Ducks Win Behind Late Surge

Friday, November 10

Eugene, OR

6:00 PM

University of Oregon

2-0,0-0Pac-12

Montana

1-1,0-0Big Sky

Montana

Oregon

Photo by: GoDucks.com

11/10/23 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Oregon pulled away midway through the second half to beat Montana on Friday.

By: Rob Moseley

EUGENE, Ore. — Playing without two starters from the season opener, the Oregon men's basketball team was pushed Friday by Montana before pulling away in the second half to win 75-61 at Matthew Knight Arena.

The Ducks (2-0) played without all-America candidate N'Faly Dante and wing Jesse Zarzuela due to injuries; freshmen Jackson Shelstad and Mookie Cook remain out as well. Friday's game was tied at halftime, before the Ducks used an 11-2 run midway through the second half to build their first double-digit lead of the night at 64-54.

As he did late last season, Nate Bittle filled the void created by Dante's absence. The 7-foot junior from Central Point had 17 points including two made three-pointers, eight rebounds and also four blocked shots. He led five players in double figures, with Brennan Rigsby scoring 12, and three players finishing with 11 points each — Jermaine Couisnard, Keeshawn Barthelemy and Kario Oquendo.

How It Happened: After scoring the first basket of the second half, Oregon saw Montana score on consecutive possessions moments later to take a 42-39 lead. That was the last lead of the night for the Grizzlies, though they tied it up a couple of times after that.

The last tie of the night was 50-50, helped in part by another poor performance from the free-throw line by the Ducks, who were 16-of-28 in the game. But when it was 53-52, Oregon put together an 11-2 run that included two baskets by Bittle and a three-point play from Couisnard that made it 64-54.

A three-pointer by Rigsby with 3:22 left got the lead out to 13 at 70-57. After earlier struggles, the Ducks made 6-of-7 free throws down the stretch to clinch the win.

The game was knotted at 37-37 at halftime, after Montana finished the half on a 7-0 run that included a three-pointer falling at the buzzer. Just prior to that, Oregon had used a 14-6 run to pull out to a 37-30 lead, a run capped by three-pointers from Jadrian Tracey and Bittle.

"We finally hit a couple of threes there," said UO head coach Dana Altman. "Hit the last two in the first half, then Brennan got a couple down, and Bam got one down. It really gave us a big lift."

Prior to that, Oregon had been 1-of-10 from the three-point line to open the game, and the Ducks were 6-of-10 from the free-throw line in the first half after going 14-of-29 in Monday's win over Georgia. The Ducks first three of the game, by Bittle, sparked an 8-0 run to give them a 10-9 lead, and moments later two free throws by Tracey gave Oregon a 15-13 lead.

Tracey's defensive intensity in the first half was a point of emphasis when coach Altman spoke to the media post game. "I thought Bam Tracey really gave us some energy in the second half to get us started defensively," said Altman. "I thought he did a good job in the first half. His plus-minus in the first half was plus-14. He did a tremendous job. If you look for the game, he was plus-24. When he was on the court, his energy really picked us up."

Notable: With Dante and Zarzuela unavailable, Rigsby and Kwame Evans Jr. each made his first start of the season. Evans finished with 10 rebounds. … The Ducks won their 26th consecutive regular-season home opener. … Oregon is now 24-4 all-time against Montana.

Up Next: The Ducks host Tennessee State next Friday (6 p.m., Pac-12 Network).