Typically, a head coach enters a a post-game press conference after a team’s first exhibition game and uses phrases such as, “a work in progress” and “we have got to get better.”
But that was not the case Monday night for Oregon head coach Ernie Kent. Instead, he entered the room boasting that there were “not a lot of negatives [he] can say” and mentioning how “thorough” his team was.
It was hard to argue with the coach after the Oregon men’s basketball team coasted to a 102-59 victory over Korabel, a traveling basketball team from Nikolaev, Ukraine, in its exhibition opener.
The game drew nearly 7,000 fans at McArthur Court and provided the newcomers on the team with an opportunity to play against an actual opponent for the first time. Of the much-heralded recruiting class, freshmen guards James Davis and Luke Ridnour stood out.
Davis tied Bryan Bracey for the game-high in point totals with 21, and Ridnour recorded seven assists compared to zero turnovers in 22 minutes of action.
“It’s very encouraging to see what I saw out there tonight,” Kent said. “To see the pieces of what we recruited and how they fit.”
Oregon entered halftime with a 48-31 lead, but then opened the game up in the second half. The Ducks scored the first nine points of the half en route to a 23-5 game-clinching run.
Korabel was paced by guard Oleksandr Rayevskyy, who hustled his way to a game-high 26 points.
The only drama in the game was whether Oregon would top the century mark. The Ducks scored their 99th point on a Davis three pointer — his fourth of the game — with 2:31 to play in the game. But then Karobel made it a bit tough on the Ducks, as they began to dribble out the shot clock before shooting.
Freshman forward Luke Jackson, though, finally pushed the scoreboard to triple digits when he drained three of his nine points at the 1:06 mark.
One player who appeared to be in mid-season shape was junior guard Freddie Jones. He showed that he might finally reach his potential this season, as he recorded 15 points, grabbed seven rebounds, as well as having two steals and a block.
Jones woke up the relatively dormant crowd a few times with his usual array of high-wire acts, including some smooth reverse layins that left the defending Ukrainians in awe.
“That’s always a good feeling,” Jones said. “The fans enjoy it, my teammates enjoy it, so of course I’m going to enjoy it too.”
Jones also demonstrated that he can give it up too, as he lobbed a picture-perfect alley-oop pass to Bracey, who then threw it down for the two-hand slam to give the Ducks a 63-33 lead early in the second half.
Kent was impressed with the way his players played together, regardless of which line-up was on the floor.
“It’s a system of interchangeable pieces,” Kent said. “That’s the beauty of our system. For them to play this well this early is a great sign. We love to teach and they’ve been great students.”
Oregon’s next “test” will be Nov. 14, when the Ducks host Athletes in Action at Mac Court in their second and final exhibition game.