Well, Game Two didn’t exactly go as hoped, did it? As I feared in my pregame piece, Dana Altman, the master tactician, figured out a plan for how his team could beat Creighton after breaking down the film from Game One. Namely, pressure defense for 94 feet, play as fast as they could, and use their superior quickness at the guard positions to their advantage. Boy, did it ever work. So much so that when the Jays adjusted by trying to get back on defense sooner and prevent the fast break, they wound up giving up a bunch of defensive rebounds they otherwise might have grabbed. Creighton was a step slow the entire game, and whether it was because of the quick travel turnaround, the time zone change, Oregon simply executing a superior gameplan with superior athletes, or some combination of the above, the outcome was a blowout.
Of course, it helped that Doug McDermott picked up two quick fouls and sat for all but three minutes of the first half. That will make any opposing coach look like a genius. By the time he re-entered the game in the second half, the outcome was all but decided.
Given that Doug was in foul trouble all night, it might be surprising to know the Ducks committed twice as many fouls as the Jays. But they did. Creighton had just nine team fouls for the entire game, four of which were called on McDermott; Oregon had 17. Kenny Lawson and Gregory Echenique had zero fouls whistled on them. While the Ducks were running hogwild on fast breaks, layups and curls to the bucket, no one for the Jays was playing aggressively on them — and yes, fouling — to put an end to the layup drill by making them earn points from the line. Maybe its just me, but wouldn’t it have been nice to see Gregory and Kenny knock a few of those drivers down, to both force them to make two free throws and to give them something to think about before driving next time?
The Ducks were 4-7 from the free throw line, while simultaneously, they scored 44 points in the paint. That doesn’t compute. That’s an abomination. You can harp on the offensive woes, the bad game Antoine Young had, the inability to make Oregon pay for double-teaming the post, the 20 turnovers, etc…but without a better, more aggressive defensive effort, especially inside, Friday night will probably end with a similar result.
With that said, nights like Wednesday are rare. Creighton’s 20 turnovers were a season-high and the most over the last 66 games — the last game with 20 or more game vs Iona on Nov. 29, 2009 in the Old Spice Classic, when they committed 21. Oregon converted Creighton’s 20 turnovers into a 35-9 advantage in points off turnovers. Here’s the whopper: the Jays hadn’t allowed more than 19 points off turnovers in a game this year, and hadn’t allowed more than 26 points off turnovers in any game in the last six seasons that Creighton box scores have tracked the stat.
Doug McDermott isn’t going to sit the entire first half on the bench again. They’re not going to turn it over as much. They’re probably going to play better defensively. There’s a reason those things are rare. But will it be enough? Ah, that’s why the play the games, isn’t it?
About The Ducks: The Ducks picked up their 20th victory of the season on Wednesday, making Dana Altman the third first-year UO head coach to rack up 20 wins in his first season and the first since John Warren went 30-15 in the 1944-45 season … That makes this just the 12th time in school history the Ducks have reached the 20-win mark … The Ducks have had an advantage at the free throw line during the CBI, as they’ve made 70 free throws (14.0 per game) and are shooting 76.1 percent (70-of-92) while their four opponents have combined to make just 56 free throws (11.2 per game) and are hitting for 65.1 percent (56-of-86). UO maintains this edge despite Creighton going 15-of-18 free throws in Game 2, while the Ducks went just 4-of-7 from the charity stripe … Tonight marks the first-ever time Oregon men’s basketball has played in April.
One Big Paragraph with Lots O’Dots™: Since 1939 (the first year with at least two post-season tournaments), a team from the same league has won two post-season tournaments only four times — following Wichita State’s NIT win last night, Creighton and the MVC can accomplish that feat tonight with a win … This will be the fourth straight season that the Missouri Valley Conference will have a men’s basketball team playing for a postseason national title, the longest active streak of any league … Due in no small part to the fact that Creighton has played in more games than any other season before it, the Jays are chasing down some long-standing school records. The most notable: with 2,615 points, Creighton is 53 points from the record of 2,668 set by the 2002-03 club … Creighton had just 21 points in the first half on Wednesday, and by comparison, the Jays led 21-13 at the first media timeout (13:42) of Monday’s game one.
The Series / The Last Time They Played: Oregon leads 2-1, with the Ducks winning the first-ever meeting 75-64 on Dec. 26, 1974 in Portland, Ore. The Ducks were ranked 19th at the time, and the contest was played as part of the Far West Classic.
We all remember the last time they played, and it was a nightmare.
Gratuitous Linkage: I graduated from high school in 1996, and created my first website two years before that. Today for April Fools Day, Hulu takes us back to those days of framesets, animated GIFs and the X-Files. Love it.
Out of Context Simpsons quote: “D’oh.” – Homer Simpson (seems appropriate after Wednesday night, eh?)
This Date in Creighton Hoops History: Neither of these teams has ever played a game in April. I suppose something awesome probably happened on a practice court on this day in Creighton history, but until we know about such awesomeness, we’ll just have to imagine it…feel free to leave your imaginary moment in the comments section!
Completely Random, Totally Rad Music Video of the Day: What the heck.
The Bottom Line: My head says Oregon wins tonight. My head is silly.
Creighton 74, Oregon 68
