The No.1-seeded Oregon Ducks face off against the Utah Runnin’ Utes in the fourth round of the Pac-12 tournament at MGM Grand. Action begins at 10:00 pm ET on Saturday, Mar. 12 and can be seen on FS1.
The Ducks come into this game hoping to repeat their last performance, topping Arizona 95-89 in the 3. Elgin Cook was the game’s leading scorer with 22 points on 8-for-15 shooting. The Runnin’ Utes, meanwhile, are coming off an 82-78 win against California in the 3. Jakob Poeltl claimed his 15th double-double of the season with 29 points and 11 rebounds.
Over the last five games, Cook has taken his game to another level for the Ducks, averaging 19.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.0 steals.
Baskets could be hard to come by as Oregon ranks ninth in the nation, allowing just 99.9 points per 100 possessions, while Utah is 10th (100.1). Also, the sharp-shooting offense of the Runnin’ Utes ranks 12th in eFG% at 55.8%, while the Ducks are ninth-best in the nation at forcing opponents’ misses (48.5%).
The Ducks have emerged victorious in both games against the Runnin’ Utes this year, including a 95-89 win the last time these two teams met. Poeltl put up a double-double in the victory with 29 points and 11 rebounds.
Notes
Ranked 10th, the Utah Runnin’ Utes have one of the top defenses in the country, giving up just 100.1 points per 100 possessions. The Oregon Ducks rank 40th in offense, scoring 113.3 points in the same number of possessions.
The Oregon Ducks average 69.3 possessions per game and 1.133 points per possession, while the Utah Runnin’ Utes earn fewer possessions (68.1) but more points per possession (1.148).
Utah has the 12th-ranked average effective field goal percentage in the nation at 55.8%. Oregon is an even 3-3 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
Utah ranks 41st in assists, recording 15.8 per game. Oregon performs worse at 156th with 13.6 assists per game.
Oregon, the fourth-ranked team in blocked shots, registers an average of 5.9 per game. Utah ranks 72nd with 4.3.
Oregon ranks 114th in offensive rebounds, while Utah ranks 26th in defensive rebounds.
Though Utah is one of the best in the country in forcing turnovers with opponents averaging a TO% of 15.5% (ranked 12th), Oregon has a fantastic 15-4 record SU when it has a TO% of 15.5% or greater.
