The Ducks and the Wolverines seemed bound to go to their second overtime period on Saturday. With six seconds left, Oregon’s Jackson Shelstad pulled up from well beyond the three-point arc.
Nothing but net.
The crowd at Matthew Knight Arena erupted in celebration of the clutch shot by the freshman point guard.
The final bucket by Shelstad wasn’t just the game-winner of an overtime thriller. It signified the importance of the perimeter game in the Ducks’ season.
Oregon’s season has been plagued with injuries in the early going. Several players have been in and out of the lineup – including Shelstad, who was only playing in his third game against Michigan.
Most notably, centers N’Faly Dante and Nate Bittle have been sidelined. Dante is dealing with a knee injury, while Bittle is out with a wrist injury.
Without their top two big men, the Ducks will find themselves undersized in the post against many opponents. To find success, they will likely need to convert from three-point range like they did on Saturday.
“Our play list was one thing and now it’s something totally different,” Oregon head coach Dana Altman said. “It’s gonna take time to make the adjustments and become perimeter-oriented and get the ball moving the way I want it to move rather than wanting to get it into Dante.”
Oregon came into the game against the Wolverines on a two-game losing streak. In its two defeats at the Emerald Coast Classic, it shot a combined 19-for-56 from beyond the arc.
The Ducks shot fewer threes than usual against Michigan, but it was an efficient 10-for-16. When driving to the bucket and pulling up from the midrange wasn’t working, the three-ball bailed them out.
Oregon started the game by hitting its first three attempts from deep. The team struggled, however, to rebound the ball. Second-chance opportunities kept the Wolverines within striking distance.
“[Dante and Bittle] can get so many more rebounds,” guard Brennan Rigsby said. “Without them, you got to get down, nitty gritty, and you got to get a lot of rebounds that maybe you’re not used to getting.”
The Ducks converted their three-pointers to maintain the lead despite their lack of size in the post.
Altman compared the ability of this squad to the 2019-20 Oregon team. That group featured Payton Pritchard and Chris Duarte, both of whom made it into the NBA, and it shot nearly 40 percent from three as a team.
Although it’s a small sample size, the Ducks are shooting 39 percent from deep through seven games this season.
Michigan took the lead in the second half against Oregon. Guard Dug McDaniels caught fire to lead the Wolverines with 33 points in the game.
But during a pivotal moment, Rigsby made back-to-back three-pointers to swing the momentum back in the Ducks’ favor.
“I think it’s just making the right basketball plays,” Rigsby said. “Today a lot of those ended up in three-point shots and people were hitting them.”
Altman believes that several guys on his team have the potential to shoot 40 percent or in the high 30s from deep. He said that it was “encouraging” how they shot the ball on Saturday.
Shelstad and Rigsby both missed midrange jumpers to end the game in the waning seconds of regulation. Instead of losing confidence, they kept making plays.
Rigsby made the extra pass to Jermaine Couisnard, who converted from three. The bucket put Oregon in the driver’s seat with about two minutes left in overtime.
Later came Shelstad’s dagger three to win it.
“That’s just our teammates finding open guys making the right play every time,” Shelstad said. “It was a deeper shot than usual but I felt comfortable. I just let it go and it went in.”
The Ducks will have to wait longer before they get back to full strength. The team said on Nov. 24 that Dante would be reevaluated in four weeks and Bittle in eight.
Until then, Oregon can develop its ability to score from outside of just the paint. Next up, it plays the University of Texas at El Paso at MKA on Dec. 9.
