Oregon takes on a struggling Washington sqaud in this Pac-12 league battle.
TV Schedule: Saturday, December, 12, 8 p.m. ET, Pac12 Network
Arena: Alaska Airlines Center in Seattle, Washington
It was not a good start for either team, as COVID had their impact early on. Washington replaced an entire preseason tournament, while Oregon’s season opener with Eastern Washington was canceled. Both teams are coming into this game on other ends of the spectrum with Oregon being 3-1 and Washington being 1-3.
Just 13 months ago, Washington was coming off a comeback upset win over #16 Baylor. Coming back from down 13 points, the trio of Jaden McDaniels, Isaiah Stewart, and Quade Green led them to victory over an elite team. One of those three is still in the program and Washington has not had a marquee win since that point.
The Huskies are off to a very rough start and among the worst offensive teams in the country. They rank 291st in points per game with just 57.2 per contest. In their return game with Baylor, they lost by 34 in the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. They also fell to UC-Riverside by 15 and to Utah by 14.
The leading scorer for this Washington has been Quade Green and has been their lone threat shooting the basketball. The Kentucky transfer is averaging 14.8 points per game, 3.5 rebounds, and shooting an astounding 45 percent clip from beyond the arc.
The roster is loaded with sophomores and juniors, and only has one senior that gets legitimate playing time. They are an average defensive team and their strengths are near the rim and blocking shots (5.5 per game).
For Oregon, they are picking themselves up after an early upset loss to Missouri. A back and forth affair, that began the legacy of Eugene Omoruyi. He scored 31 points on 8-13 shooting from the field. Although against lesser competition, the Ducks has done a much better job defensively, giving up just 70 or more points just once, over the next three games.
The grad transfer has been the leading scorer as Omoruyi has averaged 21 points per game. The stretch point forward has averaged five rebounds and is shooting 50% from the field. Replacing
Payton Pritchard was not going to be easy and a leader with that much experience is hard to find. However, Chris Duarte has done an excellent job. He and Eric Williams make up a backcourt that is 6-6. Dana Altman wants to win with height and a starting lineup with no one shorter than 6’6 fits that bill.
Where would the Ducks be without Chris Duarte? 🦆@cjacobsen23 talks about the @OregonMBB player on Pac-12 Final Score: https://t.co/ZhZuI5ezsa pic.twitter.com/PU40g1XRud
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) January 12, 2020
Duarte was an average three-point shooter last year, going for just 33 percent in that category. He is off to a much more efficient start this year, connecting on 45 percent of his shot from beyond the arc. He has also doubled his average in assists and his defense is stellar. He finished sixth last year in steals and is off to a good start this year, ranking third in the conference.
There are quite a few holes on Mike Hopkins’ squad and struggling to points on UC-Riverside is a bad sign. Washington shot 29% from the field in that game and made just three of their 20 three-point attempts.
Oregon’s defense over the past week and a half has been very sound and promising, heading into conference play. Green does a decent job and keeps Washington at arm’s length for a half. The trio backcourt takes over in the second half as Oregon cruises to their first conference win of the season.
Prediction: Oregon 77, Washington 60