It was deja vu all over again.
For the second straight year, the Oregon alumni team of Always Us has been eliminated from The Basketball Tournament after a second-round defeat. This time it was at the hands, or paws, of the Gutter Cats by a score of 72-62 in Omaha, Neb.
Shukur Juiston led the way for the former Ducks with 16 points. Jacob Young added 11 and Michael Finke poured in 10.
But it wasn’t nearly enough as the Gutter Cats hit 15-of-32 from three-point range and erased a 37-31 halftime deficit. They came out of the halftime break and proceeded to outscore Always Us 22-9 in the third quarter to take complete control of the game.
As with the NCAA tourney, TBT is a one-and-done tournament, so Always Us will need to put their dreams of winning $1 million on hold for another summer.