— Oregon women’s track and field had quite the weekend at the Mt. Sac Relays in Walnut, California. Raevyn Rogers set a new NCAA record in the 800, while the 4×100 team comprised of Hannah Cunliffe, Deajah Stevens, Arianna Washington and MaKenzie Dunmore broke a collegiate record they set just a week prior. Rogers’ record had stood for 27 years before her run on Saturday.

— Scott Pagano, a 6-foot-3, 290-pound graduate transfer from Clemson, chose Oregon as his next destination on Friday afternoon. Pagano is fresh off a national championship with the Tigers. He chose Oregon over Oklahoma and Notre Dame.

—Oregon tennis upset No. 15 Stanford over the weekend to improve upon its already surprisingly successful season. Stanford is also tied for the highest-ranked team that Oregon has beaten in program history. With the win, the Ducks improved to 17-5 and re now ranked as the No.23 team in the country.

— Shams Charania of Yahoo’s The Vertical reported on Sunday night that Oregon junior Jordan Bell had declared for the NBA Draft and would hire an agent. But Bell refuted the claim on Twitter and called the report “fake news.” Bell is eligible to declare for the NBA Draft this summer and would be the third Duck to do so in the past month.

— Oregon football held its second open practice on Saturday at Jesuit High School in Portland. The Emerald had a photographer in attendance to document the event. Check out the photo album here.

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

The post Quick Hits: Rogers breaks 27-year old NCAA record, football lands highly-sought transfer appeared first on Emerald Media.

After Yahoo Sports’ The Vertical reported late Sunday night that Jordan Bell has decided to enter the NBA Draft, Bell tweeted that he has not yet made a decision.

The Vertical said Bell has decided to hire an agent, which would end his Oregon career. Bell helped the Ducks to their first Final Four appearance in 80 years by averaging 10.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks a game.

Bell tweeted from his personal account that he has not yet made a decision:

Haven't made a decision yet #fakenews https://t.co/lnpTLch8Kq

— Jordan Bell (@1jordanbell) April 17, 2017

Bell posted again 15 minutes after his initial tweet:

I never spoke @ShamsCharania nor has anybody else in my circle so I guess it's a game of he said she said or as he called it "sources"

— Jordan Bell (@1jordanbell) April 17, 2017

Bell is currently projected as anywhere from a late first-round pick to a mid second-round pick. Should Bell decide to leave for the NBA, he would become the third Duck this offseason to do so, joining Tyler Dorsey and Dillon Brooks.

The post Jordan Bell refutes report that he’s declared for the NBA Draft appeared first on Emerald Media.

Junior forward Dillon Brooks has declared for the NBA Draft and hired an agent, he announced via Twitter on Wednesday morning. By hiring an agent, he is ineligible to return to school.

His collegiate career at Oregon is over.

He tested the waters of the NBA Draft last season but didn’t hire an agent. After receiving feedback from NBA teams, Brooks elected to return to Oregon for his junior season.

“I just want to say it’s been a good time in my life right now,” Brooks said in the video announcement. “I’ve done so much here. Everything has been great. I wouldn’t be here right now without the coaching staff believing in me. I was not highly recruited and they believed in me. I just feel like now I’m going to take my talents to the next level and enter into the draft.”

As a junior, Brooks averaged 16.1 points, shot 48 percent from the field and was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year even after he had missed Oregon’s first three games of the season with a foot injury.

In his three years at Oregon, Brooks became one of the best players in Oregon men’s basketball history. He ranks ninth in career scoring at Oregon with 1612 points and was the first player in program history to surpass 1000 career points as a sophomore. He averaged 14.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game and shot 47 percent from the field for his career.

Brooks also led Oregon to the NCAA Tournament in each of his three years. He is the all-time scoring and assists leader in program history in the tournament.

As far as his draft stock goes, Brooks has been projected as a second-round pick. Nbadraft.net has him going as high as the No.55 pick while draftexpress.com ranks him a bit lower, at No. 40.

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

The post After standout season, Dillon Brooks declares for NBA Draft and hires agent appeared first on Emerald Media.

The Ducks once again proved to be a resilient group on Sunday afternoon.

Oregon (21-8, 5-4) scored seven unanswered runs to rally from an early two-run deficit to beat UC Irvine (12-16, 1-2) 7-2 at PK Park. The win secured Oregon’s second series sweep of the year and extended its winning streak to four games; a solid turnaround after losing badly to Utah in consecutive games.  

