Oregon Closes Non-Conference Slate Against Central Arkansas

The non-conference schedule concludes Wednesday night at Matthew Knight Arena with the Oregon Ducks (9-3) hosting the Central Arkansas Bears (6-6).

Oregon is coming off a remarkable win against a tough Fresno State team. In the second half, the Ducks went on a 22-1 run to defeat the Bulldogs, 68-61. After weathering the hot shooting by Fresno State in the first half, Oregon chipped away and got a solid defense to cap their first real road test.

Kenny Wooten is becoming a one-person show in the second half for Oregon. His six blocks and offensive production sparked the Ducks against the Bulldogs. In 12 games this season, Wooten has registered 38 blocked shots. Mikyle McIntosh is a distant second with eight blocks.

Troy Brown and Elijah Brown both had strong performances on the road win. For Elijah, his familiarity with Fresno State proved vital in Oregon coming away victorious in Fresno.

Brown averaged over 20 points per game when he was with New Mexico and played Fresno State multiple times. He had 20 points in the win over the weekend.

As for Troy, his streak of recording a double-double ended despite contributing 13 points. He was three rebounds away from the mark with only seven defensive rebounds against the Bulldogs. Overall, the freshman is playing as if he intends on entering the NBA Draft after the season.

Central Arkansas is coming off an overtime loss to Morehead State. The Bears were unable to contain Jordan Walker of the Eagles who scored 12 points in the overtime frame to lift Morehead State.

The Bears are currently 1-1 this season against Pac-12 opponents. Central Arkansas nearly edged out UCLA on the road. The Bruins had to rally just to avoid an upset at home.

Against Cal on the road, Central Arkansas found no problem in a 96-69 victory. Cal is in a rebuilding season and will unlikely make noise this season during conference play.

Jordan Howard is the leading scorer for the Bears with 24 points per game. Mathieu Kamba is second on the team with about 13 points per game. Defensively, Central Arkansas had a potent shot blocker in Hayden Koval, who has 27 blocks currently.

The Ducks will use Wednesday’s game as a final preparation with the start of conference play beginning next week. Besides Howard and Kamba, the Bears provide no real threat against the Ducks.

Coach Dana Altman will hope his team plays a clean game and limits the mistakes. Answers will likely come when Pac-12 plays open at home against Utah.

For now, Oregon has an opportunity to enter conference play on a five-game winning streak. Expect a solid effort and happy Oregon fans after the game.

Tipoff starts at 8:00 pm with a telecast on Pac-12 Network.