Tag: oregon ducks basketball

5 wings the Oregon Ducks should pursue in the transfer portal

The Oregon Ducks are getting KJ Evans and Mookie Cook next season, but if Quincy Guerrier or Rivaldo Soares leave, they could use a transfer addition. Here are five names to consider:

Of all the positions for the Oregon Ducks to feel okay about looking ahead to the 2023-24 season, forward/wing is the top of the list.

Although it is not clear whether Quincy Guerrier or Rivaldo Soares will return next season, they will retain Jermaine Couisnard and of course add a pair of elite freshmen in Mookie Cook and KJ Evans.

Still, things can certainly change, and if either Guerrier or Soares were to hit the portal or pursue professional opportunities then Dana Altman might want to see what the portal has to offer on the wing.

Perhaps a transfer addition at that spot would be more of a depth option, a three point shooter or defensive stopper off the bench, but if Altman can get some of the big fish they could add an impact starter and push someone into a depth role – which is never a bad thing to have when trying to get back into the big dance.

Below are five options on the wing, who would each fit a different role, that Altman and his team should purse this transfer season:

5 guards the Oregon Ducks should pursue in the transfer portal

With Will Richardson gone, and the rest of Oregon’s roster still in flux, here are some potential guards to watch in the transfer portal.

One of the biggest changes in college basketball over the past few years has been the creation of the transfer portal, which effectively forces coaches to re-recruit their roster every offseason.

For Dana Altman and the Ducks, it means the only guarantee for next year is the departure of Will Richardson, who exhausted his final year of eligibility while becoming Oregon’s all-time leader in games played.

Jermaine Couisnard stated he plans to come back for next season, Tyrone Williams entered the transfer portal, but right now the Ducks are awaiting word on whether Keeshawn Barthelemy or Rivaldo Soares will be back or not.

That makes pursuing guards via the portal a difficult exercise at the moment, but Altman and his staff are no doubt perusing the names available anyway, looking for any way to improve the roster after failing to make the NCAA Tournament again in 2023.

Here is a look at five guards currently available in the portal who could fit in Eugene next season:

PHOTOS: Wisconsin beats No. 1 seed Oregon 61-58 in NIT quarterfinal

Photos from Wisconsin basketball’s victory over the Oregon Ducks in the quarterfinal of the NIT:

The Wisconsin Badgers extended their longest winning streak since the start of the new year in a 61-58 victory against the host Oregon Ducks on Tuesday night. This win sent the Badgers to the NIT semifinals, in which they will face North Texas.

Wisconsin guard Max Klesmit led the team in scoring with 18 points, while center Steven Crowl nearly finished with a double-double with 9 points and 10 rebounds. Although it wasn’t the prettiest victory for the Badgers, they were able to play well as a team to close out the game.

The Badgers will move on to the NIT semifinal next Tuesday, which will be played in Las Vegas against the North Texas Mean Green.

Below are photos from Wisconsin basketball’s victory over the Oregon Ducks in the quarterfinal of the NIT:

Wisconsin Twitter reacts to the Badgers’ thrilling victory over Oregon

The Badgers outlast the Ducks on the road

Another Wisconsin nail-biter went the Badgers’ way as a 13-4 run lifted UW to a spot in the NIT Final Four.

The Badgers came out of Eugene with a 61-58 win over the Ducks and will play North Texas in the NIT Final Four at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.

Max Klesmit led the way for Wisconsin with a game-high 18 points and a late go-ahead 3. Chucky Hepburn wasn’t fooled by Oregon’s late switch to a 1-3-1 zone: He nailed a 3 that put Wisconsin ahead for good in the final minute.

Here is how Wisconsin Twitter reacted to the win:

Wisconsin vs. Oregon: Stream, injury report, broadcast info for Tuesday

How to watch Wisconsin basketball in the quarterfinal of the NIT against the Oregon Ducks on Tuesday night:

The Wisconsin Badgers play the Oregon Ducks in the quarterfinal of the NIT on Tuesday night, and if you’re wondering how you can watch the action live, you’ve come to the right place.

