Oregon Ducks Basketball

No. 12 versus No. 5 matchups have a reputation for producing upsets, and No. 12 Oregon kept the trend alive with a comfortable 68-55 victory over No. 5 Oklahoma State in the Midwest region. 

The Ducks are not your average No. 12 seed after winning the Pac-12 Tournament, and the team came out on a mission to prove the selection committee wrong. Dana Altman's team continued to play lockdown defense against the Cowboys, and this helped them pull out an upset victory. 

A balanced scoring effort allowed the Ducks to consistently build their lead throughout the contest. Oregon had four players in double figures and were led by freshman guard Damyean Dotson, who finished with 17 points. 

Forward Arsalan Kazemi was a beast on the boards in this game and grabbed 17 rebounds to go along with his 11 points. Overall, the Ducks were far better on the glass and won the rebounding battle 44-30.

Kazemi didn't only contribute on the glass, though. Watch him fill the lane and finish with a powerful jam here.

On defense, the Ducks clamped down Oklahoma State's star freshman, Marcus Smart. The talented point guard was 5-of-13 from the field and recorded just 14 points. 

After an extremely unfortunate draw, the Cowboys' 2013 NCAA tournament run lasted just 40 minutes. 

The Ducks have certainly earned their spot in the next round, and they will now start preparing for a tough matchup against No. 4 Saint Louis. 

Twitter Reaction

The Charlotte Observer's Rick Bonnell echoed the thoughts of many basketball fans when he shared his feelings on Oregon's seed in the tournament:

But Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune pointed out that massively under-seeding the Ducks was just as unfair to Oklahoma State as it was to Oregon:

The Oregonian's John Canzano noted that the chip on the Ducks' shoulder was not the only motivation they had to play hard in this game:

And play hard they did. Gina Mizell of The Oklahoman points out that Oregon completely dominated most aspects of this game:

The San Francisco Chronicle's Vic Tafur noticed that the Ducks had an unexpected fan who may be switching allegiances from his alma mater. Pac-12 Digital's Bryan Fischer shared a picture of Bill Walton's flashy outfit:

Sports Illustrated's Andy Glockner also decided to take a shot at the selection committee for how they seeded Oregon:

After the rout was on, Bleacher Report's Dan Levy noted that a closer-than-expected game between No. 1 Gonzaga and No. 16 Southern that was going on at the same time as this contest provided a silver lining for the Cowboys:

The upsets have started. Be sure to use these links to follow all the action the rest of the way. 

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Aaron Gordon will be in attendance when Oregon takes on Oklahoma State on Thursday in the NCAA West Region—a game the Ducks must win to ensure they land the prized recruit.

According to Adam Jude of The Oregonian:

Oregon freshman point guard Dominic Artis and Gordon played AAU ball together with the Oakland Soldiers. Artis confirmed Gordon would be on hand for Thursday's game at HP Pavilion. "Definitely trying to keep Oregon in his ear," Artis said. "It would be great if we got him up there for next year."

The connection with Artis is likely a selling point for Gordon.

That said, the No. 4-ranked player (ESPN) in the nation is used to winning. He's currently preparing to compete for his third-straight state championship with Archbishop Mitty.

An Oregon victory in the team's first game of the NCAA tournament against the fifth-seeded Cowboys would go a long way toward convincing Gordon that he belongs with the Ducks in 2013. 

According to Darren Sabedra of the San Jose Mercury News, Gordon will make his decision at the McDonald's All-American Game on April 3 in Chicago. Sabedra reports that his finalists are Oregon, Washington, Arizona and Kentucky. 

Washington recently lost to Oregon and was then thoroughly dismantled by BYU in the first round of the NIT tourney. Kentucky was also ousted in the first round of the NIT, and that program took a huge step backwards this season.

Arizona is a perennial contender that has begun to flourish under the guidance of head coach Sean Miller. It is a six seed in the West Region this year and will face Belmont later on Thursday. Belmont could easily defeat the Wildcats, which would be fortuitous for Oregon, especially if it defeats Oklahoma State.

Adding a powerhouse forward like Gordon would be a feather in the cap for head coach Dana Altman. Oregon's program hasn't been a national contender since the 2006-2007 season, and Gordon would instantly boost the team's ability to score against top competition. 

If the Ducks end up losing in the second round to the Cowboys, it by no means eliminates them from landing Gordon, but a victory would make his upcoming decision much easier to make. 

Follow me on Twitter @JesseReed78 

The No. 16 Oregon Ducks held off the Washington State Cougars Wednesday night at Matthew Knight Arena, 68-61.

Things started out rough for the Ducks. They struggled to rebound on the offensive board and also failed to defend the three-pointer. The Cougars ended the first half shooting 7-of-13 from beyond the arc.

The Cougars, led by senior guard Mike Ladd and senior forward Brock Motum, were tough on the boards and prevented the Ducks from staying within reach in the first half. A key aspect to the Cougars' rebounding game in the first half was junior forward D.J. Shelton, who finished the game with seven rebounds. 

