College Basketball Power 10: Time To Give Gonzaga Some Love
By Jeremy Karll
9. Oregon (15-2)
After a rough start to the season, Oregon is getting back to where many expected them to be this season. They’ve won 13 games in a row, handed UCLA and USC their first losses last week, and took down Washington and Washington State by 22 and 19 points, respectively, this past week.
Oregon’s win over Washington State is even more impressive considering Dillon Brooks only played seven minutes.
A week after knocking down the game-winning three to upset UCLA, Brooks was ejected for kicking Josh Hawkinson in the groin.
While it makes Grayson Allen‘s tripping incident look like nothing, it did show how deep and talented Oregon is, winning by 19 despite losing their best player.
The Pac-12 won’t suspend Brooks, either, therefore the Ducks will be full strength as one of the hottest teams in the nation.
Oregon has a bad loss to Georgetown which will hurt them come Selection Sunday, but losing to Baylor has become forgivable, even if it came by 17 points. The Ducks needed to get healthy, and now that they are, they look unstoppable.
Oregon has beaten their past five unranked opponents by double-digits, they rank top 55 in points per game and points allowed per game, and have one of the best starting lineups in the nation. Just as everyone expected, the Ducks are a scary team when healthy.
Oregon will host Oregon State this week.