After throwing down an emphatic dunk, Oregon center N’Faly Dante stared up at the Matthew Knight Arena crowd and gave them a shrug.
“It was kind of quiet,” Dante said. “I thought they would love it, so I was kind of saying, ‘What are you doing?’”
If MKA wasn’t rocking a minute before the dunk, it was after Dante’s gesture. He had just gone on a solo 6-point run which extended Oregon’s lead into double digits with four minutes remaining on Thursday night.
Along with that stretch, Dante poured in a career-high 22 points and seven rebounds. That sequence was one of many for a Ducks team that relied on those types of crafty buckets on the interior as they struggled shooting from the perimeter.
They tallied 52 points in the paint, which made up for the 3-for-18 shooting mark from three on their way to a 74-60 win. Along with the advantage on the interior, Oregon (4-4, 1-0) employed a full-court press that ruffled the Cougars ball handlers and forced easy points off turnovers.
While the scoreline indicated a commanding victory, the Ducks found themselves down 44-42 with 13 minutes remaining.
They had hit just one 3 pointer and left the door open for a Cougars team that led the Pac-12 in three pointers made last season. Fortunately for the Ducks, the Cougars couldn’t find the bottom of the net from deep either.
It was a chance for either team to take control of the game.
Then, as Cougars guard Dylan Darling attempted to make an over-the-head swing pass, Ducks guard Will Richardson ripped the ball out of his grasp. After the steal, Richardson tried to beat the Cougars’ defenders down the court and sidestepped Mouhamed Gueye for the up-and-under layup, plus the foul.
The layup tied the game for the Ducks, and the foul shot gave them the lead.
“Will made plays all night,” Oregon head coach Dana Altman said. “These last three games, I can’t say it enough, the transformation he’s made, the way he’s got guys playing… he’s done a hell of a job.”
Following that sequence, forward Lök Wur knocked down the second 3 of the night. The shot seemed to open the floodgates for Oregon’s offense, and it never conceded the lead for the remainder of the game.
In those final minutes the Ducks went back to what was working — the press and interior scoring — to break away from the Cougars.
Forward Rivaldo Soares picked off two passes that led to Oregon baskets on the other end, and guard Brennan Rigsby — who returned from injury and made his debut for the Ducks — added a steal of his own.
“I didn’t want to play [Rigsby] that much,” Altman said. “I got a little carried away. He was playing really well. The defense. He got timely boards. On the offense, it showed that he hadn’t played in a month, but the defense was there.”
While Rigsby came off the bench and only added 2 points on an athletic putback dunk, it was clear his presence in the backcourt was a breath of fresh air. It took the pressure off of Richardson as he showed his ability to handle the ball and play at the point of attack on the press.
He had a team-high plus-/minus of 16 points in just 23 minutes of play.
While this Oregon team sits at 4-4, a win to start off its Pac-12 schedule was crucial. It marks a new starting point. If the Ducks — who are starting to get healthier — can make a strong run against in-conference opponents, then they will make up for their missteps in non-conference play.
However, even with the return of Rigsby, the Ducks are still a team that struggles from the perimeter. They’ll have to rely on gamescripts like tonight’s to remain successful as the season progresses.
