INDIANAPOLIS — Oregon wove its way through a pandemic-altered season filled with injuries, pauses and uncertainty to win a conference title.
When another kink surfaced in the NCAA Tournament, the resilient, adaptable Ducks shook it off and soared.
Off to another Sweet 16.
Montreal-born Chris Duarte scored 23 points and Oregon showed no signs of rust after a long layoff, beating No. 2 seed Iowa 95-80 on Monday to reach the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in the past five NCAA Tournaments.
“The guys fought through it, they stayed together,” Oregon coach Dana Altman said. “I’m proud of the way they responded.”
The seventh-seeded Ducks (21-6) were put in an unprecedented spot, advancing to the West Region’s second round without playing a game. Virginia Commonwealth’s multiple positive COVID-19 tests took care of that, leaving Oregon with a nine-day break since losing in the Pac-12 Tournament title game.
Oregon’s offence hummed like it was fresh off the line once the ball went up, kicking off the NCAA Tournament’s first Monday of second-round games with a masterpiece.
The Ducks flowed on the floor and glowed on the scoresheet, shooting 56 per cent and hitting 11 3-pointers. LJ Figueroa hit five threes while scoring 21 points and Will Richardson added 19 points in an offensive domination.
Oregon moves on to face either Kansas or Southern Cal in the Sweet 16.
“We just said keep our foot on the gas,” Duarte said. “We did and it was a lot of fun.”
The Ducks’ sweet offensive movements left the Hawkeyes (22-9) flailing, one game short of the Sweet 16 for the fourth time under Fran McCaffery.
Luka Garza played like a two-time All-American, bulling in for three-point plays, hitting mid-range jumpers and dropping in the occasional three. He capped his stellar college career by tying the Iowa NCAA Tournament record with 36 points and grabbing nine rebounds before receiving a nice ovation from the limited crowd allowed in Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
Joe Wieskamp added 17 points, but the rest of the Hawkeyes weren’t of much help to the big fella, sending them out of the bracket early with other top seeds Illinois, Ohio State and Texas.
“It’s heartbreaking, so surreal, it kind of hit me all at once that this is the last time I’ll put on this jersey and that hurts a lot,” Garza said. “I feel bad that I wasn’t able to lead this team to where it needs to go.”
The Ducks managed to navigate a difficult season full of pauses and injuries to win their second straight Pac-12 regular-season title.
Oregon earned a No. 7 seed in Indianapolis and faced what was expected to be a difficult opener against VCU and its Havoc defence. But the Ducks learned during their pregame meal that they would advance without playing a game, leaving them with a huge break before facing the No. 2 team in the region.
Nerves? Rusty? Nope.
The Ducks went on the attack from Richardson’s opening layup and used quick ball movement to set up open looks throughout the first half.
Oregon hit seven threes — two by Figueroa late — made 22 of 37 shots and used a 10-0 run to lead 56-46 at halftime despite having three players in foul trouble.
“The shots were falling, the energy was going,” Altman said. “Our guys were making plays for each other and we were getting a lot of good looks because the ball was moving.”
The biggest problem was stopping Iowa’s best player.
Garza had 12 points in the first seven minutes, even with Oregon shading a defender toward him in the post, and 20 by halftime. He shook off the smaller Ducks bouncing off him as he hit 8 of 10 shots and the lone three he attempted.
The Ducks kept soaring on offence and swarmed Garza with double teams in the second half, stretching the lead to 76-57 to all but put it out of reach.
“It’s a hard team to cover in so many different ways,” McCaffery said. “We tried man, zone, press with moderate success — not enough.”
BIG PICTURE
Oregon was considered one of the bracket’s most dangerous middle seeds and sure showed why against Iowa. The Ducks will be tough to oust the rest of the tournament if they keep playing like this.
Iowa had one of the best players in college basketball but still found itself short of the Sweet 16. Garza will have his No. 55 retired after the season, but he will be missing a 16 on his resume.
OMORUYI’S LIFT
Every team needs a player who does a little bit of everything and isn’t afraid to do the dirty work.
Eugene Omoruyi is that player for Oregon.
The physical six-foot-six forward from Rexdale, Ont., had a superb all-around game, finishing with 17 points, six rebounds, five assists, two steals, two blocked shots and lots of grit.
“Eugene’s our most physical player,” Altman said. “He battled his tail off in there despite giving up five, six inches and 20-something pounds.”
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More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and updated bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
