Oregon Blown Out by Houston 78-49 in Third Place Game of Maui Invitational
The Oregon Ducks (3-3) got demolished by the No. 12 Houston Cougars (5-1) in Las Vegas on Wednesday. Dana Altman’s squad hasn’t looked the same since their loss to BYU a week ago, and Houston completely exposed all of Oregon’s weaknesses.
The game started in an odd way with the Houston bench being awarded a technical foul just 12 seconds into the game, much to the displeasure of Houston Head Coach Kelvin Sampson. Unfortunately, the result was all too familiar for the Ducks: two missed free throws from Will Richardson. The star senior guard has been struggling after a great start to his season, and Wednesday was the same. Richardson zero points in the first half, going 0-for-3 on his field goal attempts.
The Cougars got off to a quick start, capitalizing on a sloppy first half performance from the Ducks. Oregon turned over the ball 11 times in the first 20 minutes, and committed nine personal fouls. It was a low scoring affair after seven minutes, with Houston leading 17-5.
Oregon’s only bright spot of late, Eric Williams Jr. scored all five of those points. He would add a nice three-pointer from the top of the key to bring his first-half scoring total to eight points on 2-of-2 shooting from downtown.
The first half quickly turned into a blowout behind a complete two-way performance from Houston. The Cougs shot over 50% from the field in the first half, scoring however they liked. Ducks bigs Franck Kepnang and N’Faly Dante both struggled to stop Houston from scoring in the paint, and both picked up two fouls.
Kepnang got targeted on offense as well, as Houston brought the double team twice and forced turnovers both times. Houston also found success from outside, with Fabian White Jr. leading the way with 13 points and 3 three-pointers. The half ended with a score of 41-19 with Houston far in the lead.
The second half got off to a scary start, with Quincy Guerrier and De’Vion Harmon colliding into each other going for a defensive rebound. Harmon hit his head on Guerrier’s knee and was slow to get up.
The Ducks came down the court after the collision met with the same aggressive Cougar defense, with Houston guard Jamal Shead flying to block Jacob Young on the second attempt. Then, Houston’s star Marcus Sasser showed his hustle, beating Richardson to a rebound and finding an open Kyler Edwards for the three.
Houston simply showed more effort, fighting for every loose ball and rebound like it was their last. The Ducks got four minutes into the second half with zero offensive rebounds and a measly 19 points.
It was more of the same Houston dominance, as the Cougars would go on to win 78-49. White Jr. was the game’s leading scorer with 15 points along with seven rebounds. The Ducks left their heart in Oregon for their early season road trip, but they'll be back at Matthew Knight Arena next Monday to take on Montana.
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