The Pac-12 men’s basketball season is expected to open with a bang when Oregon travels to Salt Lake City on Thursday to face Utah at 5 p.m. PT.
While the Ducks are ranked No. 10 in the country and Utah is unranked, the game should be a high-scoring affair featuring the top-scoring offense in the nation in Oregon’s 90.8 points per game going against the top shooting offense in the nation in Utah’s 54.2 shooting percentage.
The Ducks also rank third in field goal percentage at 51.3 percent while the Utes counter by being the third highest scoring team in the nation with 87.4 points per game and third in assists per game at 19.
Oregon has begun the season with a perfect 12-0 record but has yet to play a ranked opponent and had the luxury of playing nine games in the comfortable confines of Matthew Knight Arena. Utah is 11-1 and is a mere three points away from being undefeated with its lone loss coming against Boise State.
Both teams have a common opponent in BYU. The Utes defeated the Cougars 81-64 on Dec. 14 while the Ducks defeated the Cougars one week later by a score of 100-96 in overtime.
Each team has a two-headed combination that has been lethal to its opponents.
Joseph Young and Mike Moser are Oregon’s best players and stat-sheet stuffers. Young averages 20.2 points per game, third in the Pac-12, while shooting 82 percent from the free throw line and 47 percent from three-point territory. Moser brings the veteran leadership while averaging 13.9 points and a team-high 7.9 rebounds per game.
Jason Calliste and Damyean Dotson average 12.3 and 11.3 points per game, respectively, while Johnathon Loyd adds 9.3 points and a Pac-12-leading 6.7 assists per game.
As a team, the Ducks shoot 42. 7 percent from three-point territory — none better than Calliste’s 59. 4 percent — and average 22.5 free throws made per game.
The Utes counter with the likes of Jordan Loveridge and Delon Wright.
Loveridge averages a near double-double with team-highs of 17.3 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. Wright does a little bit of everything for Utah, averaging 14.9 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 2.6 steals and 1.2 blocks per game.
Brandon Taylor is the only other Ute averaging double figures by posting 11.0 points per game while Marko Kovacevic provides depth down low by averaging 8.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.
The Ducks will look to avenge last season’s 72-62 loss in Utah while the Utes will look to prove they are for real.
Follow Ryan Kostecka on Twitter @Ryan_Kostecka