ANAHEIM – Exactly 38 seconds remained on the clock at the Honda Center when Dillon Brooks pulled down his ninth and final rebound. A couple ticks later, he held the ball in his hands near the half court line as a section of Oregon fans behind the team’s bench let out everything they had.
With the shot clock running down, the game in hand, Brooks stared into the eyes of defeated Duke players who had already dropped their arms to the ground, surveyed the floor one last time and launched a shot from well beyond the 3-point line. It rattled in.
Immediately after, Brooks, who finished with a team-high 22 points, scrunched his lips and formed his best mean mug as Oregon officially advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2007 with an 82-68 win over five-time national champion Mike Krzyzewski and Duke.
“It’s been a great season; I’m loving what’s going on,” Brooks said. “It feels great. Never going to forget any of these guys. I’m going to share this moment with them.”
To label this a historic win for a program that hasn’t reached the Final Four since 1939 was appropriate, especially with what Oregon has accomplished this season.
“It means a lot,” said assistant coach Tony Stubblefield, who has been with Altman since he arrived in 2010. “We knew the sky was the future; we just had to put it together.”
Program-best 31 wins? Check.
Dana Altman’s first trip to the Elite Eight? Check.
“For any coach who gets there, that’s an honor, and you don’t know if you’re ever going to get there again,” Krzyzewski said. “He’s a really good coach.”
Tonight was another opportunity for this program to prove that it belongs.
“So surreal,” Dwayne Benjamin said. “We felt like we could make it this far.”
That doesn’t mean the team is satisfied.
“We’re not done,” Benjamin said. “We still feel like we got a lot to do and we still feel like we can play a lot more basketball this year.”

Even with future hall of famer Kobe Bryant in the crowd. Even with Duke’s universally recognized history dominating headlines. Even with the winningest coach in college basketball sitting on the sidelines, Oregon played its game and acted like its been here before.
“Duke’s a great program, but we wanted to come out and show that we’re confident in ourselves,” Benson said. “To get a win against a program like that is special for our team. It’s another steppingstone to where we want to get to.”
One run early in the second ended up being the difference. Sparked by back-to-back Casey Benson triples – he finished 3-for-5 from deep for 11 points. Oregon, who led at the half, got in rhythm and eventually out ran Duke in transition.
Like it’s done all season, Oregon adjusted to the opponent at hand, and attacked the basket until easy looks became consistent.
“We lost to a hell of a team,” Krzyzewski said.
Brandon Ingram, who dominated the first half and finished with a game-high 24 points, wasn’t enough.
All-American and Duke’s leading scorer Grayson Allen, who entered the game averaging 21.8 points, was held to 15 points on 4-of-12 shooting.
As a team, Duke, normally a big threat from the outside, was held to 7-of-22 from beyond the arc.
Duke’s Marshall Plumlee ended up being a non-factor after picking up two early fouls in the first half.
Forget Chris Boucher and Tyler Dorsey having off nights. Instead, remember the career night that Jordan Bell had.
“It surprised me, too,” Ennis said as he laughed. “He was due for a big game like that. Things he was doing, it was unheard of.”
Bell took full advantage of playing in front of his relatives with 13 points, seven rebounds and three blocks.
“We needed a great game from everybody,” Bell said. “I just knew I had to bring it. We played one of our best games this year. Everybody, not just me.”

Back in October, local media members took the floor at Matthew Knight Arena for the first practice of the season.
At the time, Oregon was projected to finish fourth in the conference by voters and had received just one nod to win the Pac-12. The program had just lost one of its best in reigning Pac-12 Player of the Year Joseph Young to the NBA.
One of the first players to get his face on camera was graduate student Ennis. Fresh off his transfer from Villanova, the fifth-year senior, who immediately became a media favorite with his vibrant personality, was asked to take a couple steps forward as the lights flashed on him for the first time in an Oregon uniform.
That October afternoon, he was asked about his initial impression of the team.
“People should be excited about Oregon basketball,” he said.
Apparently it wasn’t just optimism.
“Maybe it’s a surprise to everybody,” Ennis said after Thursday’s win. “I watch ESPN, I’m online and I see everybody thinking we’re going to get upset every single round. We don’t take that kindly. At the start of the year, when I thought I was playing to when I went out, I knew this team was one of the top in the country. We’re proving that now.”
All season long, Oregon has played with a chip on its shoulder. But now, regardless of what its national perception is, as Oregon now prepares for the nation’s leading scorer Buddy Hield and Oklahoma, this program will have a shot at making some more history.
“It’s a dream come true to play in games like these,” Benson said. “This is what you play for. So to have a shot at the Final Four is really exciting and we’re looking forward to it.”
There’s a reason why Altman wasn’t overtly pumped up in the locker room after the win.
Altman told the media Wednesday that Oregon doesn’t have a great history and it is working hard to change that.
“We know we can make history,” Dorsey said. “Oregon doesn’t have many teams that have made the Final Four; it’s been forever. Knowing this team can make history gives us even more of a chip on our shoulders to put that banner up.”
Follow Hayden Kim on Twitter @HayDayKim