| 17 March 2011
Oregon's basketball season isn’t over yet as the Ducks lean on an outstanding night from the free throw line to beat the Weber State Wildcats 68-59 at Matthew Knight Arena on Wednesday night.
With the win, Oregon (17-17) moves on to the second round of the College Basketball Invitational and face Duquesne in the quarterfinals on Monday.
Joevan Catron scored 24 and nabbed 12 rebound leading the Ducks to victory. While his game certainly gave Oregon life, his emotional leadership gave Dana Altman and the Ducks a decided edge through out the game.
E.J. Singler scored 16 for the Ducks and converted all seven of his free throws as the Ducks finished 23 of 26 from the free throw line on the night.
The contest was ugly early as both teams struggled to score. The slow pace of the game and multiple missed shots put a damper on the excitement in the building. The Ducks held the edge, however, until the Wildcats went on a run behind their three point shooting right before the half, eventually giving them the slight lead.
Down two at the break, Oregon came out during the second half more focused on getting to the foul line and converting from the charity stripe to maintain the edge over Weber State and eventually win.
On the night, the Ducks had an incredible 23-5 advantage in free throw points.
Except for small bursts of scoring from Weber State, the Wildcats (18-14) struggled to maintain momentum against the lone Pac-10 school in the tournament. For what it is worth, neither did the Ducks. This was a classic grind-it-out game. Multiple trips to the line, limited three point shots, jump shots and defense seemed to decide the game for Oregon. The Wildcats scored a lot of three pointers, but were essentially unable to do much else.
Their defense down the stretch of the game was hurried and lacked execution and focus, allowing the Ducks to easily get to the free throw line.
At the midway point of the second half, Singler and Garrett Sim both hit three pointers to stretch the lead. The Wildcats found themselves behind by nine points and were never able to recover. They got within three points with a few minutes left in the game, but Oregon continued to earn trips the line, shutting down the Wildcats’ hopes of winning and cruising to victory.
Kyle Bullinger and Scott Bamforth led the Wildcats in scoring on the night with 16 and 17 points respectively.
Now it's on to the next round for the Ducks.
In five days, Oregon takes on Duquesne and another chance for the Ducks to extend their season.
photo: daylife
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