“We’re confident,” starting pitcher Isaiah Carranza said. “After Utah, I think we really got punched in the face. … This weekend was a big step forward in the right direction for us. We’re confident right now.”

Carranza (2-0), who was started the season in the Oregon’s weekend rotation, made his third spot start in the past several weeks. He’s mostly pitched out the bullpen and in middle of the week games for the Ducks since falling out of the regular rotation. But his performances over the last few weeks, including Sunday’s, have earned him a spot back in the three-man rotation.

Carranza pitched six innings and allowed two runs — both unearned — on seven hits and three strikeouts.

“I tried to go after it and leave it all out on the line,” Carranza said. “I didn’t have my best fastball so I had to really rely on my off-speed [pitches] and location. So I really had to work down and try to work for ground balls and trust my defense behind me.”

The sophomore, however, didn’t start the day on the best note.

He loaded the bases in the first inning on two hits and a hit batter before a Kyle Kasser error scored two runs. Carranza only allowed the two runs in the inning but faced another bases-loaded situation in the second inning.

“The first inning my nerves were amped up,” Carranza said.

Tim Susnara, who caught Carranza today, said that Oregon’s starter was uncharacteristically inconsistent with his pitch placement to start the game.  

“He get’s racing a little bit,” Susnara said. “That the competitive edge. But I thought he got a lot more fluid as the game went on and he got more comfortable on the mound.”

Carranza certainly did seem to settle down after he allowed the two runs in the first. UC Irvine managed to put the ball in play a number of times and, besides the two errors the Ducks committed in the first and second inning, Oregon handled everything the Anteaters hit at them.

UC Irvine starter Chris Vargas retired the first Oregon batters he faced, but the Ducks slowly and surely chipped away until they took a 3-2 lead in the fifth inning.

One of those runs came courtesy of an inside-the-park-homerun from Susnara.

“First time I’ve had to run the bases home to home in a long time,” Susnara said.

The Ducks scored three more runs in the eighth inning to put the game out of reach. Oregon will face Portland on Tuesday before departing for Tucson, Arizona for a weekend series against the No. 8 Arizona Wildcats.

“Hopefully we’ll sharpen up a little bit more on Tuesday,” Oregon head coach George Horton said. “Tucson is always difficult. It’s probably 180 degrees opposite of this ballpark. It’s really fast, it’s really offensive and coach [Jay] Johnson and his staff have done a great job.”

“So we’re back in the fire ho-hum for another Pac-12 Conference race next weekend.”

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

The post Oregon tops UC Irvine 7-2 to secure the sweep and extend winning streak to four games appeared first on Emerald Media.

The scene at the Ducks’ spring practice on Saturday afternoon was somewhat historic.

Spectators lined the sidelines of Oregon open practice as the program opened its doors to the general public for the first time in years as part of a new policy spearheaded by new head coach Willie Taggart.

Nice little crowd gathering for Oregon's first open practice of the spring pic.twitter.com/RCCVWtj6oZ

— Gus Morris (@JustGusMorris) April 8, 2017

Saturday was originally scheduled to be Oregon’s second practice open to the public, but the bad weather on Friday forced practice to be held inside the Moshofsky Center, which doesn’t have adequate space to handle the expected crowds.

Before practice on Saturday, Taggart answered questions from the media and explained why he chose to have several open practices this spring.

“We always ask our fans to pay their money and come out watch us during the season, so I think it’s fair to allow them to come out and watch their football team a little bit,” Taggart said. “Especially with a new staff and wanting to see what’s going on, I think it would be pretty cool to have them come out.”

For the handful of die-hard fans that braved the wind and hail on Saturday, they were rewarded with an inside look at Oregon football that has been private since the Chip Kelly era.

After players completed warm-ups, the offense and defense split to work on position drills. Quarterbacks Justin Herbert, Terry Wilson Jr., Travis Jonsen, Taylor Alie and freshman early enrollee Braxton Burmeister worked with receivers and tight-ends on one of the Hatfield-Dowlin outdoor practice fields. Troy Dye and Brenden Schooler worked on defensive drills with their teammates on the neighboring field.

On top of switching their defense from a 4-3 back to a 3-4 scheme, Oregon is working to adopt a new offense as well.

At this point in the spring, though, Taggart is more worried about his players competing with his intensity than learning the new systems.

