Seattle, WA – The second session of the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Seattle featured matchups between No. 4-seed Arizona vs. No. 13-seed Akron followed by No. 5-seed Oregon vs. No. 12-seed Liberty. Neither game was competitive. Arizona romped over Akron 93-65. Oregon followed that with an easy 81-52 win over Liberty. The two teams will face off on Sunday in an anticipated game to determine who gets to the Sweet Sixteen at the East Regional in New Jersey.
In the opening game Arizona scored the first nine points of the game and led 41-31 at halftime. They gradually pulled away in the second half, outscoring the Zips by 52-34 to get the 28-point win. Jalen Bradley led the Wildcats with 19 points, connecting on 3-of-5 3’s, and added six rebounds and three assists. Trey Townsend added 16 points on 7-of-8 from the field with eight rebounds.
Arizona enjoyed a large size disparity of took advantage of it throughout the game. They used Townsend on pick and rolls as Akron didn’t have the size to defend him at his position. Arizona out rebounded Akron 53-22, including 15-4 on the offensive glass. They dominated the paint to a tune of a 48-20 point advantage The Wildcats had 21 assists compared to only six for the Zips. They also shot 12-of-25 on 3’s. The game would have been even worse for Akron if it weren’t for Arizona’s 17 turnovers.
The second game was similar. Oregon has had rough starts in quite a few games this season but that wasn’t the case today. The Ducks came out focused and raced out to an 18-2 lead over the Flames. Jackson Shelstad connected on his first four shots, scoring ten early points. This game was similar in height disparity as well, with Liberty’s tallest starter being 6’8. That gave Nate Bittle a big advantage in the post. The 7’0 Bittle scored nine points and eight rebounds at the break, as the Ducks took a 44-20 lead into the locker room. Shelstad led Oregon with 15 points, making 3-of-4 3’s, one on the final shot of the half. The Ducks had a 22-13 rebounding edge at the half.
Liberty came out with a little fire at the start if the second half, scoring the first four points but Oregon came right back, scoring the next six points and the rout was on. The only question was the margin of victory, with the lead being around 30 points for much of the rest of the game. Oregon was able to use their bench more than usual as they were able to get their starters some rest leading into the Arizona game on Sunday.
Shelstad led the Ducks with 17 points, making 3-of-4 3’s, and added four rebounds and three assists. The Ducks enjoyed a 43-27 rebounding edge and shot 10-of-21 on three-pointers.
Oregon has been a very good team in defending the three-point shot this year. They are holding their opponents to 31.7% and are ranked 61st in the country. Liberty came in as the 5th best three-point shooting team in the nation at 39.1%. The Ducks’ defense dominated, holding Liberty to 8-of-37 (21.6%) from deep.
This article was written by Carl Berman, Managing Partner ofr NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.
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