Oregon Looks for First Conference Win Against Colorado

The Oregon Ducks (10-4) seek their first conference win of the season with the Colorado Buffaloes (8-5) coming to Eugene to close out the year 2017.

Oregon saw their home conference opener get spoiled by the hands of Utah on Friday night. The Ducks got off to a strong start only to the Utes put a stranglehold on the game in the second half. Utah led the Pac-12 in points against and kept Oregon from reaching their season average.

The Ducks suffered their first home conference loss since the 2014-15 season when the Wildcats of Arizona came away victorious at Matthew Knight Arena.

Consistency on offense became an issue as the Ducks could not find an offensive rhythm after halftime. Payton Pritchard, Oregon’s top scorer, turned in his worst performance of the season and will likely want to make amends before the year closes.

After beginning the season with six-straight wins, Colorado has lost five of their last seven games. One notable loss came against Xavier, a team who reached the Elite Eight last season before losing to Gonzaga in the West Reginal Final.

Colorado is on a current two-game losing streak and coming off a 76-57 defeat to Oregon State in Corvallis.

McKinley Wright IV leads the Buffaloes averaging about 16 points per game this season. George King and Namon Wright are second and third on the team in scoring.

Troy Brown made an impressive conference debut for Oregon with 16 points. His teammate, Kenny Wooten, did not have much success with only five blocks and zero points. Coach Altman needs to get a well-rounded from Wooten who has certainly shown his potential in non-conference play.

Colorado is averaging 75 points per game while allowing nearly 74 against. Depth is an issue for coach Tad Boyle this season. The Buffaloes are in a transition year like the Ducks with a young team.

Last season, the teams split the series with the home team coming out on top. Colorado got blown out in Eugene by a score of 101-73. The Buffaloes handed the Ducks their first conference loss during the 2016-17 campaign.

With 2017 coming to a close, the Ducks hope to end the year on a high note.

Tipoff begins at 7:00 p.m. with a telecast on the Pac-12 Networks.