NCAA Tournament: Oregon Ducks Look To Break Through vs Wisconsin Badgers
The Oregon Ducks have won eight straight games and were named a 12 seed in the NCAA Tournament and face 5 seed Wisconsin.
Oregon will face a familiar foe in the first round. While it has been a few seasons, the Ducks know their opponent, the Wisconsin Badgers, fairly well. Oregon has faced the Badgers twice in the last five seasons, making this year’s Tournament appearance three times out of six. Wisconsin won the last two meeting with Oregon, but Oregon had to travel several times zones in those losses.
While winning eight straight including four games in four days in the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas last week, Oregon and Wisconsin meet in San Jose allowing an easier transition for the Oregon Ducks with less travel time.
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One player that has stepped up over the last eight games has been Payton Pritchard. He had led Oregon in points scored through a good part of that span. Louis King has been able to find his inside shot while nursing an injury that off the court has kept him in a boot, but he should be good to go on Friday afternoon.
While the Ducks had to make a push at the end of the season, Wisconsin’s approach was more balanced. The Badgers had an early test against a top 5 Virginia team they lost too in Las Vegas and they ran out of gas in the Big Ten Tournament against Michigan State. The similarities for both teams are inconsistencies.
Wisconsin shot less than 30 percent from three-point range over the final month of the regular season. Kobe King may be the player to watch. He has grown this season and helped Wisconsin to 15 turnovers in the Big Ten Tournament vs Michigan State. Khalil Iverson will look to help the Badgers keep pushing momentum on the Offensive End.
It will come down to which team can put things together on Friday. Oregon and Wisconsin tip off from San Jose on Friday at 1:25 pm Pacific Time on TBS.