As Myles Rice took his final free-throws, Duck fans weren’t watching. Instead, with their backs turned, they walked up the aisles of Matthew Knight Arena. The Cougars (18-6, 9-5 Pac-12) finished a 62-56 victory over the Ducks (16-8, 8-5 Pac-12) in front of near-empty stands. The battle had been lost earlier — on the four-straight field goals the Ducks missed to end the game. Now quiet but for a few vocal Cougars, the arena was empty, and Oregon’s season is all but over.
Oregon’s effective defense was let down multiple times by open 3-pointers, which kept the Cougars ahead through the first half. Despite sticking in the game, the Ducks only led for 53 seconds in the opening period.
Oregon’s freshmen had their chances, but didn’t capitalize. Kwame Evans Jr., back in the starting lineup after dropping to the bench, had two points and five rebounds while Jackson Shelstad had just four points and two assists.
The Ducks held reigning Pac-12 Freshman of the Week Myles Rice without a score or assist for nearly eight minutes to open the game. Rice, who averages 15.3 points per game, was good for seven in the first half and a game-high 21 by the end.
At the half, though, Oregon was lucky to be in the game. The Ducks were 0-5 from 3-point range — valuable points missed. Despite that, a half-ending dunk from N’Faly Dante off a turnover from Rice ensured that the teams were separated by only one possession at the break.
In the postgame press conference, head coach Dana Altman said, “I’ve got absolutely no complaints about N’Faly Dante… He got tired, but we took him out for a couple of series and that didn’t go so well.” Frustrated with what he perceived as a lack of commitment, he bemoaned the missing effort from the seven players not named Dante.
The center, though, didn’t criticize his teammates. Instead, he cited a “lack of connection” as the issue in his postgame availability. Without Nate Bittle (sick) to spell him, Dante played 34 minutes in the loss, finishing with 15 points and 13 rebounds.
Altman complained about the Ducks’ less-than-optimal free-throw numbers on the night: as they sent Rice to the line 11 times, Oregon could only put home eight of 14.
“In a tight game like that where you’re not shooting the ball… that kills you,” Altman said. ““They didn’t shoot them great, but they got the big rebound on the one we missed late. We made a lot of mistakes and didn’t give ourselves an opportunity.”
Oregon was able to draw level early into the second half, and Dante was the centerpiece of a Ducks group that was fighting for a win. The Malian center laid in the tying basket before forcing a turnover which Evans dunked home.
Jermaine Couisnard, Oregon’s points-per-game leader on the season, though, picked up his third foul with just two minutes played in the second half. With him out, Rice found six points for the Cougars before Couisnard was back in, and Washington State was back in front by five points with 10 minutes to play.
As it stood, the difference was the then eight 3-point shots that Oregon had missed by the 10-minute mark in the second half. The Ducks would finally put one home from deep range with eight to play to draw back within a possession of the Cougars, but soon after find themselves back down by seven. The back-and-forth sway between in contest and down nearly by double digits continued to waver: Oregon drew within a possession on two Dante free-throws, but Rice erased the effort with a 3-point basket directly afterward.
Headed out of the final media timeout, Brennan Rigsby was set to shoot two crucial free throws. The first clanked off the front rim. Oregon, back within six, had four minutes to save its season.
Those minutes began with a Rigsby 3-point shot. With a Cougar bearing down, he splashed to bring Oregon within three. Couisnard picked up his fourth foul on the next possession, but remained in the game while Isaac Jones extended the Cougars’ lead off the ensuing free throws.
Then, Rice, just one for five from 3-point range despite leading the visitors in points, missed from outside the arc to give Oregon the ball back. Couisnard, though, would sit not because of foul trouble, but for an injury. Rigsby, with the chance to get within two points, missed from outside the arc. 90 seconds remained.
With a minute to go and the ball, Couisnard returned. On the ensuing possession, the senior drilled a contested 3-pointer to bring the Ducks within a score of the lead. Matthew Knight Arena, ringing with the sound of Mighty Oregon, was as alive as it’d ever been.
Deafening, Isaiah Wells stepped up for two-free throws after a costly Oregon-foul. Couisnard had fouled out. With Shelstad in his place, the second of two free-throws fell off the rim, but instead of an instant possession, Jadrian Tracey committed his fifth foul. Rice calmly put his two away to extend Washington State’s lead to five.
Oregon turned the ball over again with 13 seconds to play, and the game was essentially over. The Ducks got the ball back as a Cougar stepped out on the inbound, but couldn’t find an answer. As Rice took his final free-throws, Matthew Knight Arena emptied.
The Ducks will need perfection — and a run in Vegas — to obtain their season-long goal of making the NCAA Tournament. From a glance, an appearance in a 68-team tournament seemed incredibly obtainable. But after yet another loss, Oregon finds itself in another, in what’s becoming a string of them, season to forget.
