Oregon shakes rust, advances
Ducks on way to Sweet 16 after their nine-day layoff
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. 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 semifinals.
Oregon’s offense hummed like it was fresh off the line once the ball went up, kicking off the NCAA Tournament’s first Monday of secondround games with a masterpiece.
The Ducks flowed on the floor and glowed on the scoresheet, shooting 56 percent and hitting 11 3-pointers. LJ Figueroa hit five 3s 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.
Gonzaga 87, Oklahoma 71: Undefeated Gonzaga continued to roll behind a careerhigh 30 points and 13 rebounds from Drew Timme as the top-seeded Bulldogs beat No. 8 seed Oklahoma in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Gonzaga (28-0) won its 32nd straight game dating to last
season.
UCLA 67, Abilene Christian 47: Johnny Juzang scored 17 points and 11th-seeded UCLA carefully brushed off pesky Abilene Christian to become the fifth team to go from First Four to Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament. The Bruins (20-9) meet the winner of Maryland-alabama in their first regional semifinal appearance since 2017.
Creighton 72, Ohio 58: Marcus Zegarowski scored 20 points to help Creighton beat Ohio, securing the program’s first trip to the round of 16 in 47 years.
Florida State 71 Colorado 53: Anthony Polite scored a career-high 22 points and No. 4 seed Florida State pulled away in the second half to advance to the Sweet 16.