Oregon’s season-opener was closer than expected, as the Ducks took down Army 91-77 in front of a record full-house crowd of 12,364 at Matthew Knight Arena on Friday night.
Phil Knight made the trip to Eugene to witness this extensively-hyped Ducks team defeat the Army Black Knights for their 19th-straight home-opening victory. The win was led by sophomore guard Tyler Dorsey, who had a team-high 21 points, followed by freshman standout Payton Pritchard with 15.
Redshirt senior guard Dylan Ennis, who was granted a sixth year of eligibility after breaking his foot early last season, had an underwhelming performance in his first full game as a Duck.
Ennis was 0-for-8 on field goals and had two personal fouls. The only positive part of his play was his seven rebounds.
“He’s not playing to his strengths,” head coach Dana Altman said. “He’s got a lot of work to do. He’s really casual with the ball and he’s just got to get back to guarding and rebounding. … He sat out all year and he’s trying to make up for the 30 games he missed in one night.”
Junior forward Jordan Bell went through a similar situation last year, having to prove himself after being forced to sit out with an injury. When Bell was asked about the struggles associated with coming back, he said he was trying “to do too much too soon.”
“You’ve been out so long,” Bell said. “You feel like you have to go out there and get 20 every night or 10 every night. … I think once [Ennis] settles down a little bit and sees what he needs to do, he’ll slow down and let the game come to him.”
Oregon’s first-ever AP preseason All-American, Dillon Brooks, did not play against Army, as he continues to recover from a foot injury. Brooks is arguably Oregon’s top athlete and will most likely fill Ennis’ role when he returns to play. Because of that, Ennis must prove himself early; that could have been a factor contributing to his lackluster performance.
Despite Ennis’ sub-par game against Army, Altman believes that his strong suits are rebounding, playing defense, driving the ball and making plays for his teammates.
“We’ll talk to him,” Altman said. “He’ll come around; it’s just going to take some time.”
Up next, the Ducks head to Baylor to take on the Bears on Tuesday. The Ducks defeated the No. 20 Bears 74-67 at Matthew Knight Arena last year. This year the Ducks are the the ranked team, and the Bears are not.
“Honestly, I don’t think we are as excited as we were last year,” Bell said. “Last year, we were kind of licking our chops, because we were the underdogs. This year, media has been so good. So honestly, I think that we need to take that mentality like we did last year — like we’re the underdogs.”
No matter who may be favored, Altman says that it’s a “big ball game for us” and has a different view from Bell on whether the Ducks are, in fact, the favorite.
“It was a big ball game for us [last year]; it’s a big ball game for us going down there. And we’ll be the underdogs going down there. You know, you’re on the road and not playing very well. Whether they think they’re the favorites or not, going down there, playing — it’s going to be a tough ball game.”
Follow Kylee O’Connor on Twitter @kyleethemightee