Eugene, OR – The UC Irvine Anteaters came into Matthew Knight Arena and destroyed the Oregon Ducks 69-56. Oregon was beat in all facets of the game, particularly in shooting. The Ducks didn’t shoot well in their first game against Florida A&M and that trend continued as they missed eighteen of their first nineteen three-pointers. DJ Davis led the way for the Anteaters, scoring 24 points on 6-of-14 from deep. N’Faly Dante led Oregon with 20 points, nine rebounds and four blocks.
Oregon was terrible on offense in the first half. Their ball movement was poor and they couldn’t connect from outside, missing their seven three point attempts. Will Richardson was passive and not attacking, and went scoreless, missing his two shots. Dante was the lone effective Duck, registering 10 points, seven rebounds and three blocks in the half. Cal Irvine went out to an early 15-6 lead then Oregon came back to take an 18-17 lead on two Kel’el Ware (4 points) free throws. Cal Irvine then took control of the half, going on a 18-4 run over the last six minutes to take a 35-22 lead into halftime.
Cal Irvine made 7-of-16 from deep led by 3-of-7 and 13 points from Davis. The Ducks shot 7-of-24 overall and only 8-of-14 from the charity stripe. Oregon committed eight turnovers to four for the Anteaters resulting in a 13-0 edge in points off turnovers for Irvine.
The second half started the way the first half ended as Irvine went on a 17-6 run, taking a 52-28 lead at the first media break. Davis scored five of those points including another three-pointer. Three of the Ducks’ points came on their first made three, from Rivaldo Soares. In the 11-minute span from the last part of the first half to the first second half media break, Cal Irvine outscored Oregon 33-10. Davis promptly hit another three-pointer after the timeout, extending the Irvine lead to 55-28. The Anteaters coasted from there with the final outcome closer as Oregon made their last three three-pointers, the last on a last-second 30-footer from Nate Bittle (10 points, 6 rebounds).
Cal Irvine shot 12-of-28 from deep compared to Oregon’s 4-of-21. They forced Oregon into 15 turnovers, seven by Richardson and enjoyed a 25-10 edge in points off turnovers. The only area the Ducks excelled in was blocked shots, with a 9-0 advantage, led by Dante’s four and two from Ware. Oregon repeatedly tried to get the ball inside to Dante, who finished 7-of-16 from the field and 6-of-11 from the foul line. Some of the passes inside resulted in turnovers by Richardson, and Dante had three of his own. They didn’t have many options on offense with their inability to shoot from deep or to create open shots.
Oregon is still missing three potential role players as well as probable starter Jermaine Couisnard, who is out for an extended period with a knee injury. But that is no excuse for their poor play tonight. Their offensive execution, shot-making and overall effort needs quite a bit of improvement for them to turn things around. They will get that opportunity when they face off against Montana State at home on Tuesday night.
This article was written by Carl Berman, Managing Partner of NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.
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