Coming off a 75-69 win over Colorado at home Thursday night, Oregon will be out for its first weekend sweep of consecutive Pac-12 opponents this season when it hosts Utah on Saturday in Eugene, Ore.
Oregon (12-9, 6-4 Pac-12) handed Utah its first conference loss earlier this month, after the Utes opened with five consecutive Pac-12 wins.
The Ducks hope to have their talented center N’Faly Dante, who missed Thursday’s game with what was labeled a minor left knee injury. Dante’s size and two-way ability at both ends have been crucial in many of the Ducks’ wins.
“He tweaked a knee in warmups,” Oregon head coach Dana Altman told OregonLive.com. “I’m sure they’ll check him out (Friday). Dante’s a tough young man. If he can go, he’ll go. I don’t have any doubts about that.”
Dante had 17 points and 12 rebounds at Utah in a 70-60 Oregon win on Jan. 7 in Salt Lake City.
The Ducks have won three of their last four games overall. They have defeated Utah in 10 straight meetings and haven’t lost to the Utes since Dec. 29, 2017 in Eugene.
Utah (15-7, 8-3) is near the top of the Pac-12 standings following three straight wins. The Utes cruised to a 63-44 win at Oregon State on Thursday, not needing a lot of offense against the listless Beavers.
Gabe Madsen’s 13 points led Utah, which ended Thursday night’s play in second place in the Pac-12. The Utes have four road wins in conference play.
“They struggled shooting,” Madsen told ESPN 700 Radio after the game. “That’s kind of what we do (to) teams. So yeah, it was good for us to play well defensively going into the game on Saturday.”
The win at Oregon State was Utah’s first there since Dec. 31, 2017. Utah swept a two-game series with the Beavers for the first time since entering the Pac-12 in the 2011-12 season.
Branden Carlson is Utah’s leading scorer (16.7 points per game) and rebounder (7.5 rebounds per game).
–Field Level Media
