13. Oregon (8-0)
The Ducks fared better last season, but this program has been slightly underwhelming in recent years. Dana Altman has done great work in utilizing the Transfer Portal but the rosters he’s built didn’t get the job done in the final years of the Pac-12. Now in the Big Ten, the challenge ahead is even more difficult, though he’s seemed to strike gold this time around.
Oregon headed to the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas and started their week with an 80-70 win over a ranked Texas A&M squad. Transfer TJ Bamba led with 18 points in a solid defensive effort for the Ducks. The next day brought another double-digit win, with Oregon topping San Diego State 78-68 as Bamba supplied 22 points. The title game came Saturday night and was this team’s best effort yet, surviving an outstanding Alabama team 83-81, getting 22 points off the bench from Keeshawn Barthelemy.
After stockpiling major wins, the Ducks really changed the momentum for their season, now looking far more prominent. The pieces in this rotation are really getting the job done on offense and they’ve done enough to survive some of these close games as well. The Ducks aren’t perfect, and the interior defense was lacking in these last two wins, but they’ll look to keep their perfect season alive with a conference matchup at USC.