Oregon men’s basketball took down Florida A&M Wednesday night in Matthew Knight Arena. The win marks three consecutive victories for the Ducks, improving their record to 3-1. 

FAMU came into the matchup 0-2 and hadn’t played a game in over a week due to cancellations. Still, the Rattlers came out with fire and forced sloppy play from the Ducks early on.

Three quick offensive fouls and several empty possessions kept FAMU in the game as they held a 12-9 lead at the 15 minute mark in the first half.

But it didn’t last long.

Oregon possessed a clear physical advantage over FAMU, which helped them dominate the paint, where they scored 36 of their 47 first half points. Oregon center N’faly Dante recorded a career-high in the first half with 14 points on perfect seven-for-seven shooting.

Suddenly, the Ducks were up double digits. 

Oregon shot a mere three-of-14 from behind the arc in the first, with Chris Duarte making two. The erratic shooting and questionable effort on defense from the Ducks, kept the game interesting for much of the first. 

Oregon took a 47-35 lead into the break as FAMU’s 55% shooting kept them in the game.

Dante continued to shine in the second half, adding a quick five points. Duarte then drained another triple and three minutes into the half, the Ducks led by 23. 

But the Rattlers battled back. Oregon fell asleep, committing four lazy turnovers that sparked a 12 to nothing scoring run for FAMU. 

Rattlers big man Evins Desir led the team with 12 points. 

Oregon took the foot off the gas in their first opportunity to put the game away, but Duarte and Eugene Omoruyi reapplied the pressure. The duo scored ten consecutive points to push the Ducks’ lead back above 20. 

The lead would remain for the rest of the game. 

Duarte led all scorers with 23 points on efficient 10/14 shooting. Dante finished close behind with 22, making all 10 of his field goal attempts. 

Oregon dominated every facet of the game in what was a confidence-boosting win. They out-shot, out-rebounded and forced more turnovers than the overmatched Rattlers. 

Looking ahead, the Ducks travel to Washington on Saturday for the Pac-12 season opener.