Houston @ Oregon preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 1, 2018 ) Oregon 61, Houston 65

Oregon’s impressive non-conference schedule continues Friday against visiting Houston, which was picked to win the American Athletic Conference. The 11th-ranked Ducks are averaging 81.5 points and have already posted quality wins over Fresno State, Boise State and Memphis.

Guards Payton Pritchard and Anthony Mattis are averaging a combined 34.6 points to lead the Ducks, who held Texas-Arlington to 23.4-percent shooting in a 67-47 victory last Sunday. Coach Dana Altman’s roster includes a mix of veterans and freshmen such as Addison Patterson and Chandler Lawson, who combined for 13 points in the win over the Mavericks. “It was good getting our younger players used to the feel of the game, playing minutes where the game was close,” Oregon sophomore guard Will Richardson told reporters. “Each game they’re getting better and better. We're going to need them; it's a long season. People go down, and we need them to stay ready.” Pritchard scored 24 points in the victory and is the only player ranked in the Pac-12’s top five in scoring (20.3 points per game) and assists (5.8).

TV: 9 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network

ABOUT HOUSTON (2-1): Sophomore guard Quentin Grimes averages 18.3 points on 57.1 percent shooting to lead the Cougars, who bounced back from a last-second loss to BYU with a come-from-behind 97-89 win over Rice on Tuesday. Grimes scored a career-high 32 points and added nine rebounds with five assists in the victory while sophomore guard Nate Hinton added 15 points and 11 rebounds for the second double-double of his career. Coach Kelvin Sampson has also been encouraged by the play of freshmen guards Caleb Mills and Marcus Sasser, who scored a combined 27 points against the Owls.

ABOUT OREGON (4-0): Altman has been easing his freshmen into action while leaning on seniors such as Pritchard, Mathis and UNLV transfer Shakur Juiston, who is averaging 10.8 points and recorded a double-double in the team’s 82-74 win over Memphis on Nov. 12. Junior-college transfer Chris Duarte has also made an immediate impact, averaging 9.3 points and 5.3 rebounds while starting all four games. The Ducks boast a proven long-range threat in Mathis, who scored a career-high 30 points in a win over Boise State and leads the Pac-12 in three-pointers per game (3.8) and 3-point field goal percentage (.682).

TIP-INS

1. Houston recorded a 65-61 home win over the Ducks on Dec. 1, 2018.

2. Oregon is 165-20 when holding opponents under 70 points under Altman, including 130-12 over the last six seasons.

3. Sampson went 7-8 against Oregon as coach of Washington State from 1987-94.

PREDICTION: Oregon 86, Houston 74