Photo by: Eric Evans/GoDucks.com
Ducks Take Good Vibes To Vegas
03/07/23 | Men's Basketball, @GoDucksMoseley
Oregon brought a three-game win streak to the desert for the Pac-12 Tournament, looking to sustain that momentum and make the NCAA Tournament.
The road ahead features the bright lights of Las Vegas. A glance at the rear-view mirror also isn't too bad for the Oregon men's basketball team.
So it shouldn't be surprising that, when the Ducks hit the practice courts Monday, there was some pep in their collective step.
The UO men's basketball team was returning to practice on the heels of its third straight win to close out the regular season, Saturday over Stanford. That clinched a first-round bye in the Pac-12 Tournament, which begins Wednesday at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip.
"They were excited about playing yesterday," UO coach Dana Altman said Tuesday, prior to the Ducks' final practice in Eugene before departing later in the day for Nevada. "Kind of look at this as a new opportunity."
The Ducks (18-13) will open their tournament Thursday, in a quarterfinal matchup to be televised by the Pac-12 Network at 2:30 p.m. Oregon, as the No. 4 seed in the bracket, will play the winner of Wednesday's first-round matchup between No. 5 Washington State and No. 12 California.
Results of the bracket in Las Vegas will determine whether the Ducks are included in the most prominent bracket of all — that of the NCAA Tournament. Oregon was one of the "next four out" in projections Tuesday morning by Joe Lunardi of ESPN and Mike DeCourcy of FOX Sports.
If the Ducks want to fight their way into stronger consideration for an at-large bid come Selection Sunday, a strong showing this week — i.e., at least a couple of wins — might be necessary. And of course, they could clinch the Pac-12's automatic bid to the Big Dance by winning the conference tournament outright.
Come Thursday afternoon, though, there will only be one game on Oregon's mind, Altman said.
"There is no Friday if you don't play well Thursday," he said. "So you lay it all out there. … You expend whatever you've got to expend, try to win the game the best you can on Thursday, and you'll find enough energy to play Friday. And if you're fortunate enough to play Saturday, you'll find enough energy to play there."
Just last week, both finalists in the women's Pac-12 Tournament were teams that played in the first round, and thus played four games in a week. The UO men did the same just four years ago, winning four straight games to win the conference tournament in 2019 — senior guard Will Richardson's freshman year.
This year's Ducks would only need three wins to take the title. Just like the 2019 team, it surged over the final two weeks of the regular season, and brought some momentum into the postseason.
"That doesn't hurt," Altman said when asked about Richardson's experience as a freshman in 2019. "If you look at the last 12, 13 years of the tournament, we've been all right. We've gotta do a little better this year, because the tournament field's really good."
If the Ducks manage to get through their quarterfinal game, top seed UCLA potentially awaits in Friday's semifinals. The other side of the bracket includes likely NCAA Tournament teams Arizona, USC and Arizona State.
"It's just gonna be a tough road," Altman said. "We've got some really good teams in the league again this year — I think a couple that are underrated as far as national perception is concerned. So you know, I think it's gonna be a great tournament."
Oregon enters the postseason about as healthy as it's been all season, though even that doesn't mean completely healthy. Brennan Rigsby is out with a broken finger, but Lök WUr returned to practice in a non-contact status Monday after missing the final weekend of the regular season.
During the stretch run of a season that has seen the Ducks endure multiple injuries to key players, that's a welcome development. Roles and rotations seem about as clearly defined as they've been all season, good news as Oregon prepared to head to Las Vegas.
"For us to be successful," Altman said, "we're going to have to play our best."
So it shouldn't be surprising that, when the Ducks hit the practice courts Monday, there was some pep in their collective step.
The UO men's basketball team was returning to practice on the heels of its third straight win to close out the regular season, Saturday over Stanford. That clinched a first-round bye in the Pac-12 Tournament, which begins Wednesday at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip.
"They were excited about playing yesterday," UO coach Dana Altman said Tuesday, prior to the Ducks' final practice in Eugene before departing later in the day for Nevada. "Kind of look at this as a new opportunity."
The Ducks (18-13) will open their tournament Thursday, in a quarterfinal matchup to be televised by the Pac-12 Network at 2:30 p.m. Oregon, as the No. 4 seed in the bracket, will play the winner of Wednesday's first-round matchup between No. 5 Washington State and No. 12 California.
Results of the bracket in Las Vegas will determine whether the Ducks are included in the most prominent bracket of all — that of the NCAA Tournament. Oregon was one of the "next four out" in projections Tuesday morning by Joe Lunardi of ESPN and Mike DeCourcy of FOX Sports.
If the Ducks want to fight their way into stronger consideration for an at-large bid come Selection Sunday, a strong showing this week — i.e., at least a couple of wins — might be necessary. And of course, they could clinch the Pac-12's automatic bid to the Big Dance by winning the conference tournament outright.
Come Thursday afternoon, though, there will only be one game on Oregon's mind, Altman said.
"There is no Friday if you don't play well Thursday," he said. "So you lay it all out there. … You expend whatever you've got to expend, try to win the game the best you can on Thursday, and you'll find enough energy to play Friday. And if you're fortunate enough to play Saturday, you'll find enough energy to play there."
Just last week, both finalists in the women's Pac-12 Tournament were teams that played in the first round, and thus played four games in a week. The UO men did the same just four years ago, winning four straight games to win the conference tournament in 2019 — senior guard Will Richardson's freshman year.
This year's Ducks would only need three wins to take the title. Just like the 2019 team, it surged over the final two weeks of the regular season, and brought some momentum into the postseason.
"That doesn't hurt," Altman said when asked about Richardson's experience as a freshman in 2019. "If you look at the last 12, 13 years of the tournament, we've been all right. We've gotta do a little better this year, because the tournament field's really good."
If the Ducks manage to get through their quarterfinal game, top seed UCLA potentially awaits in Friday's semifinals. The other side of the bracket includes likely NCAA Tournament teams Arizona, USC and Arizona State.
"It's just gonna be a tough road," Altman said. "We've got some really good teams in the league again this year — I think a couple that are underrated as far as national perception is concerned. So you know, I think it's gonna be a great tournament."
Oregon enters the postseason about as healthy as it's been all season, though even that doesn't mean completely healthy. Brennan Rigsby is out with a broken finger, but Lök WUr returned to practice in a non-contact status Monday after missing the final weekend of the regular season.
During the stretch run of a season that has seen the Ducks endure multiple injuries to key players, that's a welcome development. Roles and rotations seem about as clearly defined as they've been all season, good news as Oregon prepared to head to Las Vegas.
"For us to be successful," Altman said, "we're going to have to play our best."
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's BasketballJackson Shelstad & Nate Bittle | Postgame vs. Oregon State
Tuesday, November 18
Dana Altman | Postgame vs. Oregon State
Tuesday, November 18
Jackson Shelstad | Postgame vs. South Dakota State
Thursday, November 13
Dana Altman | Postgame vs. South Dakota State
Thursday, November 13
