Despite opening the season undefeated, it’s been a rocky start for the Oregon Ducks men’s basketball team. They have struggled with turnovers and consistency on offense, but the shining light for Oregon has been its frontcourt, led by star senior center Nate Bittle and junior forward Kwame Evans Jr and supplemented by offseason additions Sean Stewart, Devon Pryor and Ege Demir.
Nate Bittle | Redshirt-senior center
Bittle has started the season off strong, averaging 18.5 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 blocks through two games. In the game against Rice, he scored 25 points and tied his career high in blocks with six.
Last season, Bittle was one of the country’s top big men, averaging 14.2 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks. He had some NBA buzz following his breakout season last year and entered the draft, but ultimately withdrew and returned to Oregon.
“Nate’s at 250 [pounds], got some big bodies out there.We’re trying to play physical.” Oregon head coach Dana Altman said in preseason. “I felt like we got beat a couple games on the boards last year. We’ve got some rebounding drills incorporated where guys are going to run into each other. You’ve got to get them ready. ”
Kwame Evans Jr. | Junior forward
Forward Kwame Evans Jr. has been a valuable piece for the Oregon frontcourt, averaging 9.0 points, 1.5 steals, 1.5 blocks and 4 rebounds a game. He has also been one of the Ducks’ most efficient scorers, shooting 60% from the field, 40% from the three-point line and 66.7 percent from the free-throw line. Evans started only three games for Oregon last season, but has so far been a key part of the team after starting in both games.
“He’s more aggressive, we need him to be a better rebounder defensively. He gets a lot of deflections because of his length. Needs to quit reaching and drawing some fouls,” Altman said. “I want to be able to play him at different positions so we can play a big lineup so we can go small if we need to. ”
Sean Stewart | Junior forward
A new transfer, forward Sean Stewart, has made an instant impact, averaging 8.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.0 steals a game so far this season. He previously played for the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Duke University Blue Devils. Stewart started 30 games for the Buckeyes last season and was the team’s leading shot blocker with 28, and was the team’s second-best rebounder with 5.8 per game. In Altman and Oregon’s mind, Stewart could be a big part of the Ducks team on the wing.
Devon Pryor | Junior forward
Devon Pryor was another transfer portal acquisition. Coming from the University of Texas Longhorns, he was a role player during his two seasons in Austin, starting only two games. He had some solid games with the Longhorns, including a strong performance in a loss against Georgia, where he scored eight points and picked up three steals. Pryor has so far started in both games for the Ducks, averaging 4.5 points and six rebounds a game.
Ege Demir | Junior center
Another new addition to the Ducks frontcourt is junior center Ege Demir, who was playing professionally in the Turkish Basketball Super League last season. In Turkey, he averaged 5.0 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks per game off the bench for Darüssafaka Lassa.
“He’s a big fella and it’s been really easy to work with,” Altman said. “He’s big and talented. I think he can be a pretty good player for us.”
The Ducks take on the South Dakota State Jackrabbits on Wednesday Nov. 12 at Matthew Knight Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
