After a 2015-16 campaign in which he shot 40 percent from the 3-point line and was Oregon’s best deep threat as a freshman, Tyler Dorsey looked lost at the start of the year.
The 6-foot-4 sophomore with NBA potential shot 4-of-14 in Oregon’s marquee matchup versus Baylor early in the year, and followed with a 2-of-9 shooting performance against Valparaiso and a 1-of-7 showing against Georgetown.
Over Oregon’s previous five games, though, Dorsey has caught fire and is shooting 60 percent from the field. He delivered another sharpshooting display for Oregon on Sunday and drilled a crucial, momentum-swinging 3-pointer with three minutes left in the game to push the Ducks to a 65-56 lead over Alabama at Matthew Knight Arena.
The Crimson Tide took its first lead of the second half when forward Donta Hall tipped in a missed shot to cap off a 6-0 scoring run that gave Alabama a 54-53 lead.
Oregon called a timeout and ran a set play for Dorsey from the sideline in which he started in the corner nearest the ball, and ran along the baseline before cutting back to where he started and ditching his defender on a screen along the way. Dorsey drilled the catch-and-shoot opportunity with his feet barely set and gave a reeling Ducks team the lead and the momentum it needed to finish off the win.
“I think that’s what I do; I practice on that every day,” Dorsey said. “My teammates are finding me in good spots and all I’m doing is catching and shooting.”
Dorsey is snow shooting 48 percent from the field on the year and his catch-and-shoot display on Sunday provided evidence as to why he has been so hot of late. Oregon is working to get Dorsey the ball in spots where he is most comfortable, and he has cleaned up some mechanical flaws that hindered him early in the year.
“We did get [Dorsey] some good looks,” Oregon head coach Dana Altman said. “He was ready for some other ones. We ran a couple sets for him that he did finish. But his footwork and his fundamentals on his shooting right now are really good.
“He took some bad shots early in the year against Baylor. He was in a hurry and his feet weren’t right. … So I think he’s really focused and worked hard to get a little rhythm and I think he’s done a good job.”
Dorsey finished with a team-high 19 points including 5-of-8 from three on Sunday, and Oregon’s perimeter defense and late-game jump-shooting shone as the Ducks survived a late scare form an athletic Crimson Tide squad.
After Dorsey’s three, Alabama tied the game on the ensuing possession when Hall slammed home his third dunk in three minutes. On Oregon’s next possession, the Ducks ran the shot clock below 10 seconds and Dillon Brooks isolated his defender on the left elbow. The play was designed for him to get to the basket, but he was forced left by his defender and instead drove baseline and slung an athletic one-handed pass around a group of defenders to Dylan Ennis in the corner. Ennis pump-faked two defenders and drained a desperation three just before the shot clock expired to give Oregon a 59-56 lead that was the beginning of the end for Alabama.
“That three was lucky,” Altman said. “There was a penetration kick, and Dylan hit a really tough shot there. It was good penetration and they covered it good and Dylan just hit a tough shot. … We had a cleared side for [Brooks] and we were hoping he could get to the rim.”
Oregon closed out the game with a face-up jumper by Brooks that pushed the lead to five, and then forced the Crimson Tide into missed 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to seal the game.
The Ducks have now won six straight and are 8-2 on the year. Brooks finished with 10 points and six assists, and Hall led the Crimson Tide with 14 points and seven rebounds in 25 minutes.
Oregon will host Montana on Tuesday as it continues a cluster of four preseason games in nine days.
Follow Jarrid Denney on Twitter @jarrid_denney
Dorsey continues hot shooting streak as Oregon hangs on for 65-56 win over Alabama
Jarrid Denney
December 10, 2016
After a 2015-16 campaign in which he shot 40 percent from the 3-point line and was Oregon’s best deep threat as a freshman, Tyler Dorsey looked lost at the start of the year. The 6-foot-4 sophomore with NBA potential shot 4-of-14 in Oregon’s marquee matchup versus Baylor early in the …
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