Oregon Defeats Cal To Open Bay Area Road Trip

The Oregon Ducks (15-7, 5-4) get the Bay Area road trip off on the right foot, defeating the Cal Bears (7-16, 1-9) at Haas Pavilion, 66-53.

Coach Dana Altman wanted his team to better in the transition game off rebounds and play defense at a consistent level. Oregon committed 17 turnovers which Coach Altman will want to be reduced but overall, the Ducks never appeared worried about relinquishing the lead.

Elijah Brown found his shooting touch early, similar to last game at home against Oregon State. He finished 6-8 from the floor with 15 points. Not to be outdone, Troy Brown had a strong performance, leading the Ducks with 16 points.

Payton Pritchard did not factor into the game as foul trouble kept him on the bench. With the offense being generated by his teammates, he did not need to be a presence on the scoreboard.

Oregon’s defense forced 16 turnovers and throughout the game, shut down Cal’s playmakers. As a result, the Bears were kept off-balanced throughout the contest. Cal managed to get within five points in the second half, but Oregon remained stout.

Marcus Lee and Kingsley Okoroh struggled for the Bears as both finished with five points, respectively. Both saw their nights end early after fouling out in the second half.

Cal’s leading scorer, Don Coleman, came off the bench and led the team in scoring with 16 points. Coleman was coming off a suspension.

The Ducks got off to a fast start, opening on a 9-0 run with E. Brown putting up five points to set the pace. Contributions from T. Brown and Victor Bailey Jr. off the bench helped to extend the Ducks lead to 30-16 with five minutes to play in the half. Oregon shot 63 percent from the field but struggled at the line, going 5-11.

Oregon’s transition game off rebounds pushed the tempo, but Cal played aggressive defense in the frontcourt. Cal’s defensive pressure forced 11 turnovers by Oregon as the Bears made a late push to get within eight points, 34-26, at halftime in favor of the Ducks.

Former Duck, Jordan Bell, was in attendance to watch the game. The Ducks practiced at the Golden State Warriors’ practice facility the day before. Bell is in his rookie season with the Warriors but is currently recovering from an injury.

Stanford (11-11, 5-4) is up next for Oregon on Saturday at Maples Pavilion. Tipoff begins at 2:00 p.m. PST with a telecast on FOX.