National Basketball Association
Oregon 93, Iona 77
When: 2:00 PM ET, Friday, March 17, 2017
Where: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, California
Officials:
# Bill Covington, # Verne Harris, # Steve Oglesby
Attendance:
N/A
By The Sports Xchange
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Oregon fans jumped out of their seats as Dillon Brooks drove to the basket for an emphatic dunk to punctuate a 93-77 victory over Iona in a first-round Midwest Regional game Friday at the Golden 1 Center.
Tyler Dorsey scored 24 points for third-seeded Oregon (30-5), which will meet 11th-seeded Rhode Island in Sunday's second round. Brooks scored 18 points, Jordan Bell posted 17 points and 10 rebounds and Payton Pritchard added 16 points.
Jordan Washington recorded his ninth double-double of the season, posting 22 points and 11 rebounds for 14th-seeded Iona (22-13). Sam Cassell Jr. came off the bench to score 16 points and Deyshonee Much added 15.
Brooks said the Ducks are determined to make another deep run in the NCAA Tournament after reaching the Elite Eight in 2016.
"Last year, we made a great run, and we had a veteran leadership, but this year I feel like we've got a confident bunch," Brooks said. "We're thinking about one goal and one goal only."
Oregon was without senior forward Chris Boucher, who sustained a season-ending ACL tear in the Pac-12 tournament. Boucher was third on the team in scoring, second in rebounding and first in blocked shots, but the Ducks still had way too much firepower for the Gaels.
Brooks and Dorsey combined for three 3-pointers in the opening minutes to help Oregon race out to a 15-6 lead. Washington made a 3-pointer and a driving layup to help Iona cut Oregon's lead to 23-17.
The Ducks pushed the lead back to nine on a layup by Casey Benson, but the Gaels continued to battle back, reducing the deficit to three after back-to-back 3-pointers by Cassell and E.J. Crawford.
Iona trailed by one following two free throws by Schadrac Casimir, but Oregon responded with a huge and decisive run. The Ducks outscored the Gaels 26-9 over the final 7:39 to carry a 55-37 advantage into the break.
"We had some really explosive periods where I thought we were really focused," Oregon coach Dana Altman said. "When we dropped down just a little bit, it slipped on us pretty quick because of their offensive abilities."
Oregon continued to build on that lead early in the second half. The Ducks took a 60-37 lead on a layup by Bell and stretched their lead to 27 on a basket by Pritchard.
Much brought the crowd to life with a barrage of 3-point goals to help Iona cut the deficit to 13 with 6:05 remaining, but the Gaels couldn't get any closer.
"I just felt like that was a time to step up," Much said. "I just did what I could at that time."
Oregon shot 55.6 percent from the field, made 9 of 23 from 3-point range and amassed a 41-27 rebounding advantage.
"Our transition really helped us get some easy ones," Altman said. "We kicked it ahead and guys got some easy baskets. We had 48 points in the paint, which allowed us to get to the rim, but I thought, transition-wise, that's what got a lot of those easy ones."
Iona shot 43.8 percent and made 10 of 26 from long distance, including five 3-pointers by Much.
"Our guys really played their hearts out to the end," Iona coach Tim Cluess said. "I'm really proud to be their coach."
NOTES: Oregon coach Dana Altman has coached three of the eight teams in the Sacramento Regional. He was the head coach at Kansas State from 1990-94 and Creighton from 1994-2010 before going to Oregon in 2010. ... Junior F Dillon Brooks moved into a tie for 10th all-time in scoring at Oregon with 1,554 career points. ... Iona G Sam Cassell Jr. is the son of one-time NBA All-Star Sam Cassell, who is now an assistant coach with the Indiana Pacers.
Top Game Performances
| Iona |
|
Oregon |
|
Jordan Washington 22 |
Scoring |
Tyler Dorsey 24 |
|
Schadrac Casimir 4 |
Assists |
Dillon Brooks 4 |
|
Jordan Washington 12 |
Rebounds |
Jordan Bell 12 |
|
Sam Cassell Jr. 3 |
Free Throws Made |
Dillon Brooks 4 |
|
Schadrac Casimir 2 |
Steals |
Dylan Ennis 3 |
|
Taylor Bessick 5 |
Blocks |
Dillon Brooks 2 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Iona
|
77 |
43.8 |
10-26 |
11-16 |
10 |
26 |
7 |
4 |
10 |
| Oregon
|
93 |
55.6 |
9-23 |
14-21 |
11 |
38 |
2 |
8 |
12 |
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