Oregon men’s basketball bracketology: What are the Ducks’ NCAA Tournament projections?

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Oregon’s Nate Bittle celebrates a 3-point shot against Maryland during the first half Jan. 5 at Matthew Knight Arena.

The calendar has turned to the new year, the outcomes of every game have gained significance and at noon Saturday the No. 14 Oregon men’s basketball team is hosting 2024 NCAA runner-up No. 15 Purdue and Big Ten Conference player of the year candidate Braden Smith.

The first two months of the season have been an entertaining ride for Duck fans, as their team goes into the game against the Boilermakers with a 15-2 overall record, including a 6-1 record in games when they trailed at halftime.

Oregon has wins against No. 5 Alabama and No. 11 Texas A&M, and also a blowout loss to No. 20 Illinois. Its other loss was to UCLA on a 3-point shot at the buzzer over the arms of 7-foot center Nate Bittle that banked in off the backboard.

The Ducks are 4-2 and tied with Wisconsin for fifth in the Big Ten standings. Heading into its game against Washington Wednesday night in Seattle, Purdue’s record is 13-4 overall and 5-1 in conference to put them a half game behind co-leaders Michigan and Michigan State, which are both 5-0. (Wednesday’s result was not available at press time.)

Selection Sunday for the NCAA men’s basketball tournament will take place on March 16. Here’s a look at where Oregon is projecting to land with two months to go before seeds are set and the Big Dance begins.

Bracketology: Oregon Ducks NCAA Tournament forecasts

Joe Lunardi, ESPN: In his bracketology update Tuesday, Lunardi has the Ducks as a No. 3 seed and playing No. 14 Utah Valley in the Seattle Regional, with the winner facing either No. 6 Utah State or No. 11 Missouri. He has 11 teams from the Big Ten in the tourney, with Iowa playing in a First Four game.

Jerry Palm, cbssports.com: Updated on Monday, Palm has the Ducks as a No. 2 seed playing No. 15 New Mexico State in the Seattle Regional with the winner playing the winner of No. 7 Georgia vs. No. 10 New Mexico. Palm also has 11 Big Ten…

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Author : The Register-Guard

Publish date : 2025-01-15 19:31:00

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