Oregon men’s basketball took down California Saturday afternoon at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, California.

Head coach Dana Altman once again has the Ducks playing their best basketball late in the season, as Oregon has now won seven of the last eight games. In Altman’s 11 seasons, Oregon has been the best Pac-12 team during the second half of conference play, winning over 70 percent of their matchups leading into March.

The play of Chris Duarte, Eugene Omoruyi and LJ Figueroa proved to be a deciding factor, particularly Figueroa, who finished with a season-high 20 points, career-high 14 rebounds and five steals. 

“He was tremendous, definitely the difference in the game,” Altman said. “I think LJ is a big key for us, when he brings that energy, we are a much better team.”

The Ducks made four of their first five shots to take an early 8-2 lead in the opening minutes. However, multiple turnovers and a 1-5 shooting streak trimmed the lead to 11-8 at the under-12 media timeout. 

California star Matt Bradley struggled to get the Golden Bears’ offense in rhythm, shooting just 1-6 in the first half. 

Oregon picked up the pace with a swift 7-0 scoring run and went ahead 18-10. LJ Figueroa knocked down a three, making it the 800th consecutive game in which Oregon has made a three pointer. The last time Oregon failed to do so was Feb. 6, 1997 against Washington. 

With 1:37 left in the half, Eugene Omoruyi caught a lob off of a pick-and-roll from Chris Duarte. Omoruyi dunked it with authority, getting fouled in the process. He made the extra free throw, putting the Ducks up 32-23. 

Oregon led 34-27 at half, with Omoruyi leading all scorers with 11 points. 

California came out swinging in the second, at one point trimming the Oregon lead to one, but the Ducks successfully held off what proved to be the lone scare of a Golden Bears comeback. 

After a quiet first half, Duarte showed why he was nominated as a finalist for the Jerry West Award. After making a three, the Dominican native forced a steal, then pulled up and hit a deep three for a personal 6-0 run. He finished with 17 points.

The Ducks carried on by running out to a double digit lead and holding it until the end.

Omoruyi scored 21, his sixth time this season scoring in the twenties. 

Next week, Oregon plays its final three regular season games, beginning with Arizona, who they will host Monday, March 1 at Matthew Knight Arena.