MADISON, WIS. ? Freddie Jones did it again.
Oregon’s leading scorer was limited to four points Friday night, but his basket with 2.8 seconds left gave the Ducks a 72-70 victory over Texas and put his team in the Elite Eight for the first time since 1960.
Jones, who averages 18.6 points a game, played just five minutes in the first half because of foul trouble and did not score. He was 1-of-5 from the field before hitting the game winning shot, but the Ducks didn’t hesitate to put the ball in the senior guard’s hands because he has a history of late-game heroics.
Jones made a game-winning shot with one second left in a 67-65 victory on Feb. 28 at Southern California when Oregon clinched a share of the Pac-10 title. Two days later at UCLA, Jones scored the winning basket with 13 seconds remaining in a 65-62 victory over the Bruins that gave the Ducks their first outright league title in 57 years.
“My overall game was terrible,” he said. “I played terrible today. Coming down the stretch, I knew that we were going to need a big play and I am just happy that I could be in a position to try and make a play and kind of redeem myself.”
The Big 12 had dominated the Pac-10 a day earlier as Oklahoma whipped Arizona, and Missouri rallied past UCLA. But the Pac-10 champs were too much for Texas, a Big 12 team that was 3-1 against Pac-10 opponents during the regular season.
Sixth-seeded UT (22-12) missed eight of its first nine shots and fell behind 8-2. Second-seeded Oregon (26-8) grabbed 10 of the game’s first 11 rebounds and led 16-9 before two baskets by freshman reserve Jason Klotz pulled Texas within 16-13.
Texas appeared to cut the deficit to one point, but a dunk by Sydmill Harris was negated by a double-dribble violation.
Oregon pounced with a 10-0 run, including a three-pointer and a layup by Luke Jackson. The sophomore guard outscored UT’s starters 17-16 in the period and finished with 25 points and eight assists.
Robert Johnson’s layup with 9:03 left in the half capped the run and gave the Ducks a 25-13 advantage.
Texas junior Deginald Erskin scored back-to-back baskets late in the half to cut the lead to 33-28. Oregon, however, closed the half with an 8-0 run including three-pointers by Luke Ridnour and Jackson for a 41-28 lead at the break.
Ridnour, the Ducks’ other sophomore guard, has made 13 of 24 three-pointers in the NCAA Tournament. He finished with 20 points.
Oregon extended its lead to 13 in the second half before UT rallied. Sophomore reserve Brian Boddicker sank three three-pointers the Longhorns’ only treys of the game in a 13-0 run that tied the game at 51 with 12:09 to play.
Texas never got over the hump, though. In the final 6:25, UT cut Oregon’s lead to two points four times before forging a tie at 68 on T.J. Ford’s free throws with 1:20 remaining. James Thomas tied it again at 70 with 23.3 seconds left, but the sophomore center failed to convert a three-point play that would have given Texas its first lead.
Jones took the ball on Oregon’s final possession, drove the lane and scored with 2.8 seconds left.
“I wanted to penetrate and get a good shot,” he said. “I got a lot closer to the basket than I thought I would.”
After a Texas timeout, the Longhorns moved quickly down the floor, but Ford’s shot in the paint bounced off the rim at the buzzer.
Ford, the national freshman of the year, missed all three of his field-goal attempts in the final four minutes and committed one of his four turnovers in the final minute.
Thomas led UT with 15 points and 11 rebounds, but he was the only Longhorn starter to score in double figures. Boddicker had 13 off the bench.
UT outrebounded Oregon 41-33, but the Ducks shot 54.4 percent (31 of 57), while Texas shot 40.3 percent (29 of 72).
MADISON, WIS. ? Freddie Jones did it again.
Oregon’s leading scorer was limited to four points Friday night, but his basket with 2.8 seconds left gave the Ducks a 72-70 victory over Texas and put his team in the Elite Eight for the first time since 1960.
Jones, who averages 18.6 points a game, played just five minutes in the first half because of foul trouble and did not score. He was 1-of-5 from the field before hitting the game winning shot, but the Ducks didn’t hesitate to put the ball in the senior guard’s hands because he has a history of late-game heroics.
Jones made a game-winning shot with one second left in a 67-65 victory on Feb. 28 at Southern California when Oregon clinched a share of the Pac-10 title. Two days later at UCLA, Jones scored the winning basket with 13 seconds remaining in a 65-62 victory over the Bruins that gave the Ducks their first outright league title in 57 years.
“My overall game was terrible,” he said. “I played terrible today. Coming down the stretch, I knew that we were going to need a big play and I am just happy that I could be in a position to try and make a play and kind of redeem myself.”
The Big 12 had dominated the Pac-10 a day earlier as Oklahoma whipped Arizona, and Missouri rallied past UCLA. But the Pac-10 champs were too much for Texas, a Big 12 team that was 3-1 against Pac-10 opponents during the regular season.
