Tag: Dana Altman

Jackson Shelstad announces return to Oregon in the fall

Oregon Ducks freshman point guard Jackson Shelstad announces he’ll return to Oregon in the fall.

Jackson Shelstad, the Oregon Ducks star freshman point guard, has announced that he will return to Oregon in the fall for his sophomore season.

In his freshman season, Shelstad averaged 12.8 points per game, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. There was some inconsistency from Shelstad this season, but that’s to be expected from freshmen. What’s important to focus on are the flashes of greatness.

Shelstad had plenty of flashes. His game-winner against Michigan way back in December — helping to heal Ducks fans less than 24 hours after Oregon football’s loss to Washington — stands out. The 18-year-old also scored 20+ points in a game five times this season, including his 21-point performance against Arizona in the Pac-12 tournament.

Shelstad isn’t the only Duck who intends to run it back in 2025. Brennan Rigsby and Jadrian Tracey have said they’d like to return next season, and KJ Evans is “undecided” according to reports from James Crepea in the Oregonian.

With N’Faly Dante and Jermaine Couisnard on their way out, Shelstad seems to be the next man up. Those two guys leave big shoes to fill, but Shelstad might be more talented than both of them. The key will be finding consistency and improving the weaker facets of his game.

Report: Brennan Rigsby, Jadrian Tracey open up about futures in Oregon

Guard Brennan Rigsby and small forward Jadrian Tracey are set to play in Eugene for the 2024-25 season.

The Oregon Ducks men’s basketball season ended with a second-round loss to Creighton in double overtime and the off-season has officially begun.

Players are going to start to announce their future plans and the first Ducks to announce their intentions is guard Brennan Rigsby and Jadrian Tracey. According to James Crepea of The Oregonian, both players plan to stick around for one more season.

“Oregon is definitely a place I want to be,” Rigsby said.

Tracey repeated Rigsby sentiment as he said he wants to return to Eugene for the 2024-25 season. Both players will be seniors.

Head coach Dana Altman has repeatedly said that he wants players who want to be at Oregon and earn their degrees. It looks like Rigsby and Tracey are two of those types of players.

For the 2023-24 season, Rigsby, a De Beque, Colo. native played in all 36 games, starting 13 and averaged six points per contest. Rigsby also shot 35 percent from the field.

Tracey came to Oregon via SouthWestern Community College in Florida. He played in all 36 games, started 22 contests where Tracey averaged 7.6 points a game, and shot 36 percent from the three-point line.

Photo Gallery: Creighton outlasts Oregon in double overtime classic

Photo Gallery: Jermaine Couisnard goes for 32 and N’Faly Dante adds 28 points and 20 boards, but it’s not enough to defeat Creighton.

No one can say Jermaine Couisnard and N’Faly Dante didn’t give it their all.

In the last game of the season, Oregon fought Creighton for 50 minutes but ultimately ran out of gas and fell 86-73. Couisnard went for 32 points and Dante scored 28 as well as 20 rebounds. Unfortunately, that was the vast majority of the Ducks’ output. Those two scored 60 of the 73 points.

Oregon was right there the entire way and even had a shot at the end of regulation to win it. Couisnard’s long three from the left wing at the end of the first overtime kept the game going. With a short bench and Jackson Shelstad suffering a knee injury, the Ducks didn’t have a chance when the second overtime rolled around.

But just the Ducks being in this position was a minor miracle. They were NIT-bound for the third straight season. It was only a magical run through the Pac-12 tournament that put Oregon in the Big Dance.

They’ll miss Couisnard and Dante, but with some returners such as Nate Bittle, Shelstad and Kwame Evans, Jr. the Ducks should field a really good team in their first foray into the Big Ten Conference.

NCAA Tournament: Betting line drops slightly in favor of Ducks vs. Creighton

The Oregon Ducks are still underdogs against the Creighton Bluejays on Saturday in the NCAA Tournament, though the line dropped slightly.

The Oregon Ducks are going to be underdogs entering the second round of the NCAA Tournament against the Creighton Bluejays, but as we get closer to tip-off, the betting line is moving in their favor.

Once the matchup was set on Thursday afternoon, the betting line opened up at 5.5 points in favor of the 3-seed Bluejays, but it has since dropped a point in favor of the 11-seed Ducks, who are now a 4.5-point underdog, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

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While Oregon rode a 40-point game from Jermaine Couisnard in the opening game against the South Carolina Gamecocks earlier in the week, there will need to be a stellar performance from N’Faly Dante in this one if the Ducks want to advance to the Sweet 16. Dante will be matched up with Creighton’s center Ryan Kalkbrenner, one of the better big men in the nation.

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Though the Ducks aren’t favored to win, I don’t think anyone who has watched Dana Altman’s squad play over the last few weeks would be surprised to see them keep this magical run alive and live for another week.