The Badgers will need another standout game from point guard Chucky Hepburn, who scored a career-high 27-points against Liberty, as they face off against the No. 1-seeded Ducks. His scoring will be needed to counteract Oregon’s all-Pac-12 center, N’Faly Dante.

Hopefully, Wisconsin forward Steven Crowl can continue his stretch of solid play and help shut down Dante. Although he was limited by fouls against Liberty, Crowl still contributed 14 points.

It should be an exciting game to watch as the Badgers will try to beat the Ducks and move on to the semifinal of the NIT against either Oklahoma State or North Texas.

Here’s when you should tune in to see the game:

  • Date: March 20, 2023
  • Time: 8 p.m. CT
  • TV Channel: ESPN
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch here)

Players to watch:

Points Leaders:

  • Wisconsin forward Steven Crowl: 12.3 PPG

  • Oregon center N’Faly Dante: 13.4 PPG

Rebounds Leaders:

  • Wisconsin forward Steven Crowl: 6.8 RPG

  • Oregon center N’Faly Dante: 8.4 RPG

Assists Leaders:

  • Wisconsin guard Chucky Hepburn: 2.9 APG

  • Oregon guard Will Richardson: 5.1 APG

UCLA only Pac-12 team remaining after NCAA Tournament first weekend

The Pac-12 only has one team remaining in the NCAA Tournament, UCLA, after Arizona, USC, and Arizona State suffered first round losses.

The 2023 NCAA Tournament began with four schools from the conference of champions, but after the first two days of action only one Pac-12 school – the UCLA Bruins – remained.

USC tipped off Friday’s action against Michigan State, losing 72-62 after getting outscored by ten in the second half by Tom Izzo’s team.

USC was the ten seed in this matchup and had a chance to win throughout, but a poor performance from star guard Boogie Ellis (six points on 3-12 shooting) doomed the Trojans and sent USC home early.

Meanwhile, the last game of the day was a battle between six seed TCU and Arizona State, a play-in 11 seed that had every opportunity to win but squandered them all by missing key free throws down the stretch.

All this comes after the biggest disappointment on Thursday, when Arizona fell to 15 seed Princeton – much to the joy of many Oregon fans.

This means of the 32 teams remaining in the Big Dance, only the Pac-12 regular season champion in UCLA remains.

It’s another disappointing year for the conference, and the impending departure of both UCLA and USC – half the Pac-12’s Tournament teams – makes it hard to be optimistic about the future.

Conferences secure a ton of money from NCAA Tournament appearances and wins, and while football is king it is absolutely an issue that this conference has very little basketball pedigree beyond 2024.

Of course, potential addition San Diego State already punched their ticket into the Sweet 16 with wins over Charleston and Furman, showcasing one of their biggest arguments for inclusion in the conference.

Oregon has a dominant recruiting class set to come in 2023, which should help, but until some of these lower-level programs commit to winning things might not change much in the conference of champions.

Cal let Mark Fox go, which is a start, but Stanford’s commitment to Jerod Haase and Oregon State’s devotion to Wayne Tinkle will keep this conference from rising out of the bottom – which doesn’t do anyone any favors at the top.

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Report: Jermaine Couisnard to return to Oregon for final season

The Ducks not only advanced past WSU in the Pac-12 Tournament on Thursday, they learned guard Jermaine Couisnard is coming back for 2023-24.

After defeating the Washington State Cougars in the Pac-12 Tournament on Thursday afternoon, Dana Altman and the Oregon Ducks got another gift: redshirt senior Jermaine Couisnard let it be known that he will use his final year of eligibility to return to Eugene for another season in 2023-24.

Couisnard is Oregon’s second leading scorer at 13 points per game, along with 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists. He’s only appeared in 17 games due to injury, however, an issue that has plagued him throughout his career, which began at South Carolina back in 2018.

Couisnard and fellow transfer Keeshawn Barthelemy were expected to anchor Oregon’s backcourt this year alongside returners Will Richardson and Rivaldo Soares, but injuries limited both for huge chunks of the year.

