Oregon Falls to 2-6 in the Pac-12 Conference After Loss to UCLA 70-68

Oregon started out playing solid basketball all around on Thursday night against UCLA, but in the end it was not enough. Joseph Young had 25 points to lead the Ducks as they fell to UCLA.

Jan 30, 2014; Eugene, OR, USA; Oregon Ducks head coach Dana Altman against the UCLA Bruins at Matthew Knight Arena. Mandatory Credit: Scott Olmos-USA TODAY Sports

The news earlier this week that Oregon Senior Johnathan Loyd broke his nose at the time seemed like the big story. However it did not stop him form playing against the UCLA Bruins on Thursday night with a custom made mask in front of the nation. The biggest storyline of the game was Oregon’s Defense. In the first 10 minutes of the game they made opportunities for themselves with three steals and solid start rebounding the ball. Mike Moser got himself into foul trouble with two in the first four minutes of the game. Richard Amardi came in off the bench and put points on the board in the paint for the Ducks.

After the first half Oregon led UCLA 36-32 and had just 7 turnovers. Oregon had four steals in the first twenty minutes of play. Transfer Joseph Young had the hot hand with 16 points along with Jason Calliste off the bench with 8. The Ducks shot 41 percent to the Bruins 39 percent.

Oregon did not start the second half on an inspired note with several key mistakes and turnovers, which included a bad call from the ref which put them in a four point hole 42-38 with 15:34 left in the game. The Ducks then went on an 11-4 run to tie the game at 49 with the help of Jason Calliste, Joseph Young and Richard Amardi. The run picked up the crowd and got them back into the game. A Bruin foul out of the timeout put Jason Calliste at the line to shoot three free throws. He made all three tying the game at 52 with 10:31 remaining. If there was a time for the defensive effort of the first half to return it was now. It did with 7:20 remaining for the Bruins as the Ducks had a turnover which gave UCLA a 10 point lead. The Ducks would let the shot clock run out before the next Oregon basket fell, which did not count.

With 6:15 left Oregon began to work one of their strengths, hitting shots from the free throw line. Johnathan Loyd hit two bringing the Ducks within 8 points. Amardi took a charge on the next possession but the call went UCLA’s way giving the Bruins an 11 point lead. The Ducks woke up with just under four minutes to play as Jason Calliste got a steal and scored two points. What followed was two points by Joseph Young and a foul.

Calliste would again get the call with 1:30 remaining and hit a three that would give Oregon the lead 66-65. After a block on a UCLA free throw Oregon would regain possession with 1:12 left. The Ducks lead would grow by two with Richard Amardi hitting two shots on a foul.  UCLA came right back and tied the game at 68 with just over 30 seconds left. After a held Ball the Bruins scored two making it 70-68 Bruins. Johnathan Loyd had a shot at the end but it was blocked as Oregon fell at home. The Ducks are now 2-6 in the Pac-12 Conference and face USC on Saturday evening at 5pm.