Sixth-seeded UT (22-12) missed eight of its first nine shots and fell behind 8-2. Second-seeded Oregon (26-8) grabbed 10 of the game’s first 11 rebounds and led 16-9 before two baskets by freshman reserve Jason Klotz pulled Texas within 16-13.
Texas appeared to cut the deficit to one point, but a dunk by Sydmill Harris was negated by a double-dribble violation.
Oregon pounced with a 10-0 run, including a three-pointer and a layup by Luke Jackson. The sophomore guard outscored UT’s starters 17-16 in the period and finished with 25 points and eight assists.
Robert Johnson’s layup with 9:03 left in the half capped the run and gave the Ducks a 25-13 advantage.
Texas junior Deginald Erskin scored back-to-back baskets late in the half to cut the lead to 33-28. Oregon, however, closed the half with an 8-0 run including three-pointers by Luke Ridnour and Jackson for a 41-28 lead at the break.
Ridnour, the Ducks’ other sophomore guard, has made 13 of 24 three-pointers in the NCAA Tournament. He finished with 20 points.
Oregon extended its lead to 13 in the second half before UT rallied. Sophomore reserve Brian Boddicker sank three three-pointers the Longhorns’ only treys of the game in a 13-0 run that tied the game at 51 with 12:09 to play.
Texas never got over the hump, though. In the final 6:25, UT cut Oregon’s lead to two points four times before forging a tie at 68 on T.J. Ford’s free throws with 1:20 remaining. James Thomas tied it again at 70 with 23.3 seconds left, but the sophomore center failed to convert a three-point play that would have given Texas its first lead.
Jones took the ball on Oregon’s final possession, drove the lane and scored with 2.8 seconds left.
“I wanted to penetrate and get a good shot,” he said. “I got a lot closer to the basket than I thought I would.”
After a Texas timeout, the Longhorns moved quickly down the floor, but Ford’s shot in the paint bounced off the rim at the buzzer.
Ford, the national freshman of the year, missed all three of his field-goal attempts in the final four minutes and committed one of his four turnovers in the final minute.
Thomas led UT with 15 points and 11 rebounds, but he was the only Longhorn starter to score in double figures. Boddicker had 13 off the bench.
UT outrebounded Oregon 41-33, but the Ducks shot 54.4 percent (31 of 57), while Texas shot 40.3 percent (29 of 72).
MADISON, WIS. ? Freddie Jones did it again.
Oregon’s leading scorer was limited to four points Friday night, but his basket with 2.8 seconds left gave the Ducks a 72-70 victory over Texas and put his team in the Elite Eight for the first time since 1960.
Jones, who averages 18.6 points a game, played just five minutes in the first half because of foul trouble and did not score. He was 1-of-5 from the field before hitting the game winning shot, but the Ducks didn’t hesitate to put the ball in the senior guard’s hands because he has a history of late-game heroics.
Jones made a game-winning shot with one second left in a 67-65 victory on Feb. 28 at Southern California when Oregon clinched a share of the Pac-10 title. Two days later at UCLA, Jones scored the winning basket with 13 seconds remaining in a 65-62 victory over the Bruins that gave the Ducks their first outright league title in 57 years.
“My overall game was terrible,” he said. “I played terrible today. Coming down the stretch, I knew that we were going to need a big play and I am just happy that I could be in a position to try and make a play and kind of redeem myself.”
The Big 12 had dominated the Pac-10 a day earlier as Oklahoma whipped Arizona, and Missouri rallied past UCLA. But the Pac-10 champs were too much for Texas, a Big 12 team that was 3-1 against Pac-10 opponents during the regular season.
Sixth-seeded UT (22-12) missed eight of its first nine shots and fell behind 8-2. Second-seeded Oregon (26-8) grabbed 10 of the game’s first 11 rebounds and led 16-9 before two baskets by freshman reserve Jason Klotz pulled Texas within 16-13.
Texas appeared to cut the deficit to one point, but a dunk by Sydmill Harris was negated by a double-dribble violation.
Oregon pounced with a 10-0 run, including a three-pointer and a layup by Luke Jackson. The sophomore guard outscored UT’s starters 17-16 in the period and finished with 25 points and eight assists.
Robert Johnson’s layup with 9:03 left in the half capped the run and gave the Ducks a 25-13 advantage.
Texas junior Deginald Erskin scored back-to-back baskets late in the half to cut the lead to 33-28. Oregon, however, closed the half with an 8-0 run including three-pointers by Luke Ridnour and Jackson for a 41-28 lead at the break.
Ridnour, the Ducks’ other sophomore guard, has made 13 of 24 three-pointers in the NCAA Tournament. He finished with 20 points.