Tip is set for 6:40 p.m. PT, on TBS.

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‘I still love that school;’ Oregon’s Dana Altman prepares for bittersweet battle vs. Creighton

Oregon Ducks coach Dana Altman knows Saturday’s NCAA Tournament matchup will be bittersweet against his former Creighton Bluejays.

The 11-seed Oregon Ducks surprised some people on Thursday afternoon when they rode a 40-point game from guard Jermaine Couisnard to “upset” 6-seed South Carolina, 87-73 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Those who follow the Ducks closely know this wasn’t really an upset, though. For starters, Oregon was favored by 2.5 points to win the game, and on top of that, head coach Dana Altman entered the game with a 7-0 record in the first round of the March Madness tournament.

If you know Altman, you had a pretty good sense that the Ducks would win on Thursday. Of course, if you know Altman, then you also know how meaningful this upcoming round of 32 game will be for the long-time coach.

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Oregon will tip off against the 3-seed Creighton Bluejays on Saturday night at 6:40 p.m. PT. This matchup will pit the Oregon coach of 14 years up against his old team, where Altman spent 16 years coaching before he came to Eugene.

It’s not just an entertaining storyline that has been drummed up over the past week, but something that holds real meaning for Altman, the winningest coach in both Oregon and Creighton history.

“Oh, you know, you spend 16 years at a place…” Altman trailed off on Thursday after being asked about the matchup on Saturday. “I’ve got great feelings about Creighton. As I said yesterday, you can leave a place, but that doesn’t mean you still don’t love the place.”

Altman coached in Omaha from 1995-2010, where he took Creighton to a total of seven NCAA Tournaments, having won six Missouri Valley Conference regular season titles, and three conference championships. Currently, Altman is the winningest coach in Creighton men’s basketball history, though he could lose that title this month if the Bluejays are to make a deep tournament run. Greg McDermott is only three wins off of his pace.

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Seeing a new name on top of that list is likely something that would please Altman, though.

“I’m so happy for Greg and Creighton and all their fans and the people that I know there,” Altman said. “Greg’s done a tremendous job. They’ve got a tremendous program. I’m so happy for him.”

On the court, Saturday’s matchup is going to be grueling for both teams. The Bluejays are currently favored, and many have them as a real contender to make a deep run and potentially get into the Final Four later this month. However, anyone who has watched the Ducks over the past few weeks, and saw their game against South Carolina in the first round knows that Altman’s team is far from an easy out.

“It’s bittersweet because only one of us is going to move on. But we’ll battle our tails off,” Altman said. “We’re going to have to play as good as we’ve ever played to get ’em. We’re going to have to be so sharp defensively, on the boards. We’re going to have to shoot it good again.”

If the Ducks find a way to pull off the upset, Altman will continue this magical run in 2024 and strengthen his already robust legacy as one of the best coaches in the history of the sport.

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If Oregon loses, at least the 65-year-old coach can take pride in watching one of his favorite teams battle on into the second weekend of March Madness.

“I’ve had 14 great years at Oregon, and I love this place,” Altman said. “And when I’m done, I’ll feel the same way about Oregon as I do about Creighton.

“Oregon is 1, but I think Creighton is 1A. There’s not much separation. I still love the school.”

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Dana Altman to face former team as Oregon takes on Creighton

Dana Altman will coach against his former team, the Creighton Blue Jays, after leading Oregon to an upset win over South Carolina.

Jermaine Couisnard set an Oregon record, dropping 40 points against his former team as the Ducks downed the South Carolina Gamecocks, 87-73, to advance to the Round of 32.

The Ducks played their way into the field of 68 by winning the Pac-12 Tournament, drawing a matchup against Lamont Paris and the Gamecocks – a team projected to finish last in the SEC but who massively exceeded expectations and finished tied for second, earning a six seed in the big dance.

If Couisnard can drop a 40 burger against his former team, perhaps Oregon coach Dana Altman can have similar success against his former team, Creighton, who Oregon will face on Saturday in the second round.

Altman was the head coach at Creighton from 1994-2010, leading the Blue Jays to seven NCAA Tournament appearances while winning 65% of his games in the Missouri Valley Conference.

Altman has led Oregon to eight NCAA Tournament appearances since taking over in 2010, and that includes a Final 4 run in 2017. However, he looked in danger of missing the field for the third straight year this year – which could have been the end of his tenure in Eugene. Now he has a chance to get back into the Sweet 16, while beating his former employer in the process.

March.

N’Faly Dante named as one of top players on double-digit seeded teams

Andy Katz named N’Faly Dante as the No. 1 player on double-digit seeded teams in this year’s NCAA tournament field.

