Field Level Media
Jan 4, 2020
No. 4 Oregon squandered a 10-point lead in the second half, but outlasted Utah 69-64 behind the late-game efforts of freshman Chandler Lawson and transfer Shakur Juiston on Saturday in Salt Lake City.
Payton Pritchard led the Ducks (12-3, 1-1 in Pac-12) with 19 points, Chris Duarte had 14 -- including a victory-sealing dunk in the final seconds -- and Will Richardson added 14 off the bench. Juiston and Lawson scored eight of the final 10 points down the stretch for the Ducks, with Juiston adding a key offensive rebound and a blocked shot.
Utah went the final 2:35 without a point and missed its final five shots from the field. Guard Both Gach led the Utes (10-4, 1-1) with 24 points, and Timmy Allen had 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Oregon went ahead 56-46 on a Richardson sideline 3-pointer with 10:14 to play. Utah responded with a 12-0 run to grab a 58-56 lead with 7:29 remaining, helped by a layup and two free throws from Allen after a flagrant foul on the Ducks.
Pritchard took a shot to his face chasing a loose ball when he collided with a Utes player. He was given time to clear the blood in his nose from the impact before Oregon called a timeout.
Pritchard, continuing to bleed, had to go to the bench late in the second half. He sat for about a minute before re-entering with 4:28 to play.
The Ducks led by as much as seven, 12-5, early in the first half. But a Rylan Jones three tied the score at 17 with 7:21 to play in the first half.
The Utes took a 24-23 lead on a Gach three after a pump fake to shake a defender. Oregon responded with a 7-0 run, capped off by a Duarte dunk with 2:24 left for a 30-24 lead.
Duarte had 12 points in the first half, with five rebounds. Gach led the Utes with 10.
The Ducks took another seven-point lead, 34-27, before halftime, and Pritchard rolled in a short floater two seconds before the halftime buzzer for 36-31 lead at the break.
Utah made just 32.3 percent of its first-half shots but stayed close with five 3-pointers to two for the Ducks.
--Field Level Media