Senior guard Brandon Lincoln is not Oregon’s flashiest perimeter player. He isn’t the leading scorer either, or the go-to-guy down the stretch of a game.
However, the Portland-native has quietly etched his name into the Ducks’ starting lineup six times this season by growing into one of the team’s mature leaders on the floor.
“He’s kept us extremely steady with his play. He understands the system. He understands the league and everything else,” Oregon coach Ernie Kent said of Lincoln, who is one of only two seniors on the roster. “And the biggest thing is just being a heady, smart player that keeps us in offense and helps us play great defense.”
Lincoln’s first start of the season – on Dec. 20 against Howard – showed signs that the 6-foot-4 guard had arrived. He netted a career-high 15 points and grabbed five rebounds, also a career high, during Oregon’s 91-55 victory.
Lincoln started the next six games, and, prior to Thursday’s game against Arizona State, he was averaging a career-best 5.9 points and two rebounds per game.
But Lincoln’s forte still rests on the defensive end, he says, which has helped the team’s mindset with him in the starting role.
“(Starting) has been different, but I think I’ve adjusted to it well,” Lincoln said. “I’ve been able to get out early, get going, playing good (defense) and get the team out on the right foot. I think it’s been a good thing.”
Part of his defensive prowess and focus stems from his freshman days, as a member of the scout team, guarding former Duck standout and current NBA point guard Luke Ridnour, who Lincoln calls the best player he’s ever defended.
But his daily battles with Ridnour were not the first time Lincoln faced, and teamed with, some of the nation’s premier talent.
At Jefferson High School in Portland, Lincoln and teammates Aaron Miles, now with the NBA’s Golden State Warriors, and Michael Lee, led the Democrats to a 28-0 record and a state title in 2000.
The trio’s playing days date back to Harriet Tubman Middle School, where Miles’ father coached the three standout players.
“It was a lot of fun,” Lincoln said, recalling his youth basketball experience. “They were the best players around the city, so to be associated with those guys was the best thing for me.”
Lee and Miles, both one year ahead of Lincoln, opted to play at Kansas, eventually leading the Jayhawks to a Big-12 Conference Championship in their final season.
With Lee and Miles departed, Lincoln became Jefferson’s undeniable leader and began to emerge as a senior under coach Marshall Haskins.
By the end of his final season, a year in which he averaged 15.4 points per game for the eighth-ranked Democrats, Lincoln ranked 67th among the nation’s top-100 high school seniors by ESPN.com and No. 2 in the state of Oregon as a second team All-State selection.
But the transition from high school to the college game proved difficult for Lincoln, who eventually settled on Oregon over his other option, Missouri.
Though he saw action in 26 games of his freshman season when the Ducks qualified for the NCAA tournament, Lincoln averaged only 2.4 points per game, playing behind a talented backcourt. The struggles intensified his sophomore season after point guard Aaron Brooks punched the backboard support in frustration at UCLA causing a break in his wrist, which forced Lincoln, primarily a “two” guard, into the point guard position for 10 games.
Oregon struggled with Lincoln running the show and Brooks on the bench, amassing a 6-4 record during that stretch.
Lincoln improved his numbers slightly to 3.9 points per game his junior season and played in all 27 games, again serving as the team’s key defensive player – a distinction he’s made his trademark this season.
“The biggest thing is just confidence,” Kent said. “He’s understood what we’re doing a long time ago. He’s just more confident with it now.”
Lincoln is also gaining the admiration of his teammates for his marked improvements this season.
“I’ve seen him get better, definitely,” said guard Malik Hairston, the team’s leading scorer. “Brandon is very skilled, and he understands the game, and I’m happy he’s going ahead and playing his game because he’s more than capable. Brandon means a lot to this basketball team. He’s one of our captains. He’s a very important piece to this puzzle.”
The Ducks will rely on Lincoln to slow a powerful Arizona offense, led by senior guard Hassan Adams (20.6 points per game). The Ducks are looking to snap a six-game losing streak to the Wildcats and to reposition themselves into the thick of the Pacific-10 Conference race.
“There’s been a lot of close games coming down to the wire and we’re working harder and harder every day to put ourselves in position to win some of those games,” Lincoln said. “I think we can definitely turn it around, and things are going to get better for us.”
Lincoln’s urgency this season is a direct result of the past success he’s tasted. After reaching the postseason tournament his freshman season – a moment he defines as the highlight of his basketball career – the senior guard aspires to end his career in similar fashion.
“(This season) is as important as every other season, but it’s a little bit more important because it’s my senior year,” Lincoln said. “I’m just trying to do whatever I can to help this team win.”
