At long last, the streak is over.
The Oregon men defeated Stanford 68-60 on Saturday evening in front of 7,932 at McArthur Court, which turned into a mob scene as fans stormed the court to celebrate the team’s first conference win in 15 tries this season.
“It was like we won the national championship,” freshman guard Matt Humphrey said of the crowd’s reaction. “I’m just happy to get that first Pac-10 win.”
And just as the team’s youth has contributed to the losses, the freshmen also had their fingerprints all over this win. Center Mike Dunigan led Oregon in scoring with 14 points and in rebounding with eight while adding a block and two steals. Fellow freshman center Josh Crittle notched eight points, five rebounds and two blocks in the game while bringing a crucial presence to the paint, Oregon coach Ernie Kent said.

“He dominated the game when he was in there … I’m so proud of Josh,” Kent said. “He was the most poised today out on the floor that I have ever seen him. Mike and Josh have the chance to be the best pair of big men in the conference for a long time and I think they showed a lot of that potential tonight.”
Humphrey, who finished with nine points, three assists and a pair of rebounds, blocks and steals, showed up biggest for the Ducks as the game became a tense, see-saw battle down the stretch. His right-corner three tied the game at 50 with eight minutes left, then his steal led to a Catron bucket that put the Ducks up 52-51.
After a Stanford free throw to tie the game at 52, Humphrey dished to Crittle inside for a 54-52 Oregon lead. Stanford guard Landry Fields, who led all scorers with 19 points to go with eight rebounds, hit two free throws to tie the game at 54 with five minutes left to play.
The game was tied at 56 three minutes later when, after a missed free throw by Stanford forward Lawrence Hill that would have given the Cardinal the lead, Oregon sophomore guard Kamyron Brown drove the lane and kicked the ball out to Humphrey for a right-corner three that put the Ducks up for good.
“I was just out there playing basketball,” Humphrey said. “They collapsed down on Kamyron and he kicked it to me so I let it go.”
On the ensuing Stanford possession, Hill hit what appeared to be a three-pointer from the top of the key to tie the game 59-59 with 1:41 remaining. Upon a lengthy review and several discussions between the refs and coaches, it was determined that Hill’s foot was on the line, resulting in a two-point basket and a one-point Oregon lead.
Brown hit a three from the top of the key to make it a two-possession game, 62-58, then Anthony Goods hit two free throws to bring the Cardinal within two with 57 seconds left.
Oregon would pull away from there, though, as Crittle hit the first of two free throws to make it 63-60, then missed the second. Catron grabbed the offensive rebound and passed to Porter, who was fouled and hit both free throws for a five-point lead with 13 seconds left.
Stanford brought the ball quickly up the floor. Humphrey then snatched the ball from Jeremy Green at the top of the key, streaked down the court for a layup and was fouled in the process. He converted the free throw for the 68-60 lead with six seconds left, cementing the final margin.
“He stepped up and played an excellent game,” Kent said of Humphrey. “His steal at the end was huge.”
Oregon’s first conference win solidified Oregon State’s place as the only team to lose all 18 conference games in a season. Oregon looked like it could be headed in that direction after three blowout losses in its last three games.
But with the Mac Court faithful louder then they have been all season and the Ducks dominating the Cardinal in most major statistical categories, the victory that seemed a long shot after Thursday’s blow-out loss to California came to fruition Saturday night.
“These fans, for them to hang in there with this team like they have … what a special place this is. What a special community,” Kent said.
It wasn’t just the fans who hung in there, though, as Kent credited his young team with never quitting and always working, even during a losing streak that junior forward Joevan Catron called, after the win, “the worst eight weeks of my life.”
“They’ve been through a lot but they never made any excuses,” Kent said. “They’ve grown throughout this process … they’ve always come to work and always let us coach them.”
The Beavers come to Mac Court on Sunday at 7 p.m., looking for their third consecutive win after sweeping the Bay area schools at Gill Coliseum over the weekend.
“They’re just playing with great confidence,” Kent said of the Beavers. “That’s going to be a tough game because they’re playing so well.”
“Oregon State is going to come in here with a chip on their shoulder,” Porter said. “They’re going to be hungry for the win.”
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