Final
Taylor, Oregon romp past Oregon State
Mar 4, 2007 - 3:27 AM EUGENE, Oregon (Ticker) -- Oregon made the "Civil War" a lot more one-sided.Bryce Taylor scored 22 points and the 18th-ranked Ducks wrapped up the regular season in impressive fashion with a dominating 70-49 Pac-10 Conference victory over intrastate rival Oregon State.
Oregon (23-7, 11-7 Pac-10) won its third straight game and finished the season with 23 wins for the first time since the 1944-45 season.
"We are probably playing at our peak right now heading into the Pac-10 Tournament but we still have work to do," Ducks coach Ernie Kent said. "We are scoring well and we've put new plays into the system that the players have done well executing. We have many different weapons that people have to defend."
Aaron Brooks added 18 points - clinching the Pac-10 scoring championship - for the Ducks, who have beaten the Beavers 14 straight times on their home floor dating to 1993.
Brooks celebrated Senior Day be becoming the first Oregon player to lead the league in scoring since Terrell Brandon in 1991.
"The last couple of years we've been under .500, and I think the mentality of the team has changed," Brooks said. "This is the toughest conference in the nation and to get a winning record shows we've matured."
The heated rivalry usually produces close games, with the previous seven contests having been decided by single digits.
Taylor and Brooks made sure this one wouldn't follow that pattern, combining for 25 first-half points as Oregon took a 33-17 lead into the intermission. Oregon State (11-20, 3-15) never got the lead under double digits thereafter.
"I just watched some film and saw that after three or four drive (and) kicks, Oregon State's defense spreads out," Taylor said. "So I knew I could get in there and get some points. Each game we're going to have a different leader in points, and today I stepped up to that role."
The Beavers didn't help themselves by shooting 29 percent (8-of-28) in the opening 20 minutes, including 1-of-10 from 3-point range.
"We played hard. We took the right to them," Oregon State forward Marcel Jones said. "We got open shots and we just didn't knock them down. It was a hard-fought game. I don't think the score was indicative of how we played them but hats off to them."
Oregon freshman Tajuan Porter had a miserable shooting night, finishing 2-of-12 overall and 1-of-8 from 3-point range, but he tied the Pac-10 single-season record for 3-pointers by a freshman with 82, tying former UCLA swingman Jason Kapono.
Maarty Leunen contributed 14 points and 10 rebounds, helping Oregon establish a 38-30 advantage on the boards.
"We wanted to make sure the seniors went out in a good way," Leunen said. "It was a rivalry game, but we were especially excited for the seniors to get this victory."
Jones scored 13 points for the Beavers, who shot just 38 percent (19-of-50) from the floor.
"Today was obviously a big game for us," Oregon State coach Jay John said. "Overall I think we played well. Oregon's offensive power is such that we know we just can't outscore them. We have to minimize the amount of mistakes we make and do a lot of the little things that matter."
- NCAA BB
FINAL 1ST 2ND TOTAL
--- --- -----
OREGON ST 17 32 49
OREGON (18) 33 37 70 FINAL
Mar 3 7:56 PM - NCAA BB
OREGON ST 17
OREGON (18) 33 HALFTIME
Mar 3 6:48 PM
Related News
- MBB: battered but not beaten Dec 23
- WBB: Ducks Rustle the Cowgirls Dec 22
- Quack Fix 12-21-23: Best. Class. Ever. Dec 21
- WBB: Ducks Fall to Trailblazers (not the NBA kind) Dec 20
- Oregon Women’s Basketball Defeats UTSA, 61-48 Dec 18
- Quack Fix 12-14-23: Shelstad Shining Dec 14
- MBB: Ducks’ Depth Dismounts Lancers Dec 13
- Quack Fix 12-13-23: Bye Bye, Bucky Dec 13
- Oregon Women’s Basketball Tops Southern, 67-37 Dec 12
- Quack Fix 12-11-23: From OU to UO Dec 11
- MBB: Ducks Demolish Miners Dec 10
- WBB: Ducks Win Ugly Versus Vandals Dec 10