By Don Smalley

DSN Contributor

It’s quite evident that Oregon has not learned that they are now the hunted. Every team they play is gunning for them. It’s a huge deal to play against the Ducks. Ask Oakland.

The Golden Grizzlies had never beaten a ranked team before and they wanted the Ducks to be the first. They got their wish.

Oregon sleep walked through the first half and fell behind by double digits by halftime. For the first few minutes of the second half, it looked like the Ducks came to play as they scored 20 straight points. Bryce Taylor asserted himself in those minutes and looked unstoppable.

Then he disappeared again.

When Oregon plays as a team, it is nearly unbeatable. When they whip the ball around on offense and find the open jumper or penetrate the lane, the Ducks can beat anyone. But when they don’t, they can’t beat Oakland.

Oakland proved tonight that a zone will not only hurt the Ducks, it will kill them. And that just shouldn’t be the case. When the Ducks see a zone, they should salivate at the potential open shots. But those shots won’t present themselves when they stand around. Oregon needs to penetrate the lane. If the zone collapses, kick it back out for a three. If the zone does not collapse, go to the rim with authority.

There were way too many possessions when the Ducks stood around and watched Tajuan Porter jack up an NBA three-pointer. He was cold tonight. It was obvious he wasn’t having a good night. This is where someone else, preferably Taylor, needed to take over the game. Someone on this team has to stand up and say, “We will not lose this game.”

The Ducks have too much talent to lose to the likes of Oakland. No disrespect to the Grizzlies, but they are a team from a relatively small conference and they are not even the best team in the Summit.

If the Ducks have problems against Oakland, how will they fare against the likes of UCLA, Arizona or Washington State. The way they are playing now, the season could get ugly real fast. Oregon might be playing for an NIT berth and it won’t have to worry about a seed in the NCAA tournament.

Tags: Basketball, Ducks, University of Oregon