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Eugene, OR – The Oregon Ducks took on the USC Trojans this afternoon in Eugene looking for their fifth-straight win. The Ducks came on strong in the second half, outscoring the Trojans 43-27 to get the 82-61 win. Keeshawn Barthelemy connected on 4-of-6 3’s and led Oregon with 20 points. Jackson Shelstad added 19 points, hitting 3-of-6 from deep, and added four assists. Nate Bittle dominated the smaller USC team inside and finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and five blocked shots. Rashaun Agee had a career-game for USC, finishing with 29 points, 14 rebounds, six blocked shots and three steals.
USC started the game strong, pulling out to a 15-4 lead. Oregon came back quickly on a nine-point run to tie the game at 17-17. The teams battled evenly for most of the remainder of the half before the Ducks pulled away late and took a 39-34 halftime lead. Oregon took the lead despite shooting only 1-of-7 from deep. They got the lead by forcing USC into 10 turnovers and scoring 10 points off those turnovers. Shelstad led Oregon in scoring at the break with nine points while Bittle had eight. Agee led USC with 15 first half points, scoring 10 of the Trojans first 12 points, including two three-pointers.
Oregon extended the lead to 10 points early in the second half before USC closed the margin to five points. The Ducks put the game away on a 16-0 run later in the half, finishing up the run with back-to-back-to-back three-pointers, two by Barthelemy and one by Shelstad. That extended their lead to 76-53 and the Ducks coasted to the win from there. Oregon connected on 9-of-20 three-pointers in the second half while they held the Trojans scoreless on ten three-point attempts. They forced USC into 16 turnovers in the game and had a 19-10 edge in points off turnovers. Oregon’s defensive intensity improved in the second half.
Oregon (21-8, 10-8) will stay home and next face Indiana on Tuesday evening at 6pm on senior night. They will finish the regular season next Sunday at Noon at Washington.
This article was written by Carl Berman, Managing Partner of NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.
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