End of the line
Dorsey’s late 3-pointer the difference in 2nd-round clash
The University of Rhode Island men’s basketball team gave Oregon all it could handle before falling, 75-72, the Rams denied a trip to the Sweet 16.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — No. 11 URI’s win over Creighton on Friday may have technically been an upset, but it didn’t surprise many prognosticators or analysts nationwide. The Rams second-round meeting with the Oregon Ducks on Sunday would be the 40-minute period where the team discovered if their Cinderella story was legit or not.
It appeared as if the slipper was a perfect fit for Rhody. Leading by eight at half, the Rams held the lead over the favored Ducks for most of the second half.
A late surge by Tyler Dorsey saw the Rams kick their Cinderella slippers off at the very last second. Dorsey nailed a straight-away 3-pointer with 38 seconds remaining in the game and the No. 3 Ducks survived the upset bid, 75-72 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at the Golden1 Center.
Stan Robinson was fantastic for the Rams, netting himself 21 points on 10-for-12 shooting from the field.
As they have in nearly every game on their nine-game winning streak, the Rams shot out to a fast start. After Hassan Martin picked up his first personal foul less than 30 seconds into the contest, freshman Cyril Langevine bounced off the bench and scored four of URI’s first six points.
The young center - who head coach Dan Hurley has affectionately referred to as a ‘manchild’ on a few occasions this season - became the second freshman to make a splash on the national stage for URI this tournament.
Martin ended up parked on the sidelines for nearly the entire first half, picking up his second personal at the 13-minute mark. Langevine only played 10 minutes in the Creighton game, but logged 17 in the first half alone on Sunday, and fin- ished with nine points and six rebounds.
Even with Langevine’s strong play, the Rams looked to be in trouble in the first half. The Ducks led by as many as eight points, scoring at will on the interior with Martin out of the game.
After a Jordan Bell layup made the score 30-22, the Rams launched the kind of run that makes March basketball so special. The Rams outscored the Ducks 24-8 the rest of the first half, and at one point hit nine consecutive field goal attempts.
Robinson came alive on the run, scoring 13 points on 6-7 shooting from the field. A 3-pointer by the sixth-man specialist gave URI the lead back and sent the Rhody cheering section into a frenzy.
Jared Terrell started making shots at the same time, chipping in eight first-half points. On the possession following Robinson’s 3pointer, Terrell kissed a fadeaway jumper off the glass.
Shots started falling for Rhody from every spot on the court. After starting the first half 0-for-7 on 3pointers, they closed on a 3-for-5 stretch that helped them establish an eight-point halftime lead.
The 46 points allowed by the Duck were the second-most they had given up in a first half this season.
Martin and Dowitn both picked up their third personal fouls in the first five minutes of the second half, but all that did was give the Rams bench more chances to torch the Ducks’ defense.