.

OREGON BASKETBALL ON THE INTERNET THIS SEASON
Live audio, video (for a fee on the O-Zone) and stats will be available for select home games on goducks.com. O-Zone features include: Live video streaming, on-demand video replays, live audio coverage and more.

UO basketball representatives will make periodic appearances throughout the season on Ducks Insider, a daily sports webcast (hosted by Jerry Allen and Jill Savage, 1-3 pm) that features interviews with coaches and student-athletes.

Check out Oregon men's basketball on Facebook. Follow Oregon on Twitter @OregonMBB for behind the scenes perspective by the staff and players. Follow @Geraghty_UO for the latest team news, in-game updates and facts/figures on the squad.