Ducks crushed in Tempe, take massive hit to NCAA tournament hopes
The Oregon Ducks (17-9, 10-5) fell to the Arizona State Sun Devils (9-15, 5-9) 81-57 at Desert Financial Arena in Tempe, Ariz. on Thursday night.
Poor defense, poor shooting, and poor effort plagued Oregon during a disappointing loss in the desert. They are now on the outside looking in, according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi.
A bad loss to Cal last week hurt Oregon’s chances of making the big dance, but this loss may have been even worse.
Sure, Oregon could run the table: they could beat Arizona on the road before beating both USC and UCLA at home next weekend. It’s technically possible.
They also could make a deep run in the Pac-12 Tournament, which we’ve seen them do before. But they also could have made a comeback against Cal or tonight against ASU. It’s becoming less and less believable by the day.
Arizona State started hot from the field, going 5/9 from three in the first 12:30. That included a 4/4 start by Marreon Jackson from three. The senior guard finished 6/7 with 16 points in the first half.
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In contrast, the Ducks shot just 34% from the field — including an abysmal 1/13 from three — in the first half. Eight points from Eric Williams Jr. and five missed free throws from ASU were the only reasons Oregon stayed within six (36-30).
Oregon played even worse in the second half, going 8/23 from the field and 4/13 from three. They finished 35% from the field (to ASU’s 57%) and 19% from three (to ASU’s 45%).
ASU’s trio of Kimani Lawrence, DJ Horne, and Jalen Graham each had 16 points. Jackson led all scorers with 18. ASU never trailed.
Will Richardson had 12 points and three assists. Williams had 11, but took a seat after his fourth foul with 10 minutes to go. He would not score after that.
Notes
— ASU had 18 fastbreak points to Oregon’s four.
— ASU out-rebounded the Ducks 40-29.
— This game completed ASU’s first regular season sweep over UO since the 2011 season.
