SACRAMENTO — A loss against Arizona in the Pac-12 Tournament title game didn’t derail the Ducks’ chances at a top-four seed. Oregon, awarded a No. 3 seed, opens its NCAA Tournament quest on Friday morning,
The Ducks will face off against No. 14 Iona in Sacramento. Oregon will have to play its second game without Chris Boucher since the Canadian injured his ACL in the Ducks’ Pac-12 semifinal win over Cal in Las Vegas.
“I’m more worried about how losing Chris affects our team [than getting a No. 3 seed],” head coach Dana Altman said in a press conference after the selection show.
Oregon’s loss in the Pac-12 Tournament title game to Arizona stung, and the Boucher injury hurt the Ducks’ chances of earning a higher seeding, but as a No. 3 seed, Oregon is still favorites in the match up against Iona.
“We’re confident in ourselves,” Dillon Brooks said. “I got confirmation from all of these guys that we’re ready to go and make something happen.”
If Oregon’s game against Arizona was an indication of how the Ducks will play without Boucher, things don’t look great.
The Ducks have prided themselves on ball movement all season. But in many instances during the Pac-12 Tournament, the Ducks passing looked out of sorts.
Only two of Iona’s 22 wins this season came under 70 points. In order for Oregon to win Friday’s game (11 a.m. TBS), it must step up defensively and keep the Gaels’ scoring to a minimum. No doubt that the Ducks will need to score plenty of points on their own, as well.
Iona’s Jordan Washington provides the Gaels with height and will rival Oregon’s Jordan Bell in the paint and around the rim. How Bell and Washington do down low could very well set the tone for the rest of the game.
Most expect a high-scoring game between the two programs. The Gaels shot 39.7 percent from behind the arc this year while the Ducks shot 37.8 percent this season from 3-point range.
Oregon, ranked second nationally in blocks, will miss the swatting power of Boucher, but the NCAA Tournament provides Kavell Bigby-Williams a chance to step up and join in on the Ducks’ famous blocking defense.
“I thought Kavell gave us great minutes,” Altman said. “I’m glad we have the extra day to put a few things together and get Kavell, Roman and Keith all prepared to give us a few minutes here and there.”
Away from home, Oregon has a 7-3 record while going 5-2 at neutral sites. Iona is 8-7 on the road and 6-1 at neutral locations.
Follow Shawn Medow on Twitter @ShawnMedow