Playing another game two days after a disappointing loss at home might be a good thing for Oregon, which will host Washington State on Monday in Eugene, Ore.
The Ducks (16-8, 9-4 Pac-12) are eager to atone for a 78-64 home defeat to lowly Cal on Saturday. Oregon is trying to hold on to a top-four spot in the conference for a first-round bye in the Pac-12 Tournament in a few weeks. Washington State (14-9, 7-5) is also in striking distance for a top-four finish.
Maybe a dud of a game was bound to happen, as Oregon had won 10 of its previous 11. The Ducks allowed a 24-0 run from Cal in the first half and missed 16 straight 3-point attempts over a stretch of more than half the game.
“We came out and gave them easy baskets to start the game,” Oregon coach Dana Altman told the school’s athletics website. “They got rolling, and we could never get it stopped. And then on offense our ball movement wasn’t good, we missed some open shots and maybe tightened up a bit.
“We didn’t do anything required to stay in the game.”
Oregon had played its way into NCAA Tournament bracket projections, but the loss to 10th-place Cal means the Ducks could be a bubble team at the moment.
Washington State is hoping for a strong finish and run in the conference tournament. The Cougars had won five straight games before dropping back-to-back contests at home in Pullman, Wash., to No. 4 Arizona and struggling Arizona State.
The Arizona State loss saw the Cougars shoot a season-low 30.0 percent, making just 18 of 60 shots.
“We were horrendous from two,” Washington State coach Kyle Smith said. “We missed so many layups. We were 8 for 26 from two. … They doubled the post. We had some layups, we just gotta put them in.”
The Cougars are 14-41 all-time against Oregon but have won the last two meetings, including one in Eugene.
–Field Level Media
