College Hoops

Three-point barrage sinks UO men

Three-point barrage sinks UO men


PORTLAND — A barrage of three-pointers sunk the Oregon men’s basketball team Thursday, as the Ducks opened the Phil Knight Invitational with an 83-59 loss to No. 20 Connecticut at Moda Center.

The Huskies went 17-of-37 from three in the game to overwhelm the short-handed Ducks (2-3). The UO men played without guard Keeshawn Bathelemy, who injured his ankle Sunday against Houston and joined three other injured Ducks on the bench.

“We didn’t respond very well,” UO coach Dana Altman said. “Bigs didn’t get out and cover a number of times, our perimeter defense wasn’t good, and then they just hit shots.”

How It Happened: Buckets by Quincy Guerrier, Will Richardson and N’Faly Dante helped Oregon take an early 8-3 lead, but it didn’t last. It was tied 13-13 when the Huskies got hot from deep — six of their next seven baskets were three-pointers.

That hot shooting helped Connecticut out to a 35-22 lead late in the first half. A three-pointer from Rivaldo Soares and a three-point play by Kel’el Ware got the Ducks within 35-28, but UConn got the lead back up to 39-28 at halftime.

Turnovers hurt Oregon early in the second half, helping UConn put together a 9-0 run that made it 48-30. After Tyrone Williams scored to get the UO men back within 18 at 56-38, they went 4:41 before their next field goal, as the Huskies opened up a lead of 66-39.

UConn’s 16th three-pointer of the game provided its biggest lead of the night, at 75-46. The Ducks responded with a 7-0 run capped by a three-pointer from Ware, but the deficit was too great. Late in the game, Lök Wur made his season debut, a welcome addition to the injury depleted rotation.

Who Stood Out: Ware was 6-of-8 from the field with a pair of threes and also grabbed nine rebounds to set new career high in points and boards. Dante added 15 points, Richardson scored nine and Soares had eight.

Up Next: The Ducks play Friday night against the loser of Thursday’s late game between Alabama and Michigan State.

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