Oregon captures gutsy win over Colorado in Pac-12 title game to earn NCAA Tournament bid

The Oregon Ducks are going dancing.

After looking dead in the water at this time a week ago, the Ducks capped off a thrilling Pac-12 Tournament run with a 75-68 win over Colorado in the conference title game Saturday evening in Las Vegas. As a result, they have earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Oregon almost certainly would have missed out on the 68-team field if it had not emerged with a win against the Buffs. Now, the Ducks will spend the coming days preparing for their first tournament berth since the 2020-21 season.

“They’re a really tough group,” Oregon coach Dana Altman said. “We fought back against UCLA. We fought back against Arizona. The guys did a great job today. It’s a tough bunch of guys.”

N’Faly Dante, who was playing through pain after suffering a lower back/tailbone injury during Friday’s win over Arizona, carried the Ducks on both ends of the floor. The senior center scored a game-high 25 points on 12-of-12 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds in 27 minutes.

“When Dante is healthy and we’re getting him the ball, he’s just unbelievable,” Altman said. “He’s a warrior. He fights his tail off. He’s a wonderful man and it’s been a pleasure to work with him since it’s been at Oregon.”

The Ducks (23-11) shot just 2-of-17 from three-point range on the night. But they turned the ball over just three times to Colorado’s 13.

KJ Simpson led Colorado with 23 points on 6-of-12 shooting and almost singlehandedly kept the Buffs in the game down the stretch. Oregon managed to hold CU’s other top players in check, though. Tristan da Silva had just nine points on 3-of-10 shooting, and Cody Williams had nine points and five rebounds.

Oregon had to navigate some early foul trouble as Dante picked up his second foul with 14:31 left in the half. As soon as he left the floor, Colorado began a 13-0 run that enabled it to take a 20-13 lead.

Altman opted to roll the dice and put his star big man back in the game at the 10:03 mark.

Dante helped stop the bleeding and stabilized the Ducks throughout the remainder of the half.

With 1:30 left before the break, Jadrian Tracey buried a corner three on an assist from Jermaine Couisnard to give Oregon a 29-28 lead that was its first in more than 12 minutes.

Then, just before the first-half buzzer sounded, Jackson Shelstad hit a tough leaning jumper to send the Ducks into halftime with a 33-30 lead.

Early in the second half, da Silva made a savvy play to get Dante in the air with a pump fake and then leaned into him to draw the big man’s third foul of the night.

Altman opted to keep Dante in the game, though, and the gamble paid off for the Ducks once again. Dante avoided picking up his fourth foul and still managed to influence the game on both ends of the floor.

Couisnard connects with Dante for the easy deuce. #GoDucks

📺 FOX pic.twitter.com/2WqLV4QzwE

— Oregon Men's Basketball (@OregonMBB) March 17, 2024

Oregon kept Colorado at arm’s length for the early portion of the second half until Simpson canned a contested three-pointer to cut the Ducks’ lead to 50-49 with 11:20 remaining.

Next time down the floor, though, da Silva found Bangot Dak with a slick pass for an easy dunk.

At one point, the game saw four lead changes in a 66-second span. Dante put the Ducks ahead with a put-back to give them a 56-55 advantage with 7:39 left. Then, two possessions alter, Kario Oquendo put back another miss to make it 59-55.

But, with just under five minutes to go, Luke O’Brien drilled a crucial three to give Colorado a 62-61 lead and bring the Colorado fans at T-Mobile Arena to life.

Oregon finally found a way to create some separation in the final minutes when Shelstad buried a pair of free throws. Then, Evans tipped a pass for a turnover, and Tracey converted an up-and-under layup at the other end to f]give the Ducks a 66-62 lead with 2:41 to go.

Eddie Lampkin immediately answered with a bucket to make a two-point game. But Dante responded with a rim-rattling two-handed dunk to make it 68-64.

Then, Dante helped Oregon put the game away for good with a pivotal sequence. He forced a da Silva miss at the rim and grabbed the ensuing rebound. Then, at the other end, he crashed the glass after a missed layup from Couisnard and tipped in the rebound to make it 70-64.

The Ducks’ star big man put an exclamation point on the win several possessions later when Simpson launched a deep three and Dante came soaring in and swatted it to half-court.

Oregon will find out its NCAA Tournament destination during the NCAA selection show at 3 p.m. PT Sunday. It will air on CBS.