The Ducks dazzled in their bright uniforms, but for head coach Dana Altman, a key part of the performance was dull.
The Ducks won 79-61, but allowed the visiting Utes to win the rebounding battle in the paint, 17-7. Utah also held the edge in second-chance points, 19-3.
Those two areas troubled Altman after the game.
“Usually with a number like that you don’t win the game,” Altman said. “With Colorado and Cal coming up — the best offensive rebounding teams in the league — it’s a very disappointing stat.”
Oregon’s flashy defense was at it again with massive blocks coming from Jordan Bell and Chris Boucher. The Ducks also kept Utah from driving throughout the contest by stopping the Utes on the perimeter.
“That 19 second chance points kind of takes all your efforts defensively off the board,” Altman said. “18 assists — I thought was good. We had too many turnovers. … We’ve got a quick turnaround. We’ve got to put this one behind us and get ready for the next one.”
Offensively, the Ducks are firing on all cylinders. They shot 53.4 percent overall on Thursday. Brooks led the Ducks with 20 points, and had some highlight worthy scores. In one instance Brooks drove down the center lane and jammed home a massive dunk.

@Erik_Skopil ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ pic.twitter.com/IZfdqSPgGD
— Jonathan Hawthorne (@Jon_Hawthorne) February 17, 2017

The junior then followed up the flashy sequence with a contested 3-pointer from the top of the key to get the fans in Matt Knight Arena on their feet.
Though Oregon scored with a high efficiency, it was the missed rebounds that alarmed Altman.
“[Offensive boarding] has been something that we’ve got to start doing a better job,” Altman said. “You can see how well that is going.”
The big win will serve a good warm up for Oregon before hosting Colorado on Saturday. Earlier this year, Colorado upset Oregon in Boulder.
“I don’t want to take anything away from Colorado because they played with a lot more energy than we did,” Altman said. “They just flat beat us. We’re going to have to play better in every facet of the game.”
For Oregon, it is a chance at revenge for the last loss, which has left a sour aftertaste this season.
“We can’t give any teams open 3s,” Payton Pritchard said while Bell shook his head. “Last game we gave them open 3s and their energy went up. We can’t give any teams open 3s. It’s difficult to come back.”
The Ducks play Colorado in the final home game of the season on Saturday at 12 p.m.
Follow Shawn Medow on Twitter @ShawnMedow