Oregon Blows out Kent and the Cougars

The Ducks jumped out to a 28-4 lead in the first 10 minutes and it was too much for the Cougars to handle as Oregon beat Washington State 95-72. Joseph Young scored 29 points, had 10 rebounds and eight assists to lead the Ducks. Oregon is peaking at the right time and is now tied with Oregon State for the third overall position in the Pac-12 standings; their record is now 17-7 and 7-4 in conference play.

"I [saw] it, I knew," said Young about his near triple-double. "I tried to go for it, but it didn’t go so well. We got the win and that’s most important."

Before the game started it was announced that Jordan Bell was suspended for the game. Bell harassed an officer while he was putting a ticket on his car. The suspension is only for one game and Bell will be eligible to play against the Los Angeles schools next week.

During the starting lineups Ernie Kent received a standing ovation and one of the loudest cheers of the game. Mark Helfrich was also in attendance to support the men’s team and was rocking his new Pit Crew shirt.

Oregon and their bench were full of energy. Every time there was a loose ball a Duck was diving on the floor and scrapping to get an extra possession. The Ducks continued to make the unselfish play and players were contributing in unusual ways. Elgin Cook nailed a three-pointer early in the first half and was one of seven Ducks who made a shot beyond the arc. Washington State’s star player DaVonte Lacy also received three fouls and was limited to only eight minutes in the opening half.

"Everybody was on the floor, I hadn’t seen anyone on the floor yet," said Young. "We had three loose balls on the floor and we came up with them. This team is learning and I like the activity we give each other."

Dwayne Benjamin stole the show right after intermission; he scored 11 points in the first five minutes of the second half. Young and Benjamin connected twice on alley-oop plays and gave the arena some excitement during Bell’s absence. Although Bell didn’t play he was full of words and encouragement; it seemed like Bell was standing the whole game and was the first one off the bench during timeouts to congratulate the team. Washington State never made a threat to comeback and the Ducks energy and confidence helped Oregon win by 23 points.

Benjamin finished the game with 25 points and shot 10-11 from the field. Elgin Cook scored seven points and had five rebounds and Dillon Brooks pitched in 9 points and seven rebounds.

Plays of the Game

Young to Benjamin! #GoDucks #FLYWITHUS http://t.co/B4F3t0ziRM

— Oregon Basketball (@OregonMBB) February 9, 2015

Young to Benjamin AGAIN! #GoDucks #FLYWITHUS http://t.co/UuTk7IpxMT

— Oregon Basketball (@OregonMBB) February 9, 2015

Up Next

The Ducks will play USC Wednesday at 6 p.m. on ESPN2.

Head coach Dana Altman talked about the remaining schedule after the game:

"A year ago at this time last year I said ‘we’ve got five of seven at home, we [have] to toughen up and take care of business at home,’ and now we got five of seven on the road and got to toughen up and take care of business on the road."