Oregon Ducks beat the WSU Cougars 67-53

The Ducks won their third straight game and managed to wrap up a perfect home stand on Sunday night against WSU Cougars, despite Damyean Dotson sitting out the entire game.

First half

The Ducks played Sunday’s game without Damyean Dotson, who was cited for using a false identification at a Eugene bar on Saturday morning. With the absence of Dotson, Jason Calliste made his starting debut for Oregon during Sunday’s game against WSU.

The first half was slow, very slow. Oregon made their first field goal eight minutes into the first half and surprisingly only trailed 8-5.

The game picked up a bit after the Ducks’ shots started falling but not by much.

Mike Moser hit 3 three-pointers but the Ducks were never able to lead. Oregon shot 38.1% compared to the Cougars 42.9%. With 4:09 remaining in the first half the Ducks were tied with the Cougars at 19; however, they ended the half trailing by 7.

Halftime

The Ducks trailed the Cougars 24-31.

Second half

It was a slow start for the Ducks; however, they didn’t waste any time in the second half. Oregon came out ready to play and within the first minute of the second half, Moser dunked, throwing the crowd into a frenzy; Joseph Young stole the ball; and Moser sank yet another 3-pointer. He went 5-7 from the three-point line.

Young went 0-7 for the first thirty minutes of the game and made his first FG in the second half. Their energy level paid off. The Ducks went from shooting 38.1% to 47.8%. The Ducks held the Cougars to 32.6% shooting.

“It was just us wanting the win. Coach will preach about it but it’s us out there playing and we have to come together as a team and overcome adversity and pull the ball game out because Coach is not playing, we’re playing,” said Young of their energy in the second half.

The Ducks played tough in the second half. And it was their defense won the game. Oregon had 10 steals, 8 blocks, held the Cougars to 32.6% shooting and just 22 points in the second half. However, the Ducks were missing one of their best defensive players, Damyean Dotson, and trailed in rebounds against the Cougars.

“Dot brings a lot to our team, especially defensively. He attacks the glass very well and gets to the line. We definitely missed him out there. We just wanted to pick up the slack for him. We know he’s in a tough situation and we just really wanted to get this win for him,” said Mike Moser.

The Ducks ended up winning the game 67-53.

The Ducks’ head to Los Angeles to play UCLA on Thursday at 6:00 PM PT.