Oregon extended its lead to 13 in the second half before UT rallied. Sophomore reserve Brian Boddicker sank three three-pointers the Longhorns’ only treys of the game in a 13-0 run that tied the game at 51 with 12:09 to play.
Texas never got over the hump, though. In the final 6:25, UT cut Oregon’s lead to two points four times before forging a tie at 68 on T.J. Ford’s free throws with 1:20 remaining. James Thomas tied it again at 70 with 23.3 seconds left, but the sophomore center failed to convert a three-point play that would have given Texas its first lead.
Jones took the ball on Oregon’s final possession, drove the lane and scored with 2.8 seconds left.
“I wanted to penetrate and get a good shot,” he said. “I got a lot closer to the basket than I thought I would.”
After a Texas timeout, the Longhorns moved quickly down the floor, but Ford’s shot in the paint bounced off the rim at the buzzer.
Ford, the national freshman of the year, missed all three of his field-goal attempts in the final four minutes and committed one of his four turnovers in the final minute.
Thomas led UT with 15 points and 11 rebounds, but he was the only Longhorn starter to score in double figures. Boddicker had 13 off the bench.
UT outrebounded Oregon 41-33, but the Ducks shot 54.4 percent (31 of 57), while Texas shot 40.3 percent (29 of 72).
MADISON, WIS. ? Freddie Jones did it again.
Oregon’s leading scorer was limited to four points Friday night, but his basket with 2.8 seconds left gave the Ducks a 72-70 victory over Texas and put his team in the Elite Eight for the first time since 1960.
Jones, who averages 18.6 points a game, played just five minutes in the first half because of foul trouble and did not score. He was 1-of-5 from the field before hitting the game winning shot, but the Ducks didn’t hesitate to put the ball in the senior guard’s hands because he has a history of late-game heroics.
Jones made a game-winning shot with one second left in a 67-65 victory on Feb. 28 at Southern California when Oregon clinched a share of the Pac-10 title. Two days later at UCLA, Jones scored the winning basket with 13 seconds remaining in a 65-62 victory over the Bruins that gave the Ducks their first outright league title in 57 years.
“My overall game was terrible,” he said. “I played terrible today. Coming down the stretch, I knew that we were going to need a big play and I am just happy that I could be in a position to try and make a play and kind of redeem myself.”
The Big 12 had dominated the Pac-10 a day earlier as Oklahoma whipped Arizona, and Missouri rallied past UCLA. But the Pac-10 champs were too much for Texas, a Big 12 team that was 3-1 against Pac-10 opponents during the regular season.
Sixth-seeded UT (22-12) missed eight of its first nine shots and fell behind 8-2. Second-seeded Oregon (26-8) grabbed 10 of the game’s first 11 rebounds and led 16-9 before two baskets by freshman reserve Jason Klotz pulled Texas within 16-13.
Texas appeared to cut the deficit to one point, but a dunk by Sydmill Harris was negated by a double-dribble violation.
Oregon pounced with a 10-0 run, including a three-pointer and a layup by Luke Jackson. The sophomore guard outscored UT’s starters 17-16 in the period and finished with 25 points and eight assists.
Robert Johnson’s layup with 9:03 left in the half capped the run and gave the Ducks a 25-13 advantage.
Texas junior Deginald Erskin scored back-to-back baskets late in the half to cut the lead to 33-28. Oregon, however, closed the half with an 8-0 run including three-pointers by Luke Ridnour and Jackson for a 41-28 lead at the break.
Ridnour, the Ducks’ other sophomore guard, has made 13 of 24 three-pointers in the NCAA Tournament. He finished with 20 points.
Oregon extended its lead to 13 in the second half before UT rallied. Sophomore reserve Brian Boddicker sank three three-pointers the Longhorns’ only treys of the game in a 13-0 run that tied the game at 51 with 12:09 to play.
Texas never got over the hump, though. In the final 6:25, UT cut Oregon’s lead to two points four times before forging a tie at 68 on T.J. Ford’s free throws with 1:20 remaining. James Thomas tied it again at 70 with 23.3 seconds left, but the sophomore center failed to convert a three-point play that would have given Texas its first lead.
Jones took the ball on Oregon’s final possession, drove the lane and scored with 2.8 seconds left.
“I wanted to penetrate and get a good shot,” he said. “I got a lot closer to the basket than I thought I would.”
After a Texas timeout, the Longhorns moved quickly down the floor, but Ford’s shot in the paint bounced off the rim at the buzzer.
Ford, the national freshman of the year, missed all three of his field-goal attempts in the final four minutes and committed one of his four turnovers in the final minute.
Thomas led UT with 15 points and 11 rebounds, but he was the only Longhorn starter to score in double figures. Boddicker had 13 off the bench.
UT outrebounded Oregon 41-33, but the Ducks shot 54.4 percent (31 of 57), while Texas shot 40.3 percent (29 of 72).
