The Sports Xchange
Dec 14, 2017
If Oregon was going to avoid the upset against upstart Portland State on Wednesday night, somebody was going to have to take over late for the Ducks.
Elijah Brown was that guy.
Brown scored 14 of his 22 points in the second half as Oregon hung on to defeat a hot-shooting Vikings team, 96-84.
The teams lit it up from beyond the arc, combining for 24 three-pointers. Oregon shot 11 of 27 from deep while Portland State finished 13 of 34 from beyond the arc.
Kenny Wooten added 18 points while Paul White chipped in 15.
Troy Brown Jr. and Payton Pritchard played all-around good games for the Ducks (8-3). Brown Jr. finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists while Pritchard added 18 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
Bryce Canda single-handedly kept Portland State (8-3) in the game. He went 5 for 6 from beyond the arc and scored 23 of his game-high 31 points in the second half.
Deontae North was the catalyst for the Vikings in the first half, scoring 18 of his 23 points, including a 4-of-7 showing from deep.
Portland State cut the deficit to two, 72-70, with 6:37 to play but Elijah scored seven of Oregon's next 10 points to give the Ducks an 82-73 lead.
Two dunks by Wooten and layups by Pritchard eventually finished the game for the Ducks.
The Ducks had 27 assists on 32 made baskets and outrebounded Portland State 43-35.
The game got off to a thrilling start as each team hit back-to-back three-pointers on their opening possessions. The Ducks actually began the game 5 of 5 and 4 of 4 from beyond the arc for the early 14-10 lead.
But thanks to the play of North (18 first half points), the Vikings continued to fight and took their largest lead of the game 35-32, with 6:57 to play.
Oregon responded with an 18-2 run over the next six minutes to lead 50-39 at the break.
The Ducks went 8 of 18 from beyond the arc and 18 of 33 overall in the half, finishing with 16 assists.