Everything Oregon did Saturday against UCLA was in the name of
momentum.
That included a 9-0 scoring run to start the second half, 21
points from Luke Jackson in his last regular season game at
McArthur Court and a defensive effort that had escaped the Ducks
this season prior to the game against the Bruins.
All of that came in the name of momentum as the Ducks prepare to
take on fourth-seeded California at the Pacific-10 Conference
Tournament next week.
Oregon defeated UCLA, 60-59, Saturday in the final game of the
Pac-10 regular season. The win gave the Ducks a tie for fourth
in the conference with the Golden Bears, but Cal gets the higher
seed based on a tiebreaker.
Not that it matters. The teams will square off Thursday for a
2:50 p.m. tip in Los Angeles.
“We said before that we need to win these final two games so we
can get on a roll for the Pac-10 Tournament,” Oregon forward Ian
Crosswhite said. “It does give us momentum and confidence.”
Not that the momentum came easily or anything. Jackson sank two
free throws with 13 seconds left to put the Ducks (14-11
overall, 9-9 Pac-10) up for good. The attempts came after Trevor
Ariza fouled the forward off an inbounds pass.
UCLA head coach Ben Howland didn’t like the call one bit.
Jackson did.

“(Jackson) wasn’t making a play when we fouled him,” Howland
said. “He was just catching the ball and Trevor was right there
with him and he got in and hit the ball.”
It was obvious, Howland and Oregon head coach Ernie Kent said,
that Jackson was going to get the ball.
Jackson just didn’t expect to score the final two points of his
career at McArthur Court on free throws.
“I just couldn’t believe he hacked me like that,” Jackson said.
“I was just amazed. As soon as I caught the ball, he fouled me
without me even making a move. I was really surprised they
defended like that but we’ll take it.”
Immediately after the free throws, UCLA (11-16, 7-11) had a
chance to win the game but Cedric Bozeman couldn’t get a fall
away jumper to go through the hoop.
The guard drove the length of the floor, caught the attention of
Oregon guard Andre Joseph and attempted an eight-foot jumper.
Thing was, he had four Duck defenders collapse on him as he shot
the ball.
Not exactly a clear lane to the basket.
“He got pretty deep into the paint and went up for a shot,”
Crosswhite said. “It was good there was a lot of guys around him
to put pressure on and make him think a little, ‘Well I might
have to shoot off the backboard or I might have to do this.’ He
made a tough shot a couple plays before.”
The final two plays for both teams were simply an exclamation
point to a game dominated by turnovers and missed opportunities.
The teams combined for 22 turnovers in the first half. The Ducks
shot 33.3 percent from the field in the first half and held UCLA
to 29 points.
Oregon, though, came alive in the first two minutes of the
second half. The Ducks outscored the Bruins 9-0 by the 18:30
mark and extended that to 18-5 en route to a 41-34 lead with
15:57 to play.

“That’s when we get momentum and being down, we know it’s really
crucial we get off to a good start in the second half,” Oregon
guard James Davis said. “That 9-0 run was key to getting the
victory.”
For the second straight game, the Ducks attributed a strong
defensive effort throughout the game for the win. The Bruins
shot 46.2 percent in the first half and bested that by one
percent in the second.
But Oregon took advantage of 20 UCLA turnovers – nine coming in
the second. The Ducks scored 29 points off of turnovers.
Conversely, the Bruins posted 15 points off 15 Oregon turnovers.
“Definitely, defense was key for us,” Davis said. “I think as
the score shows it was a defensive game and we were fortunate to
get the win.”
Jackson led the Ducks with 21 points, 14 of which came in the
second half. He also had three steals, moving him past Luke
Ridnour for second place on Oregon’s career list.
Davis ended his career at McArthur Court with 11 points and
Joseph finished his with a career-high seven assists.
In what may be the last game of the season for UCLA, as Howland
alluded to during his post-game press conference, Dijon Thompson
scored 14 points and T.J. Cummings pitched in with 12 before
fouling out with 54 seconds left to play.
Attention for the Ducks now focuses on California, which lost to
Washington State, 70-58, just as Oregon was celebrating its win.
The Ducks and Bears split the season series, with both teams
winning on their home courts.
Round three is on a neutral court in Los Angeles.
“We’ve just got to take it one game at a time and be confident,”
Davis said.
And Jackson’s opinion of the Golden Bears?
“I think we match up really well with Cal,” he said. “I like
that matchup. I like playing that game first.”