LAS VEGAS — Two down, one to go for the Oregon men’s basketball team.
The Ducks (22-11) take on Colorado (24-9) Saturday night in the Pac-12 Tournament championship game. A win will put them in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2021. A loss will most likely relegate them to the National Invitation Tournament for the third straight season.
Fourth-seeded Oregon got here by beating No. 5 UCLA on Thursday and then pulling off the upset on Friday when it knocked off No. 1 Arizona.
It won’t get any easier Saturday as the Ducks, who are playing in the championship game for the seventh time overall and the first since 2019 when it won the last of its five titles. They’ll be facing a Buffaloes’ team that is 2-0 against Oregon this season.
Colorado won 86-70 on Jan. 18 in Boulder and then 79-75 on March 7 at Matthew Knight Arena.
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The Buffaloes reached the championship game by beating No. 6 Utah, 90-57, on Thursday and holding on to defeat No. 2 Washington State, 58-52, in the semifinals on Friday.
How to watch Saturday’s championship game between Oregon men’s basketball and Colorado
The Ducks and Buffaloes will tip off at 6 p.m. inside T-Mobile Arena. The game is available on FOX with Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Casey Jacobsen (analyst) and Allison Williams (sideline). It will also be live on the radio on KUJZ-FM (95.3).
Starters for Oregon and Colorado as tipoff nears
With tipoff roughly 20 minutes away, both team’s starters were revealed. For Oregon, Jackson Shelstad (13 PPG), Jermaine Couisnard (15.5 PPG), Kwame Evans Jr. (7.6 PPG), Jadrian Tracey (7.7 PPG), and N’Faly Dante (15.7 PPG) are slated to start. For Colorado: Luke O’Brien (6.4 PPG), J’Vonne Hadley (12 PPG), KJ Simpson (19.5 PPG), Tristan da Silva (16 PPG), and Eddie Lampkin (10.3 PPG).
Ducks take an early lead
At the first media timeout, the Ducks lead the Buffaloes 7-5 with 15:34 left to go in the first half. Couisnard scored Oregon’s first four points and Shelstad just added a 3-pointer. Colorado already has three turnovers through just over four minutes.
Buffaloes strike back
A 7-0 run by Colorado has given it a 14-11 lead with 11:32 left to go in the first half. The Ducks are shooting just 4 for 12 from the field and getting crushed on the glass, 9-4. Colorado’s Simpson has five early points.
Pace picks up as teams find rhythm
With four minutes left to play in the first half, Oregon trails Colorado 26-19.
Every Buffalo starter has scored, led by Simpson’s seven, while Oregon has been paced by Dante’s six points. The Ducks are shooting less than 30% from the field, but have forced six Buffalo turnovers to stay in the game.
HALF: Oregon 33, Colorado 30
The Ducks ended the first half on a 14-4 run, taking advantage of turnovers and catching fire offensively to take a lead at the halftime break. Both Dante and Shelstad have nine points to lead both teams, and Couisnard has eight points.
Colorado is led by da Silva and Simpson’s seven a piece.
Oregon maintains lead in early goings of second half
Led by more scoring from Dante, Shelstad, and Couisnard, the Ducks lead the Buffs 44-39 with 15:56 to go in the game. All three Ducks are in double figures.
Ducks and Buffs go back and forth
Like two prize fighters, the Ducks and Buffaloes are going blow-for-blow. Oregon leads Colorado 56-55 with 7:41 to play in the game, led by Dante’s 19 points and five boards.
Colorado leads with under four to play
The Buffaloes take a 62-61 lead with 3:59 to play behind a O’Brien 3-pointer. Oregon has shot just 2 for 17 from 3-point land.
Ducks back in front
Behind a quick 5-0 run, Oregon has retaken the lead with 2:41 left to play after a Tracey reverse layup. The Ducks lead 66-62. Dante has 21 points on a perfect 10 for 10 shooting with six rebounds.
Ducks lead by seven points with under a minute to play
Dante has continued his hot streak after altering a Colorado shot attempt and forcing a miss, before tipping in a miss to give Oregon a seven-point lead late, 71-64. He has 25 points.
FINAL: Oregon 75, Colorado 68
The Ducks clinch a Pac-12 Tournament championship, and their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2021, with a 75-68 win over Colorado in the Pac-12 Championship. N’Faly Dante had the game of his life, scoring a game-high 25 points to go along with nine rebounds and the game-sealing block on a 3-point attempt with under a minute to play.
Jackson Shelstad scored 17 points and Jermaine Couisnard had 14 points and eight assists, as well, for the Ducks. Colorado was led by KJ Simpson’s 23 points and seven boards.
The Ducks now will await when and where they’ll play in the Big Dance tomorrow at 3:30 p.m.
Follow Chris Hansen on Twitter@chansen_RG or email atchansen@registerguard.com.
First appeared on www.registerguard.com