Saturday, December 17
Portland, Ore.
8:00 PM
University of Oregon
10-2
83
vs
63
UNLV
6-5
1
2
F
UNLV
33
30
63
Oregon
37
46
83
Photo by: Eric Evans/GoDucks.com
Ducks Beat UNLV For Eighth In A Row
12/17/16 | Men's Basketball
The Oregon men overcame the absence of Chris Boucher and saw Dillon Brooks return to form in Saturday's win at the Moda Center.
PORTLAND — The Oregon men's basketball team overcame the absence of senior Chris Boucher to beat UNLV, 83-63, on Saturday in the Moda Center.
How It Happened: With Boucher sidelined by an ankle injury, junior Dillon Brooks made his first start of the season and led the Ducks with 20 points. Brooks helped the Ducks sprint away from the Runnin' Rebels early in the second half, making a three-pointer for a 42-33 lead, a turnaround jumper in the post that made it 53-35 and a pull-up jumper in transition for a 64-43 lead. Oregon opened the second half with a 16-2 run, and led comfortably the rest of the way.
The Ducks (10-2) were up 37-33 at halftime, after leading by as much as 11. Oregon's defense was stout from the start, as UNLV didn't get a field goal until 3:50 had elapsed and the Ducks led 9-2. A Dylan Ennis bucket in transition followed by a Brooks jumper put Oregon up 19-9, and Jordan Bell put home two second-chance points for the largest lead of the half, 32-21. But the Runnin' Rebels scored on seven of their last eight trips, and hit a three-pointer just before the halftime buzzer to get within four.
Who Stood Out: Brooks made the most of his first start this season, setting the tone in the absence of Boucher. Bell also helped fill the void up front, scoring a career-high 16 points and grabbing 12 rebounds for his third career double-double, and first of the season. Tyler Dorsey scored 18 points on 8-of-13 shooting, and Kavell Bigby-Williams played 18 encouraging minutes, scoring seven points and blocking three shots.
What It Means: The Ducks won their eighth straight game, solid momentum with one game left before Pac-12 play. The Ducks also saw their preseason all-American, Brooks, step up when needed, a welcome development in his return from a foot injury.
Quotable:
Head coach Dana Altman
On his overall impressions
"Really early I loved the way we got out defensively, and our energy defensively. We kind of slacked off there at end of the half and they hit a few threes. I thought mixing up our defenses in the second half really helped us. And the rebounding difference (39-23) is something you really like to see as a coach."
Junior forward Jordan Bell
On stepping up in the absence of Boucher
"It was different. Obviously everybody had to step up and rebound, do all the things he can do. I knew I had to get more rebounds than I usually do."
On having Brooks back in form
"I think that set the tone from the jump. You saw we started off with a lot of energy, and that's what he does, brings a lot of energy. Having him back starting helped us out a lot. … Him being back playing like he was before he was hurt has helped us find our identity."
Notable: Altman said Boucher suffered "a pretty good sprain" Thursday in practice but that X-rays of his ankle were negative. The Ducks hope to have him back for conference play. ... Brooks reached 1,166 career points, passing during Saturday's game both Terik Brown (1,152, 1995-99) and Roger Wiley (1,163, 1944-49) and finished the night just one point out of the UO top 25. … Freshman point guard Payton Pritchard, a native of nearby West Linn, hit the game's opening bucket — a three-pointer — and was cheered loudly by a section of the Moda Center crowd. … The Ducks have now held 11 straight opponents below 70 points. ... A promo featuring new UO football coach Willie Taggart played in the arena early in the first half, and the opening few words of his message were drowned out by a thunderous reaction from the crowd. … The Ducks made their first nine free-throw attempts, after going 15-of-25 on Tuesday against Montana.
Up Next: The Ducks host Fresno State in Matthew Knight Arena on Tuesday (8 p.m., Pac-12).
How It Happened: With Boucher sidelined by an ankle injury, junior Dillon Brooks made his first start of the season and led the Ducks with 20 points. Brooks helped the Ducks sprint away from the Runnin' Rebels early in the second half, making a three-pointer for a 42-33 lead, a turnaround jumper in the post that made it 53-35 and a pull-up jumper in transition for a 64-43 lead. Oregon opened the second half with a 16-2 run, and led comfortably the rest of the way.
The Ducks (10-2) were up 37-33 at halftime, after leading by as much as 11. Oregon's defense was stout from the start, as UNLV didn't get a field goal until 3:50 had elapsed and the Ducks led 9-2. A Dylan Ennis bucket in transition followed by a Brooks jumper put Oregon up 19-9, and Jordan Bell put home two second-chance points for the largest lead of the half, 32-21. But the Runnin' Rebels scored on seven of their last eight trips, and hit a three-pointer just before the halftime buzzer to get within four.
Who Stood Out: Brooks made the most of his first start this season, setting the tone in the absence of Boucher. Bell also helped fill the void up front, scoring a career-high 16 points and grabbing 12 rebounds for his third career double-double, and first of the season. Tyler Dorsey scored 18 points on 8-of-13 shooting, and Kavell Bigby-Williams played 18 encouraging minutes, scoring seven points and blocking three shots.
What It Means: The Ducks won their eighth straight game, solid momentum with one game left before Pac-12 play. The Ducks also saw their preseason all-American, Brooks, step up when needed, a welcome development in his return from a foot injury.
Quotable:
Head coach Dana Altman
On his overall impressions
"Really early I loved the way we got out defensively, and our energy defensively. We kind of slacked off there at end of the half and they hit a few threes. I thought mixing up our defenses in the second half really helped us. And the rebounding difference (39-23) is something you really like to see as a coach."
Junior forward Jordan Bell
On stepping up in the absence of Boucher
"It was different. Obviously everybody had to step up and rebound, do all the things he can do. I knew I had to get more rebounds than I usually do."
On having Brooks back in form
"I think that set the tone from the jump. You saw we started off with a lot of energy, and that's what he does, brings a lot of energy. Having him back starting helped us out a lot. … Him being back playing like he was before he was hurt has helped us find our identity."
Notable: Altman said Boucher suffered "a pretty good sprain" Thursday in practice but that X-rays of his ankle were negative. The Ducks hope to have him back for conference play. ... Brooks reached 1,166 career points, passing during Saturday's game both Terik Brown (1,152, 1995-99) and Roger Wiley (1,163, 1944-49) and finished the night just one point out of the UO top 25. … Freshman point guard Payton Pritchard, a native of nearby West Linn, hit the game's opening bucket — a three-pointer — and was cheered loudly by a section of the Moda Center crowd. … The Ducks have now held 11 straight opponents below 70 points. ... A promo featuring new UO football coach Willie Taggart played in the arena early in the first half, and the opening few words of his message were drowned out by a thunderous reaction from the crowd. … The Ducks made their first nine free-throw attempts, after going 15-of-25 on Tuesday against Montana.
Up Next: The Ducks host Fresno State in Matthew Knight Arena on Tuesday (8 p.m., Pac-12).
Team Stats
UNLV
ORE
FG%
.327
.533
3FG%
.381
.294
FT%
.792
.824
RB
23
39
TO
15
14
STL
5
7
Game Leaders
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
18
FGM
8
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
16
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
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