Ducks fall in Civil War game to begin conference play in wake of Bol Bol’s season-ending injury and Abu Kigab’s decision to part ways with the program after just one year.

Oregon had little to no answer for Tres Tinkle and the Beavers in the first half at Matthew Knight Arena, Saturday night. Troubles began to pile up for the Ducks in the first half. Starting with forward Paul White getting into foul trouble, leaving head coach Dana Altman with no choice, but to bench the starter for the remainder of the half. With the lack of interior defenders, Tinkle and the NCAA’s blocks leader coming into the game, Kylor Kelley (4.08), attacked the paint with little to no consequence.

With White in foul trouble and the Ducks’ offense woes continuing, Oregon State was able to stretch to a 38-25 lead by the end of the first half. The Beavers’ lead grew to 18 just a minute into the second half. Oregon was finally able to find their scoring touch late in the second half going on a 22-6 run led by Payton Pritchard and Louis King. After being fouled, King hit both attempts from the stripe to give Oregon their first lead in the second half with just 3:49 remaining.

As exciting as it was to watch the late rally by Oregon, it wasn’t enough to come out with the victory. Altman’s decision to press the Beavers and move to a smaller lineup was instrumental in the comeback. Oregon forced 9 turnovers in the second half with their full-court press, leading to transition buckets. However, it wasn’t enough to lift the Ducks past Oregon State after being forced to foul with only seconds on the clock.

Take-aways from the game:

• Forward depth slim already, Paul White’s early foul trouble really hurt Oregon in the first half. (4 active forwards total on roster with Bol, Kigab and Wooten Jr. out)
• The Ducks struggled again to get the offense going in the first. Starting out slow is becoming an unsightly trend for Oregon, leaving them trailing to enter the second half. (since Bol’s injury the Ducks have entered the second half trailing in 4 of 5 games played thus far)
• Oregon scored 21 points off turnovers, largely due to the defensive changes made in the second half.
• 1-4 shooting FT in the first half compared to 10-12 in the second; getting to the rim was an emphasis in the second half to create space and open looks from deep to close lead.
• Out-rebounded 38-29 by Oregon State.
• Pritchard and company still trying to figure out how to facilitate the offense with key players out indefinitely.
• No Bol, no identity.
• Louis King nets career-high 17 points.
• Four Ducks score double-figures. (White, King, Pritchard and Bailey)
• Does anyone else hate how much Bill Walton loves Kylor Kelley.

Oregon

*Payton Pritchard: (39 MIN) 14 PTS / 0 REB / 6 AST

*Francis Okoro: (16 MIN) 0 PTS / 5 REB / 0 AST

*Louis King: (34 MIN) 17 PTS / 10 REB / 0 AST

*Paul White: (25 MIN) 15 PTS / 4 REB / 1 AST

*Victor Bailey Jr: (25 MIN) 11 PTS / 2 REB / 2 AST

Will Richardson: (25 MIN) 2 PTS / 1 REB / 1 AST

Miles Norris: (16 MIN) 4 PTS / 3 REB / 0 AST

Ehab Amin: (20 MIN) 9 PTS / 3 REB / 1 AST

Oregon State

*Tres Tinkle (36 MIN) 28 PTS / 8 REB / 4 AST

*Kylor Kelley (31 MIN) 9 PTS / 7 REB / 0 AST / 2 BLK

*Stephen Thompson (37 MIN) 10 PTS / 8 REB / 6 AST

*Ethan Thompson (37 MIN) 13 PTS / 5 REB / 4 AST

*Zach Reichle (27 MIN) 7 PTS / 2 REB / 2 AST

Gligorije Rakocevic (9 MIN) 6 PTS / 1 REB / 0 AST

Alfred Hollins (15 MIN) 2 PTS / 2 REB / 0 AST

Antoine Vernon (8 MIN) 2 PTS / 2 REB / 1 AST

Oregon’s next test will be at home against Kris Wilkins and the (9-6) UCLA Bruins Thursday, January 10 at 6:00 p.m.

Follow Colt Johnson on Twitter @Barefoot_Sensei