“We’re taking it slow and easy,” Taggart said about implementing the new offense and defense. “It’s new, so we don’t want to put too much on them and not get anything out of it. But we’re going to put it in slowly and make sure our guys understand what they’re doing the right way and coach it before we move on to the next thing.”

Taggart said earlier this spring that the Ducks will have a rotating depth chart to foster more competition. So far, players have noticed a change in intensity and have said that Taggart’s approach has worked.

Oregon will reschedule the open practice that was cancelled on Friday, but it has not released a replacement date yet. It does have another open practice schedule for next Saturday at Jesuit high school in Portland.
Here are some video highlights from Saturday’s practice.

Ball security drill, missed Freeman in the video but he almost flipped the punching bag pic.twitter.com/8XcxGBbVZt

— Gus Morris (@JustGusMorris) April 8, 2017

A few nice runs, Herbert and Freeman working well together # pic.twitter.com/tAQ0nhqzm1

— Gus Morris (@JustGusMorris) April 8, 2017

“Do something” drill. pic.twitter.com/LirP1NOOLq

— Shawn Medow (@ShawnMedow) April 8, 2017

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

The post Practice Report: Oregon opens its doors to the general public for first open practice in years appeared first on Emerald Media.

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Heartbreaking.

There’s no other way to describe Oregon’s 77-76 loss to North Carolina on Saturday night. Four straight missed free throws, two missed offensive rebounds and one devastating finish. What more can be said?

“We had a good year but we didn’t reach our goal,” Jordan Bell said as he fought back tears in the Oregon locker room.

This team had all the pieces a championship team needs. Savvy guards, big men who could play on both ends, scorers who get a bucket when needed and lockdown defense. The only piece the Ducks were missing on Saturday night was Boucher. And against a team like North Carolina, that was all it took.

“It would’ve been great to have him,” Dylan Ennis said. “Chris changes the game, especially on the defensive end. But we didn’t have him.”

For how special this season was and all the Ducks achieved with and without Boucher, their season ended in a game in which they needed him most. North Carolina’s big men attacked the glass all night and wore out Bell to the point where he simply failed to box out on two straight free throw attempts with the game on the line.

“I lost us the game,” Bell said in the locker room postgame.

It wasn’t all his fault, though. Oregon turned the ball over 12 times in the first half and shot a measly 32 percent from the field in the second. Dillon Brooks and Tyler Dorsey never got into a rhythm offensively. The Ducks had only seven assists to 15 turnovers in the game.

Having Boucher would have given Bell some much-needed aid on the glass and the Ducks some much-needed reinforcement.

If Boucher had played, Oregon would have won this game. His ability to stretch the floor would have pulled one of North Carolina’s big men out to the perimeter which would have given Oregon’s guards more room to drive. His help on weak-side rebounding would have been vital against the unrelenting Tar Heels, who grabbed 17 offensive boards in the game. His shot blocking ability would have put some extra doubt in the heads of UNC’s guards and forwards whenever they took the ball to the hoop.

The impact that Boucher has on a game could have been the difference if he had played on Saturday night. Instead, his Oregon career ended on the sidelines.

“It hurt more for him not to be out there than us,” Casey Benson said of his injured teammate. “It would be terrible to not be able to play in games like these.”

The Ducks found ways to win without Boucher all March. Their convincing win over Kansas without him proved that they were as good as anyone in the country.

But whatever magic they had found once he went down, ran out on Saturday night.

Until the Ducks do eventually climb the summit and break their 78-year drought, people will remember this 2016-17 team for what could have been. Specifically, what could have been if Chris Boucher had been healthy and present for this historic run.

“We made history,” Dillon Brooks said about this season. “This is the best team the Oregon Ducks ever had. We went the furthest and this team is going to go down in history and be remembered for a long time.”

Brooks is right. This is the best team that Oregon has ever fielded and it could remain that way for a long time. But the Boucher injury will always remain a gut-wrenching what-if.

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

The post Morris: Chris Boucher’s injury finally caught up with Oregon appeared first on Emerald Media.

GLENDALE, Ariz. — As the seconds ticked down in the first half of Oregon’s Elite Eight tilt with Kansas, Tyler Dorsey grabbed the reins of the Ducks offense.

He waved off a screen from Jordan Bell and yelled at his teammates to clear out — normally moments reserved for Dillon Brooks. After all, the junior has been the Ducks’ go-to guy when they need a bucket this season.

But not this time. Instead, Brooks heeded his teammate’s words and took a step further outside the 3-point arc.

Seconds later, Dorsey rose over Frank Mason and banked in a 3-pointer to give Oregon a nine-point lead heading into the break. The Jayhawks never recovered and the Ducks won 74-60 to advance to their first Final Four since 1939.

Dorsey finished the game with 27 points and Brooks with 17. But that play to end the first half was a microcosm of the paths the two players have taken in the NCAA Tournament.

The usually-quiet Dorsey has turned into Oregon’s best player over the last month, while Brooks has taken a back seat to allow his teammate to shine.

You’d think the Pac-12 player of the year, a player who averages 12 shots a game, wouldn’t feel comfortable in his new role. 

Oregon Ducks forward Dillon Brooks (24) hands a shirt back to a fan after signing it on his way back to locker room. Oregon Basketball participates in media availability and an open practice before the national semi final at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. on Friday, March 31, 2017. (Aaron Nelson/Emerald)

But as long as the team is winning, Brooks is perfectly content. He actually kind of likes his new role.

“It doesn’t matter to me,” Brooks said. “It takes a little pressure off me. It feels great having another guy going like this.”

By allowing Dorsey to operate, Brooks said that he’s not forcing his game anymore. He is still shooting the ball at a high rate — over 15 times a game in the NCAA Tournament — but he said that he’s letting the game flow to him.

“At anytime I could get it going,” Brooks said. “So it doesn’t matter. I can take a backseat and let the game flow to me. But Tyler is playing out his mind and that’s what we need and that’s why our run is so great right now.”

Brooks also said rebounding and defense have become bigger focuses in the shift. Both his teammates and coaches have noticed this.

“I think he’s really matured basketball-wise now because there are many other ways to win a basketball game other than scoring the ball,” assistant coach Mike Mennenga said. “You see him — he’s defending. He’s allowing us to switch a lot more because he’s moving his feet.

“His hand activity is incredible; our deflections numbers are way up because of him. He just communicates, all the time. He’s always talking on the floor and that feeds our fire.”

Over the last three seasons, Brooks has shown he has matured. This postseason has been proof enough. Granted, Brooks has always played and still plays with fire and intensity. If he didn’t, you could argue that the Ducks may not be in the position they’re in now.

Part of Brooks’ maturing process, as Mennenga pointed out, has been recognizing that he can do more for Oregon other than just score the ball. The fact he’s willing to take a step back from the limelight just shows how far he’s come. That’s what’s really stood out to Dylan Ennis, who has known Brooks for years.

“For him to say that [he’s OK with taking a taking a step back], that’s so big,” Ennis said. “It shows that he’s putting the team before himself. Dillon has carried us all year, that’s no question. For him to want to win rather than want the limelight, that speaks volumes about him.”

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

Find all of the Emerald’s Final Four coverage here.

The post Dillon Brooks has stepped back to let Tyler Dorsey take over on offense appeared first on Emerald Media.

GLENDALE, Ariz. —  Ask Tyler Dorsey’s teammates what the last month has been like for the sharpshooter from Pasadena, California. They brag. They smile. They see the swagger. Most of all, they know the Oregon sophomore is deserving of every glowing compliment during this NCAA Tournament.

“Tyler is playing out of his mind,” Dillon Brooks said. “That’s what we need and that’s why our run is so great right now; because he’s playing well.”

Starting with Oregon’s March 9 win over Arizona State in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament, Dorsey has averaged 23.5 points agame on 64 percent shooting. In the 31 games prior to the postseason, Dorsey averaged only 12.5 points per game.

Dorsey himself said he felt his game “click” during the Pac-12 Tournament.

“I got a roll going and haven’t stopped since then,” Dorsey said.

For all his postseason heroics — this year and last — Dorsey has earned the moniker, Mr. March.

In Oregon’s first five games during March last season, Dorsey averaged nearly 20 points a game. He scored 17, 19 and 23 points respectively in three Pac-12 Tournament games and led the Ducks to a championship game rout of Utah.

Unlike this year, however, Dorsey eventually cooled off. In the NCAA Tournament, he scored only 41 total points in four tournament games and Oregon was bounced by Oklahoma in the Elite Eight.

But there has been no regression this year.

Almost every Duck has a theory as to why Dorsey has been so good.

“March came up,” Dylan Ennis said. “When that month comes around, Tyler is a different breed of animal.”

“He’s shooting the ball more,” Jordan Bell said. “Tyler’s had great games this year. He’s had 20 (points) plenty of times. I think he’s just consistently shooting the ball better.”

“He just got into a great rhythm,” Casey Benson said. “He’s just letting the game come to him.”

But despite all these theories, Dorsey doesn’t think anything has changed.

“My mindset and the way the I approach a game have been the same throughout the season,” Dorsey said. “It’s not a surprise to me. … I played [well] throughout the season. But I think I’m playing my best basketball [right now].”

Oregon Ducks Tyler Dorsey (5) and Dillon Brooks (24) sign posters and gear for fans after practice. Oregon Basketball participates in media availability and an open practice before the national semifinal at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. on Friday, March 31, 2017
. (Aaron Nelson/Emerald)

Oregon assistant coach Mike Mennenga has a different theory. While Dorsey thinks that this streak started in the Pac-12 Tournament — which the numbers show it has — Mennenga figures a large part of his recent success comes from a sense of urgency the team felt when Chris Boucher went down with a season-ending injury.

“His confidence has always been sky high,” Mennenga said of Dorsey. “We [the coaches] are doing a lot more different things offensively with Tyler with the ball in his hands. … He knew he had to step up and make up the difference.”

Mennenga’s theory would also explain why Dorsey’s rebounds are up and why his intensity on the defensive end has increased. That fact that he’s improved in other aspects of his game is what’s really impressed head coach Dana Altman.

“The thing I’m really most pleased with … is his rebounding production,” Altman said. “He started the conference tournament off with nine rebounds against Arizona State. Defensively he’s been very active. So, it’s been his entire game that has really picked up.”

Ennis noted Dorsey’s uptick in production, too. He said it’s been huge for Oregon’s run so far.

“Sure, he’s scoring 20 points,” Ennis said. “But he’s still grabbing five rebounds, getting three assists. He’s doing things we need him to do to win. The point-scoring is big for us; that’s what he does best, but he’s doing so many other things for the team.

“He knows that this is a big time for us and he’s still playing team basketball.”

Whatever the reason is for this impressive streak, Dorsey has played his best basketball — arguably the best of his career — of late. And while Oregon’s run this postseason has been undoubtedly special, the Ducks will need Dorsey to continue to play at the same high level against North Carolina on Saturday (5:45 p.m. PT CBS).

The Tar Heels are one of the top teams in the country, but so was Kansas. To refresh your memory, Dorsey torched the Jayhawks for 27 points. North Carolina wants to make sure they aren’t his next victim.

“You have to try and let him not touch the ball,” North Carolina forward Justin Jackson said. “The way he’s shooting the ball, it’s going to be hard to guard him whenever he has the ball. So, for us, we’ve got to make it as hard as possible for him to get it. You’ve got to try pretty much anything to try and get him under wraps.”

The Tar Heels will throw everything they have at Dorsey. But that’s exactly what Dorsey wants. He likes the challenge. He’s said that the bigger the stage, the better he plays.

He is, after all, Mr. March.

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

Find all of the Emerald’s Final Four coverage here.

The post Mr. March explained: Tyler Dorsey’s teammates and coaches try to figure out what got this streak started appeared first on Emerald Media.

GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Ducks got a surprise visit from an NBA legend on Wednesday night.

Former Laker Kobe Bryant stopped by the Courtyard Marriott, Oregon’s Final Four hotel, to offer words of advice to both Oregon and Gonzaga.

According to Dillon Brooks, players couldn’t believe what was happening,

“Guys were in shock,” Brooks said on Thursday. “I was in shock. I couldn’t even ask him a question at the time because I had never seen one of the greatest players like that.”

Brooks explained that before meeting Bryant, the Ducks had just returned from dinner. It was around 10 p.m. when the coaches told the players that they had a film session.

“Guys were mad because we thought we had to watch film at 10 o’clock,” Brooks said.

But soon after walking into the film room, they realized that there was no projector. Gonzaga’s entire team was present as well. The Ducks grew more suspicious that something was going on when a Nike representative walked in.

According to Brooks, the Nike representative talked with both teams for a bit and then dropped the bomb: The Mamba was coming. Bryant walked into the room shortly after.

“He came out and the whole presence in the room changed,” Brooks said. “Jordan [Bell] was jumping out of his seat.”

. @OregonMBB had a visitor last night speak and present to the team his new FW. Thank you @kobebryant @nikebasketball pic.twitter.com/VG2FiVmY05

— Oregon Equipment (@Ducks_Equipment) March 30, 2017

The moment was extra special for Bell, a Long Beach, California, native, because he grew up mere miles away from Los Angeles. He watched Bryant play growing up.

