Oregon Ducks Improve NCAA Tournament Seed After Beating Wisconsin: Bracketology Update

The Oregon Ducks (20-8, 9-8) are riding a four-game winning streak and added a monumental resume victory on the road at the Wisconsin Badgers this past Saturday, a 77-73 win in overtime. Oregon came back from a 17-point deficit in the second half at the Kohl Center in Madison.

"Players want to play good teams. Wisconsin's a really good team. We just caught fire there in the second half, and that happens. Teams get on a little roll and the game changes momentum, that's simply what happened."
Dana Altman via Badgers Wire

Because of their strong recent play as the season heads into March, ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi has listed Oregon coach Dana Altman's squad as the No. 5 seed to play the No. 12 seed Drake Bulldogs out of the Missouri Valley Conference in Denver, Colorado to start off March Madness. Denver is the closest first and second round location in the NCAA Tournament to Eugene besides Seattle.

Oregon center Nate Bittle (32) blocks a shot by Wisconsin guard John Blackwell (25) during overtime of their game Saturday, February 22, 2025 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin. Oregon beat Wisconsin 77-73 in overtime. Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The current Ducks are moving back up the national rankings as they stand at No. 32 in the NET rankings and are 9-6 in Quad 1 opportunities. The only other programs across the country that have more or the same amount of wins are the Auburn Tigers (14 wins), Tennessee Volunteers (nine wins), and Alabama Crimson Tide (nine wins) all out of the Southeastern Conference.

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Oregon senior Nate Bittle has been the best player on the floor consistently for Altman this season. He's been not only one of the top centers in the Big Ten Conference but the entire country. He's a candidate for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Trophy which the winner will be announced in late March.

Bittle ranks No. 22 in the country with 2.1 blocks per game and No. 10 in the Big Ten with 7.1 rebounds per game. He has been the defensive anchor for this group's turnaround.

"We've got to bring our defense. Offense will come. Stops lead to transition, turnovers and stuff like that lead to transition buckets, which are easy baskets. Coach Altman has been emphasizing defense a lot lately, rebounding the basketball. It's a big part of winning."
Oregon Ducks center Nate Bittle

A Big Ten regular season title is not within reach for the Ducks but a run at the Big Ten Tournament at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis from Wednesday, March 12 through Sunday, March 16. That final day is also Selection Sunday for the NCAA Tournament.

Iowa forward Even Brauns (0) defends a 3 attempted by Oregon guard Jackson Shelstad (3) Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. | Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

If the season were to end on Feb. 25, Oregon would be the No. 7 seed in the Big Ten Tournament. The Ducks trail the UCLA Bruins and Purdue Boilermakers by 2.5 games of the No. 5 and 6 seeds.

Oregon's remaining conference schedule is against the USC Trojans on Saturday, March 1, Indiana Hoosiers on Tuesday, March 4, and at rival Washington Huskies on Sunday, March 9. Those first two games will be played at Matthew Knight Arena.