“I’ve just been thinking. I haven’t played enough games for myself to leave college like that,” Couisnard told Matt Prehm, of 247Sports. “I feel like I need to start the season, have a healthy summer, change my body and how I eat, and then work on a few different things.”

Couisnard’s return next season helps ease the sting of losing Richardson, who recently set the record for games played in an Oregon uniform.

Oregon will take on number one seed UCLA on Friday at 6:00 PM, where a win could put them back inside the NCAA Tournament field and a loss will have everyone sweating on Selection Sunday.

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How Nyara Sabally will fit with New York Liberty in 2023

The Liberty inked Nyara Sabally to a rookie scale contract, but will the 2022 fifth overall pick make New York’s crowded roster out of training camp?

The New York Liberty announced that former Oregon forward Nyara Sabally signed her rookie scale contract, securing the 2022 fifth overall pick a $71,300 salary for 2023 if she makes the final roster.

Sabally was drafted last year by New York with the knowledge that she might end up sitting for the entire year, and that ended up being the case as she took a job as an assistant coach at Sacramento State while rehabbing and preparing to make her WNBA debut in 2023.

Now Sabally is ready to go, but she faces a New York roster that was completely overhauled this offseason. Former Oregon teammate Sabrina Ionescu is still in tow, but she is now joined by former MVP Jonquel Jones, former Seattle Storm superstar Breanna Stewart, and point guard Courtney Vandersloot – forming an absolute superteam in the Big Apple.

Sabally will compete for backup post minutes behind Jones, although she will face stiff competition from Stef Dolson and Han Xu – who emerged as a dynamic bench threat last season for the Liberty.

Sabally absolutely has the skills as a passing big to play real minutes in New York, but the significant talent influx this offseason could also push the Liberty to try dealing Sabally if they don’t believe she will secure one of the few available roster spots when training camp gets going this spring.

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Pac-12 MBB Power Rankings: Teams making moves with time running out

Arizona State’s upset win over Arizona was the biggest game in the Pac-12 last week, as teams start to settle in ahead of the tournament.

March is nearly upon us, and the 2023 Pac-12 Tournament is going to be a doozy with multiple teams squarely on the bubble of making the NCAA Tournament.

Arizona State took a huge leap forward with their epic, buzzer beating victory over rival Arizona on the road Saturday, and they now have a chance to go even further with games against USC and UCLA to close out the regular season.

USC has made up some ground as well, having won eight of their last 10 games, but losses at Oregon and at Oregon State hurt their resume and have them in a precarious position before their final games against Arizona and Arizona State.

Everyone else is hoping for a miracle run in the conference tournament to potentially earn themselves an auto-bid or a surprise at-large consideration, with the Pac-12 only guaranteed two teams in the big dance – far less than every other Power-5 conference at this point in the regular season.

Without further ado, here is a look at the Pac-12 power rankings heading into the final week of the regular season:

How Pac-12 compares to other conferences ahead of March Madness

The Pac-12 will have the fewest teams represented in the NCAA Tournament from Power-6 conferences, which doesn’t bode well for the future.

Selection Sunday is less than one month away as the college basketball season nears its climax.

The Pac-12 boasts two of the best teams in the entire sport in UCLA and Arizona, squads expected to be two seeds when the NCAA Tournament rolls around in mid-March.

However, the rest of the conference hasn’t stepped up in a significant way this year, and it looks like the Big Dance could feature just those two schools from the Pac-12, depending if USC can take care of business on the road against Colorado and Utah this week.

Oregon and Arizona State remain in the bubble conversation right now, according to Joe Lunardi’s latest bracketology report, but three teams from the Pac feels like a best case scenario at this point – and that is still well below every other Power-6 conference (P-5 plus the Big East) is expected to do.

A future without UCLA and USC is no doubt concerning for the conference of champions – for a lot of reasons – but the lack of top end talent in men’s basketball is a clear issue right now.

Here is a look at every conference currently projected with multiple teams in the NCAA Tournament and where the Pac-12 ranks: