Advertisement

How it happened: A big first half helps Oregon steamroll the Huskies, 84-56

Don Smalley
·2 min read

It would have been a bit understandable if Oregon had a little letdown after that historic weekend in Los Angeles. But instead, the Ducks proved those wins over UCLA and USC were not a fluke as they humiliated Washington for 40 straight minutes.

Oregon played nearly a perfect half in the first 20 minutes of action, led 48-13 at halftime and cruised from there to hammer the Huskies 84-56 inside Matthew Knight Arena.

The win is the Ducks’ sixth straight as they improve to 12-6 overall and 5-2 in Pac-12 play. The last four wins have shown Oregon is playing as well as anyone in the country and the Ducks should wake up Monday morning as a ranked team.

Final Score: Ducks 84, Huskies 56

Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

Keys to the game

Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

  • Oregon turned in a flawless performance in the first half as the Ducks attacked that Washington zone with perfection. They moved the ball around when needed and penetrated the zone when needed. What it led to was Oregon shooting 65.5 percent (19-of-29) from the field on 19-of-29.

  • Meanwhile, nothing was going right for the Huskies. Their previous low for a half was 27 points until tonight when they shot just 4-of-27 in the first half for 14 percent. Washington also turned the ball over 14 times in that disastrous half.

  • As Will Richardson goes, so do the Ducks. The senior point guard had many points in the first half as the Huskies did. He finished with 21 and also scored his 1,000th point in his stellar career.

  • The Duck defense was able to completely shut down the Huskies, including their leading scorer Terrell Brown, Jr. He came in averaging just over 21 points a game and he did finish with a respectable 14 points, but he was 3-of-16 from the field.

Players of the Game

Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

  • Will Richardson: 21 points, 4 assists

  • Jacob Young: 12 points, 4 rebounds

  • Franck Kepnang: 9 points

  • Quincy Guerrier: 12 points, 4 rebounds

What's next?

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The Ducks look to continue their winning streak on Tuesday as they host Colorado Tuesday, Jan. 25. This is a rescheduled game from Dec. 30 when the Buffaloes had several cases of COVID-19 in their program. The Buffs are coming off a disappointing weekend at home where they were swept by USC and UCLA, leaving Colorado sitting at 12-6 overall and 4-4 in conference action.

The game is set to tip off at 7 p.m. and televised on the Pac-12 Network.

1

1