“I actually got to talk to him one-on-one and take pictures with him,” Bell said. “But it’s just crazy. Like, I don’t know. … It’s meeting Kobe, you know? I don’t know how to put it to words.”

Bell, who has received his fair share of attention over the last several weeks, said meeting Kobe was “probably the best thing” that he’s done so far.

“I met LeBron James over the summer — that’s my favorite player,” Bell said. “But meeting Kobe was like 10 times better because it’s Kobe.”

Bryant addressed both teams and offered advice. He discussed how he watched film and mentally approached games.

“Guys were so locked in and listening to what he was saying,” Brooks said. “He’s an amazing person. He’s one of the greatest to every play.”

Once Bryant concluded his speech, he unveiled a trove of Nike gear for each team.

For both programs, the experience was unique and unforgettable.

“It was probably the best time I ever had in my life,” Gonzaga guard Silas Melson said. “I started sweating when he walked in the room. I don’t think I’ve ever been so star-struck.”

Added Payton Pritchard: “It was really cool. For him to take time out to talk to us and ask him questions was unbelievable.”

ESPN video from the evening:

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

Find all of the Emerald’s Final Four coverage here.

The post Ducks and Zags get special — and unexpected — visit from Kobe Bryant appeared first on Emerald Media.

GLENDALE, Ariz. — In the closing minute of Oregon’s Elite Eight win over Kansas, Jordan Bell had a feeling of accomplishment. He walked over to Dillon Brooks. After the two embraced, they began to talk.

“I went and hugged Dillon,” Bell reminisced, “and said, ‘We started this. Me and you. All this is because of me and you. Since freshman year we talked about it and we finally accomplished it. Let’s keep it going.’”

For both Brooks and Bell, making the Final Four has been a life-long dream. When the pair committed to Oregon — along with Tempe, Arizona-native Casey Benson in 2014 — they knew that they had a talented group. But what they didn’t know was that three years later, the trio of Benson, Bell and Brooks would lead Oregon to its first Final Four since 1939.

The three came to Oregon as part of a class ranked outside the top 25 by 247sports.com and outside of the top 40 by ESPN.

That season, the Ducks were picked to finish eighth in the Pac-12 but exceeded expectations, finishing second. Brooks and Bell were both named to the conference All-Freshman team while Bell also made the All-Defensive team. Benson came off the bench his freshman year but played his role well.

It was a sign of what was to come.

In the following season, all three were key pieces to one of the best seasons in program history — highlighted by a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Things were looking up for a Ducks program that just two years before had been rocked by an alleged sexual assault scandal that left many questioning the future.

Suddenly, Oregon basketball was on the map. A loss to Oklahoma in the Elite Eight in 2016 proved to be more of a springboard than a setback. The Ducks were devastated after Buddy Hield single-handedly ended their dream run, but the loss also lit a fire in them that would grow larger and larger as the months passed.

Winning championships in college basketball is tough. Getting to the top takes time, unless you’re a program like Kentucky or Kansas that can rely on top recruiting classes to lead the charge.

“You know, it’s one year at a time,” Oregon head coach Dana Altman said. “Our basketball program, our staff, owes those guys so much because they’ve stayed with us three years now. … I watched them develop as players, watched them grow up a little bit and really think about the team and worry about their teammates.

“It’s a special group. I’ve been fortunate.”

Oregon Ducks guard Casey Benson (2) answers a question from a reporter in the locker room at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. on Thursday March 30, 2017. (Aaron Nelson/Emerald)

During Oregon’s open locker room availability on Thursday, Brooks thought back on how far his recruiting class has come.

“It feels great to recognize what it is now,” Brooks said.

But like his teammates, Brooks knows getting to the Final Four wasn’t the lone goal.

“The only way that you can make it even sweeter is winning a national championship on top of that,” Brooks said. “Then your story will be told forever.

“And,” he added, “you might get an [ESPN] 30-for-30.”

Benson echoed Brooks’ thoughts.

“It’s pretty special,” Benson said of Oregon’s run. “We’re not satisfied, obviously, but you definitely soak it up and enjoy every minute of it.”

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

Find all of the Emerald’s Final Four coverage here.

The post For Bell, Brooks and Benson, Final Four has been a dream since freshman year appeared first on Emerald Media.