When the season started, a host of Oregon injuries had the college basketball universe speculating about how long it would take the Ducks to reach their potential in the Pac-12 Conference.
With the news that Dylan Ennis will miss the entire year with a broken foot, Dana Altman will now concentrate on the roster at hand, one that includes a healthy Jordan Bell and a lethal Tyler Dorsey.
Since missing back to back games against Navy and Boise State, Dorsey has averaged 15.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game, giving the Ducks the kind of perimeter power that they were counting on him to provide. In Oregon’s vital win over Cal on Wednesday, 68-65, Dorsey shined once again, notching 17 points and five rebounds.
Now that we can see their entire roster, and barring any further Oregon injuries, it’s time to breakdown whether or not this team can challenge for the Pac-12 title. We should know quite a bit more in the next three games, as they host Stanford before hitting the mountain swing of the Pac-12 schedule, visiting Utah and then Colorado. If the Ducks can make it through that stretch at 4-1, then I think we’ll all feel good about their chances overall. But a 3-2 mark, would put even more pressure on their homestand against a resurgent USC squad and a UCLA team that can beat anyone in the country on any given night.
Either way, we won’t have to wait long to know just who this Oregon team is, something that we’ve been eager to say all season.
