Fueled by 35 points off 20 Creighton turnovers, the Oregon Ducks recorded their 20th win of the season, 71-58, to force a CBI championship-deciding Game 3 against the Bluejays.

The game will be played at Matthew Knight Arena on Friday, tip off at 7pm.

“Too many of those turnovers led to easy baskets at the other end and got their crowd into the game,” Creighton head coach Greg McDermott said, as documented by the AP.

“That was our No. 1 goal, the first thing we talked about before the game, was not allowing those pick-six turnovers that turn into a huge play at the other end, and we weren't able to execute that part of our game plan.”

We have all had those days playing the game of basketball where for whatever reason everything just seemed to fall into place.  You could see the plays unfold two passes before they actually happened, your defensive anticipation was sharp and of course, your jump shot felt so smooth and easy that an NBA three pointer felt like a twelve foot bank shot.  Why is it those days seem so few and far between? 

I am going to do the best I can to explain why, well at least explain the shooting part.

Allow me to introduce myself.  My name is John Townsend.  I've been a shooting coach for a little over 22 years. Previously,  I spent the last three seasons as the full time shooting coach for the Portland Trail Blazers and have worked individually with over one hundred NBA players. Of those hundred players, two have been number one picks, four have been NBA All-Stars, one Rookie of the Year and one Gatorade Three Point Champ.  I have also worked on basketball shooting work in such places as the Canary Islands, the Philippines, United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Spain and Jordan.  I have taught with club teams from China and South Korea as well, and domestically here in the US with the CBA, D-League, and NBA. 

For the first 83 minutes of the Portland Timbers 2-0 victory over Chivas USA last night at Merlo Field, it appeared as if the Timbers were going to go a second straight game without scoring a goal.  The rain was pouring down, multiple key players were missing, and the team was struggling to capitalize on a Chivas USA squad that was a man down because of a red card received late in the first half.

And then, suddenly, all those worries were stripped away.  

In the 84th  minute, team captain Jack Jewsbury attempted a strike that found its way into the corner of the net and then defender Eric Brunner followed that up with a goal of his own off of a corner kick a mere two minutes later.  It was oddly the only corner kick attempted on the night for either team.

Those two quick goals sealed the victory for the Timbers, but it was the outstanding defensive performance that first put the team in a prime position to win.  Credit is especially due to goalie Jake Gleeson who, in making his first ever professional start, saved the day not once, but twice, and was instrumental in the Timbers walking off the pitch with the upper hand.

In Dana Altman’s return to Creighton, his former team proved too much for the Oregon Ducks as the Bluejays held on for an 84-76 victory in the first game of the CBI Final. Game 2 is Wednesday at Matthew Knight Arena at 7 p.m Pacific Time.

Doug McDermott, the son of coach Greg McDermott, led the way for Creighton by scoring 21 points. Nine of those came during an early second half 12-0 run that put the Bluejays ahead by 17, 58-41. It was a lead they would nearly lose.

Oregon had a balanced attack orchestrated by Joevan Catron, who nearly notched yet another double-double. He scored 15 points and the Ducks had four other players score in double-figures, with Jay-R Strowbridge and Garrett Sim adding 14 and E.J. Singler and Johnathan Loyd chipping in 10 each.

Against an undermanned San Antonio Spurs team, the Portland Trail Blazers learned a valuable lesson, faced some adversity, and somehow mustered a fourth-quarter rally to hold off the substitutes for a 100-92 victory behind Andre Miller's superb performance.

The latest trick up Gregg Popovich’s sleeve works wonders

With starters Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili in already ruled out due to injury, Popovich had an idea. He decided to give fellow starters Tony Parker and Antonio McDyess the night off.

Facing a rotation not used to getting extended minutes, Portland’s mentality clearly changed and not for the better. No matter who was out there for San Antonio, they played within Popovich's system. The Spurs were efficient, aggressive around the rim, waited for high-percentage shots, and played solid defense.