As the Oregon men’s basketball team clings to hope at making the NCAA Tournament, Joseph Young is doing everything in his power to make sure the NCAA committee doesn’t forget about the Ducks.
After averaging 30.5 points over his previous two games, Young scored a game-high 26 points, leading Oregon to an 80-75 victory over USC on Wednesday night.
With the win, the Ducks are now on a four-game winning streak and will play at UCLA on Saturday.
The Ducks allowed USC to pull within one score multiple times after leading by eight at the half.
Oregon was able to hang on for the win after using a big second-half run to pull away from the Trojans.
After USC tied the game at 41 with 16:29 to play, the Ducks outscored the Trojans 29-16 over the next eight minutes to pace themselves firmly in control. Poor defense and turnover problems on offense the rest of the game allowed USC to cut the deficit to seven, 76-69 with 3:08 to play and make for the exciting finish.
The Trojans were unable to capitalize on their next possession and after an errant three-point shot, Young grabbed the rebound and was fouled, sending him to the free throw line for a one-and-one. Young would sink both free throws with 20 seconds remaining and allow Oregon to hang on for the win.
The first half was all Oregon as Jalil Abdul-Bassit hit two three-pointers in the first 2:30 of the game. The lead would continue to build and cumulated at 13 when Jordan Bell made a layup to give Oregon a 29-16 advantage with 5:09 to go in the half.
Elgin Cook ended the game for Oregon with 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists while Dillon Brooks added 15 points.
Oregon will face UCLA at 12 p.m. on Saturday at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, California.
Follow Ryan Kostecka on Twitter @Ryan_Kostecka