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No. 18 Oregon faces Arizona in Pac-10 quarterfinals

Mar 8, 2007 - 4:19 PM Arizona (20-9) at No. 18 Oregon (23-7) 3:30 pm EST

LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- Oregon and Arizona put on a show in the regular season. The Pac-10 Conference Tournament should provide some more fireworks.

The 18th-ranked Ducks hope to reach the Pac-10 tournament semifinals for the fifth time since 2002 when they face the Wildcats in the quarterfinals on Thursday.

Oregon (23-7, 11-7 Pac-10) is the lone program that has advanced to the semifinals in every conference tournament since the event re-started in 2002. However, the Ducks will have to defeat a talented Arizona (20-9, 11-7) squad to get there again.

The teams have split both meetings this season, with the road team winning in dramatic fashion each time. In the first meeting on January 11, Oregon's Aaron Brooks nailed a remarkable bank shot with two seconds left to lead the Ducks to a 79-77 win over the Wildcats.

But in the rematch it was a tougher night for Brooks, who scored just six points on 2-of-14 shooting. Arizona forward Ivan Radenovic's go-ahead shot with six seconds left led the Wildcats to a dramatic 77-74 victory on February 10.

However, both squads have endured tough times to reach this point. Arizona lost six of eight from January 6-February, 1 but have since won six of eight to right the ship heading into the postseason.

Oregon also went through a rough stretch, also losing six of eight from January 25-February 17. But the Ducks have turned it around, closing the regular season with three straight wins, including 70-49 rout over in-state rival Oregon State on Saturday.

The winners faces either California or UCLA.