Looking to boost its NCAA Tournament resume and win consecutive games for the first time since Jan. 9 and 12, the Oregon men’s basketball team hosts Rutgers on Sunday afternoon in Eugene.
The Ducks (17-8, 6-8 Big Ten) have seen a dream start to their season fade after six losses in seven games knocked them out of the Top 25 and down to the bottom half of the conference standings. But with six games left in the regular season, the Ducks still have a shot at a first-round bye in the Big Ten tournament if they can move up to ninth place or higher.
Guard Jackson Shelstad has raised his offensive output over the past four games and taken over as the Ducks’ leading scorer at 13.4 points per game. A Pac-12 All-Freshman selection last season, Shelstad scored a season-high 26 points to lead Oregon over visiting Northwestern 81-75 on Tuesday.
Of concern for Oregon head coach Dana Altman was the 50 points the Ducks allowed in the second halves of back-to-back games, at Michigan State and against Northwestern, after two strong first halves of defense. The Ducks have also lost four conference games at home.
“We’re going to have to change that around,” Altman told The Oregonian. “Our confidence hasn’t been the same here the last few weeks.”
Rutgers (12-13, 5-9) has lost two straight games and three of its last four, including an 84-73 loss to Iowa at home on Wednesday. The Scarlet Knights did upset 23rd-ranked Illinois during that stretch — a nine-point win at home against the same team that blew out Oregon 109-77 in Eugene early in the conference season.
Rutgers is led by Ace Bailey’s 19.1 points per game and Dylan Harper’s 18.8. According to Rutgers sports information, the two players have a chance to become only the second pair of freshmen teammates over the past 22 years to average 19 or more points per game, joining Duke’s Zion Williamson and RJ Barrett.
Both Bailey and Harper are considered top NBA prospects.
“We’ve got a lot of play for, and the most important thing is we’ve got to stick together,” center Zach Martini told the Asbury Park Press.
–Field Level Media
