When Garrett Sim and E.J. Singler went to the bench early in the second half of Wednesday night’s 71-58 victory over Creighton, the two Oregon natives found themselves in an emotional playoff atmosphere, which would have been hard to imagine a few months ago.
Oregon (20-18) prolonged its season with defensive intensity and will meet the Bluejays for the decisive third game in the best-of-three series Friday night at Matthew Knight Arena.
“I just thought the emotion was so much better,” Oregon coach Dana Altman said. “The crowd really helped us out. That just shows what a big part emotion plays in the game.”
That emotion couldn’t have been more evident than the moment Sim and Singler shared in the huddle shortly after Sim gave the Ducks a 21-point lead with 17:44 remaining in the second half.
Sim, a Portland native and 2008 graduate of Sunset High School, converted on a tough layup with three Creighton defenders surrounding him before nailing a deep three-pointer on the ensuing inbounds play. The crowd erupted and forced Creighton coach Greg McDermott to burn a timeout.
Sim and Singler took a quick seat next to each other in the circle around Altman, and shared a fierce yell of “Let’s go!” that could be heard throughout the arena.
The efforts of two generally reserved players set the tone for a dominant second half surge, and that emotion propelled Oregon to a strong win in front of 7,875 in attendance. But in Monday’s loss in Omaha, Oregon looked like a very different team.
“We played a lot harder this game,” freshman guard Johnathan Loyd said, “and we showed emotion and passion for the game. We didn’t have that up there.”
Loyd and junior Malcolm Armstead fueled the Ducks’ defensive efforts throughout the night. Loyd came off the bench to dish out six assists against two turnovers (both in the second half) to go along with three steals, while Armstead’s five steals moved him into third place on the school’s all-time list with 151 career steals.
Armstead also chipped in 14 points, six assists, and three rebounds in his 28 minutes of action.
Loyd felt that after watching the game film of Monday night’s loss, the Ducks had plenty of room to improve with their on-ball pressure.
“Our main foundation for this game was defense first,” Loyd said. “They scored too much and too easily in our last game, (we) gave them too many easy baskets and that fueled them on offense and defense.”
On Wednesday, it was Oregon forcing its will defensively, which created 20 Creighton turnovers to go along with 13 team steals. Many of those steals led to layups for the Ducks as they edged the Bluejays in fast break points 14-2.
“That’s great activity on the defensive end and that led us to get out in transition,” senior forward Joevan Catron said, who led Oregon with 18 points. “Guards like Johnny and Malcolm were able to get out and make plays.”
Oregon also held a 35-9 advantage in points off turnovers, and a 44-16 lead in points in the paint despite a serious size disadvantage.
Creighton center Gregory Echenique was held in check with 10 points and eight rebounds to lead the Bluejays. As a team Creighton shot just 41.9 percent from the field after a stellar shooting performance at home on Monday.
Altman expects his old team to be back with a vengeance on Friday.
“They’re not going to be pleased with the way they played (Wednesday),” Altman said. “Friday will be a battle. Our guys can’t let down, but I know those guys will be disappointed with the way they played, and they’ll come back just like we came back (Wednesday).”
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