Oregon and Oregon State conclude this year’s men’s basketball Civil War series on Sunday afternoon in Eugene. The Beavers won the first matchup 80-72 on Jan. 19.
What to watch for:
Oregon
Oregon has addressed its defensive struggles but has dropped off offensively. Once the highest scoring team in the nation, Oregon has fallen to 11th at 83.3 points per game — which still leads the conference. After scoring at least 80 points in 13 of its first 16 games, Oregon has failed to score 80 in each of its last five contests.
Another reason for Oregon’s recent struggles is its failure to finish games. Four of Oregon’s last six losses have been by two points. On the contrary, only two Oregon wins have been by four points or less. On Sunday and going forward, closing out close games will be a major key to success.
Oregon State
The Beavers have been a completely different team at home than on the road. At home Oregon State is 10-2 and scores 80.92 points per game. On the road the Beavers are 2-7 and scores 72.63 points per game.
Oregon State boasts some major size but remains one of the worst rebounding teams in the country. Oregon State’s 797 total rebounds ranks 11th in the Pac-12 and 236th nationally.
Players to watch:
Oregon
Joseph Young put on a clinic in the second half of Oregon’s loss at Arizona State on Saturday, single-handedly bringing the Ducks back with 29 points on 11-of-17 shooting. Young is Oregon’s leading scorer and is fourth in conference for scoring and is good on defense as well. Young also leads Oregon in steals with 1.43 per game, which makes him seventh in conference.
Johnathan Loyd has had a very productive year for Oregon. The senior guard ranks fifth or better in conference in four categories including assists per game and assist to turnover ratio, and leads the conference with a 89.7 free throw line percentage.
Oregon State
Roberto Nelson is a scoring machine. He leads the conference in scoring at 21.5 points per game and dropped 22 in Oregon State’s win over the Ducks in January. He shoots well from the field (44.5 percent) and leads his team in assists.
Getting Eric Moreland healthy was huge for Oregon State. In 11 games since returning from an injury, Moreland has been a rebounding machine — pulling down just under 10 boards per game while contributing 7.9 points per game. His 22 blocks already rank second on the team behind Collier.
Keys to victory:
Oregon
When applied, Oregon’s full court press has made a huge difference. UO head coach Dana Altman typically only uses it in the second half with the game on the line, but if used early and often against Oregon State, the Ducks could get a huge lead early because the Beavers commit 13.5 turnovers per game.
Oregon State
Nelson and company rank first in conference and fifth nationally in three-point field goal shooting at 41.4 percent. If they can get their outside shooting going and limit turnovers, they can sweep their in-state rival for the first time since the 2009-10 season.
Follow Madison Guernsey on Twitter @guernseymd