The Oregon Ducks men’s basketball team wrapped up arguably its best regular season roadtrip in program history, defeating the No. 5 ranked USC Trojans 79-69 in Southern California.
On Thursday, Oregon had No. 3 UCLA on the ropes before a pair of turnovers allowed for the Bruins to force overtime. But Saturday night in Galen Center there were no late game fireworks for the Trojans as Oregon took care of the game by dominating inside.
“If we are connected, all five of us on the defensive end, it makes the offensive end that much better,” junior guard De’Vion Harmon said. “We got guys that can score the ball… but defense is where it starts.”
On the offensive end, where the Ducks have looked stagnant this season at times, junior guard Will Richardson needed no help getting comfortable. He knocked down his first four 3-pointers and never looked back en route to a career high 28 point night on 9-of-15 shooting, hitting five shots from beyond the arc.
Guards Richarson, Harmon and Jacob Young slashed inside all night, forcing the Trojan defense to choose whether to collapse and leave open shooters or surrender easy shots at the basket. Oregon won points in the paint 18-8 in the first half while shooting a scorching hot 7/11 from deep, taking a 45-29 lead into the break.
“The leadership is definitely part of it,” Oregon head coach Dana Altman said. “I think we’re playing a lot better because we are playing a lot harder.”
The Ducks didn’t stray away from what worked as they continued to punish USC down low with the tandem of N’Faly Dante and Franck Kepnang. Demanding double teams in the post off of switched pick and roll mismatches, Oregon found good looks resulting in 50% field goal shooting.
The game was sealed on the defensive end. USC threatened Oregon’s lead, but six blocked shot shots — four by Kepnang and two by Dante — and six steals resulted in 22 points off turnovers and a 15-3 advantage in fastbreak points for the Ducks.
Dante scored 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field. He led the Ducks in rebounding, corralling 7 boards and continuing to look ever more comfortable as he recovers from a knee injury.
“He and Franck gave us a big presence today,” Altman said. “This is by far the most that teams have finished inside of us… I thought they did a tremendous job inside.”
With their second win against a top five opponent this weekend, Oregon men’s basketball has invigorated its season. The Ducks are starting to find their identity as a team that, like their predecessors, plays incredibly stifling defense. With their trio of guards and plethora of 7-footers, this team also possesses speed and size that other Oregon teams have lacked.
The Ducks will play next on Jan. 20, when they host Washington State at Matthew Knight Arena.
