Field Level Media
Nov 22, 2019
Anthony Mathis scored 18 points and made five 3-pointers, and teammate Payton Pritchard added 16 points to lead No. 11 Oregon to a 78-66 win over Houston Friday night in Eugene, Ore.
Sophomore Francis Okoro added 12 points and the Ducks (5-0) made 54.2 percent of their shots, including 10 of 21 from 3-point range.
The game was a matchup of two Sweet 16 teams from last season, and Oregon avenged a 65-61 loss at Houston last season in nonconference play.
Freshman Caleb Mills finished with 21 points for Houston (2-2), knocking down the Cougars' only two 3-pointers on 20 total attempts. Fabian White Jr. added 12 points.
Houston had a big edge in rebounding (38-26) and second-chance points (21-4) thanks to its size advantage, but it didn't translate into a win.
The Cougars tested the Ducks early, going ahead by as many as eight, 22-14, in the first half before Oregon went on a 15-2 run to take the lead for good.
Chris Duarte hit a pair of 3-pointers and a jumper during that run, and Oregon closed the half up 32-27 on a basket and free throw from Okoro.
The Ducks went ahead by 10, 45-35, on a 3 from Mathis with 15:47 left in the second half. Later, with the Cougars down by six, Mathis hit a 3 and was fouled, completing a four-point play with 11:15 to go for a 51-41 Ducks lead.
Oregon went ahead 64-47 after Okoro blocked a shot at one end, then ran the court for a dunk off a lob from Duarte.
The Ducks led by as many as 21 in the second half. Oregon is 166-20 under head coach Dana Altman when holding opponents under 70 points, including a 131-12 mark the last six seasons.
--Field Level Media