The Oregon Ducks are in the NCAA tournament for the first time in three years. Making it to the Big Dance was a long shot for Oregon since the Ducks needed to win their conference tournament to qualify. But after battling hard for three straight games in the Pac-12 tournament, the Ducks punched their tickets to the tournament.

A massive reason for Oregon’s success in the conference tournament was the premier play of senior center N’Faly Dante. In the Pac-12 tournament, Dante averaged 20.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 4.3 stocks (steals + blocks), per game.

Dante’s recent run of elite form has garnered national attention since Oregon received its automatic bid. Andy Katz, a reporter with the NCAA, named who he sees as the best 10 players from double-digit seeded teams in this year’s field. Topping the list, is N’Faly Dante.

Five seasons ago, Dante joined the Oregon Ducks, and since then, his road through college hasn’t been easy. But in a career riddled by injuries, Dante has persevered and enshrined himself as one of the great Oregon big men. In those five seasons, Dante has played over 100 games and scored over 1000 points for the Ducks. Now, he’s headed to his first NCAA tournament.

On Thursday, Oregon will play South Carolina at 1:00 p.m. PT in the first round of the NCAA tournament. If they win that game, they’ll play the winner of No. 3 Creighton vs. No. 14 Akron.

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Ducks get favorable bid in final bracketology before Selection Sunday

The Oregon Ducks get a favorable draw in the final bracketology from ESPN’s Joe Lunardi ahead of Selection Sunday.

We will learn the fate of the Oregon Ducks on Sunday afternoon when the entire NCAA Tournament bracket is released during the annual Selection Sunday show. For now, though, we continue to speculate about whom Dana Altman’s team will face in the first round of the tournament.

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According to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, the Ducks are likely to be an No. 11 seed after beating the Colorado Buffaloes in the Pac-12 championship game on Saturday night. In Lunardi’s final bracketology before Selection Sunday, he has Oregon going up against the No. 6 Texas Tech Red Raiders in the Midwest Region.

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Texas Tech finished fourth in the Big 12 this year, going 23-10.

One benefit for Oregon in this scenario: It would play the Red Raiders in Spokane, Washington, allowing a large portion of the Ducks fan base to easily get to the game.

The final bracket will be released on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. PT on CBS.

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How to watch Selection Sunday, learn Oregon Ducks’ NCAA Tournament matchup

Everything you need to know about watching on Selection Sunday to learn the Oregon Ducks’ opponent in the NCAA Tournament.

It certainly didn’t feel like Selection Sunday was going to be much of an event for the Oregon Ducks, but as we’ve learned many times in the past, Dana Altman can work magic in March.

With their win over the Colorado Buffaloes in the Pac-12 championship gme on Saturday night, the Ducks clinched a spot in the NCAA Tournament. They will participate in March Madness for the first time since the 2020-21 season. After two straight trips to the NIT, this is a welcome outcome for Duck fans.

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So who can Oregon prepare to play in the first round of the NCAA Tournament? That will be decided on Selection Sunday. While many teams on the bubble await their fate, the Ducks have the luxury of waiting only to see who they will play.

Here is everything you need to know about when and how to watch Selection Sunday:

  • Date: Sunday, March 17 | Time: 3 p.m. PT
  • TV: CBS

The NCAA Tournament will begin on Tuesday, with the First Four games being played on Tuesday and Wednesday. The first round begins on Thursday, and the second round on Saturday. Here is a full schedule for the tournament:

  • March 19-20: First Four
  • March 21-22: First round
  • March 23-24: Second round
  • March 28-29: Sweet 16
  • March 30-31: Elite Eight
  • April 6: Final Four at State Farm Stadium in Phoenix
  • April 8: Final Four at State Farm Stadium in Phoenix

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With Pac-12 championship win, Dana Altman and the Ducks are going dancing

Dana Altman and the Oregon Ducks won the Pac-12 championship game on Saturday night, clinching a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

His name is Dana Altman, and he aligns Rubix Cubes.

After a disappointing season that seemed poised for a third straight NIT bid, the Oregon Ducks completed a miraculous run in the Pac-12 Tournament on Saturday night with a win over the Colorado Buffaloes in the championship game. The victory earned the Ducks the conference’s automatic bid for the NCAA Tournament.

Oregon’s N’Faly Dante was the best player on the floor by far, finishing with 25 points and 9 rebounds on 12-for-12 shooting.

This is the first time since the 2020-21 season the Ducks have made it to March Madness.

The Ducks were forced to go through the Pac-12 Tournament with just eight  scholarship players healthy after Keeshawn Barthelemy, Nate Bittle, Jessie Zarzuela and Mookie Cook went down with injuries this year. They almost lost Dante on Friday when the big man took a hard fall early in the game against Arizona.

The Ducks will learn their fate when the matchups are revealed on Selection Sunday.

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