It was not pretty and a shots were missed, but the Oregon Ducks pulled out a one-point win over Arizona State led by Dillon Brooks.
The Oregon Ducks looked for a better performance on Thursday night against Arizona State than what they had on Saturday against Colorado. Dillon Brooks had just six points in the game against the Buffaloes. Three key players for Oregon fouled out before the final whistle. Colorado snapped the Ducks 17 game winning streak. Dana Altman and the Ducks weclomed Arizona State to Matthew Knight Arena.
Arizona State was first to score, but Jordan Bell hit a quick basket for two and got the Ducks on the board. Jordan Bell had his name called for the first six points of the game for Oregon before Payton Pritchard landed a three pointer. The Sundevils were first to hit a scoreless streak going 0 for 6 in a 3 minute span.
Both teams kept early fouls to a minimum, but also struggled getting to the basket. Oregon held a 21-19 lead with 7:10 left in the first half. There was not much Offense in the final 7:10 of the first half. Both teams continued to struggle as ASU took a 28-25 lead into the locker room. Oregon shot 36 percent with Arizona State hitting 31 percent from the floor. Oregon had 5 turnovers in the first half.
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The Oregon Ducks started the second half as a different team. They tied the game in a matter of just a few minutes and started landing three-pointers from Payton Pritchard and Dylan Ennis to take a 40-37 lead with 14:20 left in the game. Oregon began some separation for a game that was back and forth. The Ducks used some long distance shots for a 47-41 lead with just over 11 minutes to go. Four Oregon Ducks had 2 personal fouls.
Shannon Evans gave Oregon fits and brought ASU back to within three 49-46 with just under 10 minutes left. The Ducks went on an 0 for 5 scoring drought as Arizona State took a 51-50 lead. Arizona State landed 21 points off three-pointers for the game with 7:01 left. Oregon was 5 for 19.
Arizona State found a 6-0 run as Torian Graham hit a three-pointer to take a 60-59 lead with 3:15 left. It was a continuous struggle to find a basket. Oregon had several opportunities with second and third chance attempts that did not fall. Dillon Brooks hit two fouls shots to give a one-point lead back to Oregon.
Dillon Brooks followed the foul shots with a five points to give Oregon a 71-66 lead bringing a near sellout crowd to their feet and forcing an Arizona State timeout with 50 seconds left. What is more impressive is Brooks scored 11 straight points for the Ducks. In the end, Oregon was saved by one point. Oregon won 71-70 over Arizona State.
The Oregon Ducks won an ugly game and now get ready for a Top 5 Arizona team on Saturday. (1pm Pacific Time, ESPN)