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No. 5 Arizona visits Oregon in Pac-12 showdown (Feb 04, 2017)
EUGENE, Ore. -- Not only is first place in the Pac-12 Conference on the line when No. 13 Oregon hosts fifth-ranked Arizona, the tiebreaker for the conference title could be decided as well.
The Wildcats (21-2, 10-0 Pac-12) bring a 15-game winning streak into Matthew Knight Arena to face the Ducks (20-3, 9-1) on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the only meeting between the two schools during the regular season.
Arizona sits in first place in the conference while Oregon is second. It appears the conference race will come down to those two teams because every other team in the league has at least three losses.
If Arizona beats the Ducks, it would move two games up in the standings with seven to play and have the head-to-head tiebreaker. If Oregon wins, the two teams would be tied for first place at 10-1 and the Ducks would have the tiebreaker.
"It is an awfully big game for us," Oregon coach Dana Altman said. "To be honest, it is not quite as big for them because their schedule is quite a bit easier down the stretch. So it is one that is critical for us and they can come in and swing away with a one-game lead knowing their schedule is a bit easier than ours."
Oregon swept two games from Arizona last season while winning the conference title after the Wildcats won the two previous championships.
"We respect Oregon a lot. We know what they're capable of," Arizona guard Allonzo Trier said. "We know the kind of season they've had last year and this year so we're excited to go meet them. It's a tough game but we'll be ready for it."
Oregon has won 18 of its last 19 games and owns the nation's second-longest active home winning streak at 39 games. In an interesting side note to the game, the Ducks snapped Arizona's 49-game home winning streak last year.
"We have got to bring it from the start," Oregon junior forward Dillon Brooks said. "They are not going to lie down. We ended their streak and they want to end ours. We need to come out and play hard and play physical."
Brooks helped avoid an upset on Thursday when he scored the Ducks' final 12 points as they rallied from a one-point deficit in the final four minutes to beat Arizona State 71-70. The 6-foot-7 forward finished with 27 points to push his team-leading scoring average to 14.2.
Senior center Chris Boucher is averaging 12.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks per game to help Oregon lead the conference with 7.3 blocked shots per game. Guards Tyler Dorsey and Dylan Ennis average 12.1 and 11.5 points, respectively.
Junior forward Jordan Bell is the fifth scorer in double figures at 11.1 while leading Oregon with 7.7 rebounds.
"They have a little bit of everything; they have great experience," Arizona coach Sean Miller said. "They have Dillon Ennis a fifth-year senior, (Chris) Boucher is the same, and they have quite a few who've been there for three. And obviously, they have a great coach. They block shots and get steals, and on offense, they're shooting and making as many threes as UCLA so they have everything. That's why they're such a great team."
Arizona has gone more than two months since its last loss to No. 1 Gonzaga. Trier, a sophomore, recently returned from a drug suspension and averages 14.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists.
"He makes a big difference," Altman said. "Gives them depth and an experienced perimeter player. He gives them another bullet, another weapon. We are going to have our work cut out for us. I don't know how we will get them slowed down."
Freshman Lauri Markkanen leads Arizona with 16.4 points and 7.7 rebounds while center Dusan Ristic is averaging 11.8 points. Freshmen Kobe Simmons and Rawle Alkins are scoring 11.7 and 11.6 points per game, respectively.
"Coach told us we still control our destiny," Bell said. "But if we drop a game it will probably not happen because we are trying to catch Arizona right now."