The Ducks were down 39-29 after the first half, but came out in the second half and turned things around. The Ducks' defensive play by senior forward Arsalan Kazemi and freshman guard Damyean Dotson helped spark the Ducks and get them back into the game. The Cougars did not make a basket until the 15:10 mark of the second half. 

The Ducks' offensive surge in the second half was led by senior forward E.J. Singler, who hit two clutch three-pointers that helped knot the game up at 46 with 12:18 remaining. Singler ended up finishing the game with 19 points and five assists. Kazemi and Dotson were in on the action as well. Kazemi helped on the boards as he finished the game with 16 points and seven total rebounds. Dotson finished with 11 points and nine total rebounds. 

The Ducks seemed to gain control of the game when freshman guard Dominic Artis drained a three-pointer with 5:52 left in the game to give the Ducks a 57-53 lead.

Cougar forward Brock Motum answered with a jump shot to bring the game back to within two points, but  Carlos Emory, who had not played well for most of the game, threw down a momentum-changing dunk five seconds later. Emory then laid in another basket about a minute-and-a-half later to give the Ducks a 61-57 lead. The Cougars could not find their way back into the game, and the Ducks went on to win 68-61.

The Ducks held Mike Ladd to only five points in the second half after he had dropped 14 points in the first half. The Ducks defense also caused Ladd to turn the ball over five times in the second half as well.

To top it off, Ladd went cold from the free-throw line in the remaining minutes of the game, missing four of six free throws. The Cougars ended up missing all 11 of their three-point attempts in the second half, which is what hurt the Ducks the most in the first half. 

The Ducks are now 6-0 in conference play for the first time since the 1925-26 season. The Ducks will now battle rival Washington at home on Saturday at Matthew Knight Arena. The Ducks will look to extend their 19-home game winning streak, and Washington will look to bounce back after losing Wednesday night 74-66 at Oregon State. 

Former Rice Forward Arsalan Kazemi is transferring to the University of Oregon, ESPN's Andy Katz reports.

When he originally committed to Rice, the 6'7" 220-pound forward was the first D-1 player from Iran.

Kazemi is a stat-sheet stuffer.

He has played three super-productive years at Rice, averaging a double-double in both his sophomore (15.2 ppg/11 rpg) and junior (12.1 ppg/10.3) seasons.

Kazemi has been one of the most efficient scorers in the country, compiling a high shooting percentage (59.4 percent from the floor in 2011-12) while averaging less than seven shots per game.

He has led the Owls in rebounding in 80 of his 95 career games, and also led Conference USA in steals (2.2 spg) last season. 

One question that could be asked is: Will Kazemi be able to continue to perform at such a high level in the Pac-12?

Will he be able to add significantly to his collection of 45 career double-doubles when he is going against his new league's opponents like the Wear twins from UCLA, Arizona's fabulous freshmen frontcourt or a plethora of other Pac-12 Bigs?

One of the best ways to predict how he might do in the Pac-12 is to look back and see how he has performed against power-conference (ACC, Big East, Big 10, Big 12, Pac-10/12 and the SEC) teams while playing for the Owls.

In 10 games against power-conference schools, Kazemi has averaged 13.4 points and 10.5 rebounds, which is slightly higher than his career averages (12.6 ppg/10.1 rpg). 

He has also shot over 50 percent in these games.

So, unless something changes drastically, there is a very good chance that Kazemi is going to fare quite well when he begins to suit up for the Ducks in the near future.

One of high school basketball’s final 5-star recruits has narrowed his decision to either Oregon or UNLV, but only one decision would make sense—Bennett has to pick Oregon to have a successful college basketball career.

Bennett hails from Findlay Prep in Nevada, so his consideration of UNLV makes some sense. They also happen to be one of the teams on the rise in the ranks of college basketball.

However, Oregon is the best bet for Bennett. There are multiple reasons, but here are the main points.

Home Away From Home

Bennett could choose to stay at home, but if he chooses to go to Eugene he’ll still feel right at home. His former high school teammate Dominic Artis has already signed with Oregon, and two of the players on the Ducks’ roster are from Canada, as is Bennett.

Oregon will allow Bennett to get away from his home that he has lived in his entire life, but still be around some people he has close connections with.

The Nike Factor

UNLV is on the rise, but Oregon is in the limelight and won’t be leaving anytime soon. Outside of ridiculously colorful jerseys the Ducks are a prominent national program that plays most of its games on national television.

In this day and age being a great player isn’t enough. College players also have to have great exposure to marketing and media. Playing in Oregon will allow him to have both.

Oregon is a Win-Now Situation

If Bennett is like any other kid, he will want to win consistently. He’ll immediately be the star player at either Oregon or UNLV, but with Oregon he’ll simply be surrounded by better talent. They benefit from playing in the PAC-12 and, as a result, see better recruits come their way.

Facing better competition on a regular basis is also something that will better prepare Bennett for his pro career.

Oregon doesn’t look like a championship contender right now, but that can change mighty quick with the addition of Bennett. 

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