Senior night at Matthew Knight Arena not only marked the last regular season home game for EJ Singler, Arsalan Kazemi, Tony Woods, and Carlos Emory who combined for 63 points on the Duck’s way to a 85-75 victory over the visiting Beavers.
“It was a good win for our team, really battled back in the second half… really made some plays… it was a good win for us”-Head Coach Dana Altman
The limited return of Oregon freshman guard Dominic Artis was also seen Thursday night. Artis had not played since January 23rd, missing 10 games with a hand injury.
Artis drained the first shot he attempted on the night in the form of a 3 pointer that put the crowd of 10,621 on their feet. Ending the night playing just 12 minutes he was able to get back into a rhythm as he added 6 points.
Early scoring on both ends of the floor quickly turned Thursday night’s game into an offensive showcase. Oregon State’s Roberto Nelson quickly had 12 of his 31 points before the 7-minute mark in the opening half.
Oregon fans held their breath as freshman Damyean Dotson went down with just over 5 minutes to play in the opening half from a hard foul from Oregon State’s Challe Barton.
Dotson received help from trainers before he was helped off the floor by fellow Oregon teammates. Dotson looked to have injured his hip, but was not putting pressure on either legs as he made his way to the bench. Dotson did not make an appearance back on the floor.
With Dotson out, productivity slowed down for both teams, however, shooting percentages were high as the Ducks and the Beavers headed into the locker room. A physical first half and 10 lead changes finally settled to an Oregon State 7 point halftime lead of 41-34.
EJ Singler never doubted his team, even in times of struggle early on.
“No, I knew we were going to win… wasn’t going to let that happen” – Senior EJ Singler
Physicality continued to control the game in the 2nd half as the Beavers quickly racked up 7 team fouls, which sent the Ducks to the charity stripe consistently from the 13-minute mark, shooting 21-25 from the free throw line in the 2nd half proved to be a key on the night that kept the Duck’s positive energy up.
Senior Carlos Emory set a new career high and led the Ducks in scoring with 21 points, along with Tony Woods who may have played his best game as a Duck, scored 16 points.
“We’re always better together when we are making plays for each other down low” – Senior Tony Woods
Arsalan Kazemi also went out on a positive note, adding 17 points and 12 rebounds to give him his 8th double-double of the season.
“It feels good (on the double-spuble) and the win was the most important part.. this was just another game we had to win to stay on top”- Senior Arsalan Kazemi
Oregon is now 23-6 on the season and 12-4 in conference play. Still ranked #24 in the polls the Ducks will wrap up regular season play on the road, against Colorado on March 7th and at Utah on March 9th.
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