No. 8 Oregon contains Grizzlies

Wednesday, December 18

Eugene, Ore.

9 PM (MT)

Montana

4-6

Oregon

9-2

Montana

Oregon

Photo by: David Staggs

12/19/2019 12:37:00 AM | Men's Basketball

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By: Montana Sports Information

EUGENE, Ore. – No. 8 Oregon proved it is deserving of its top-10 national ranking on Wednesday night, beating Montana, 81-48, inside Matthew Knight Arena. The Grizzlies hung close through the opening 10 minutes, holding an early 5-4 lead and being tied at several points including 12-12, but then Montana's offense went ice cold.

The Ducks scored seven consecutive points in just 58 seconds before extending the run to 11-0. Montana would trail by double digits over the final 25 minutes of the contest.

While Montana could never get over the hump, the Grizzlies remained within reach through most of the second half, trailing by 14 to 17 points for a large portion of it. That changed during a 6-minute stretch late in the game, though, as Oregon used a 16-0 run to fully put the game on ice. During the drought, Montana missed eight consecutive shots while turning the ball over twice.

Senior Kendal Manuel led the Grizzlies with 15 points and two steals. He had two of Montana's four three-pointers, which proved to be part of the team's offensive struggle. Oregon, which ranks in the top 25 percent nationally for three-point defense, allowed Montana to make three of its first eight shots from beyond the arc, but the Grizzlies would miss seven in a row in the second half to finish at a 23.5 percent clip. Coupled with Montana's inability to score down low due to Oregon's length (46 to 24 in the paint), it led to Montana's second-lowest scoring total of the season.

Montana's defense played relatively strong through the first 30 minutes, but the late spurt by the Ducks led to the most points allowed by the Grizzlies this season.

In addition to Manuel's 15, fellow senior Sayeed Pridgett was also in double figures with 11 points before fouling out in the closing minutes. Pridgett didn't score until the 3-minute mark of the first half, but scored the team's final nine points of the half. Pridgett also added a team-high eight rebounds and three assists.

Sophomore Mack Anderson, who scored just one point over the past four games, had four second-half points on two shot attempts. He also blocked two shots and swiped a pass in 22 minutes of action, showing potential as he continues to grow and develop.

Montana was out-rebounded, 40-24, and turned the ball over 20 times – leading to 26 Ducks points.

The Ducks had five players in double figures for scoring, including N'Faly Dante, a five-star recruit who made his collegiate debut by scoring 11 points in just 14 minutes of action. Francis Okoro scored 12 points while collecting 17 rebounds.

Gallery: (12/18/2019) MBB: at No. 8 Oregon (12.18.19)

Quoting DeCuire
(on Oregon's two long scoring runs)
"We got off to a good start. We were executing things early, but our issue right now is adversity, and I don't know we have the maturity to handle adversity right now. Some of it was fatigue, so we were trying to take some guys out, but before we could get them out we turned the ball over two or three times. The second half, we did a couple things right defensively but we turned the ball over, and you're looking at 46 points we gave them, whether it was not getting back on defensive transition or turning the ball over. You can't spot a team 46 teams and expect to be in a basketball game."

(on Montana's offensive struggles)
"We tried to simplify some things to see if we could get anything going offensively, but credit to this team. They're No. 8 in the nation for a reason, and they do some really good things defensively. The pressure puts you in a late clock a lot, which prevents you from running an offense."

(on learning from playing a top-10 team)
"We're always trying to grow up. We have to toughen up. There are plays we just have to make, and we have to get better. This is one of those games that kind of snowballs from you. We'll be OK; the question is how long will it take?"

(on Anderson continuing to develop)
"I think for Mack, we saw a lot of growth, and it's come on the last couple of games and in practice. As a sophomore, there's a lot of expectations for you to come in and provide. We took him out of the lineup and had him work his way back, and I think that helped him get his confidence back. He's starting to play how he should."

Looking Ahead
Montana will close non-conference play on Saturday at Omaha (11 a.m. MT). The game is part of the Big Sky Conference-Summit League Challenge, which Montana is 3-0 in over the past two seasons. Omaha is 6-8 on the season and is coming off of a 41-point loss at Eastern Washington on Tuesday.