There was tons of controversy the night of the Selection Show when Oregon was deemed a number one seed. Many thought Michigan State was more deserving, but ironically, Sparty was knocked off by 15 seeded Middle Tennessee.
The disrespect for Oregon mainly stems from a bias against the west coast. Think about it, the Ducks play in the Pac-12, which means majority of their games start late for folks who don’t live on the west coast.
Who on the east coast is going to stay up to midnight just to watch Oregon basketball?
Exactly.
So, the bottom line is many people just haven’t seen this team play enough or at all to come up with a fair assessment of how good they are.
As a conference, the Pac-12 sent more than half their teams into the big dance. Now, the Ducks are the lone team in the conference standing and they have as good a shot as anyone of winning the National Championship.
Why you ask?
Dana Altman’s ball club has great balance across the board.
Dillon Brooks, Elgin Cook, Tyler Dorsey and Chris Boucher all average double figure points per game.
Plus, out of the teams remaining, no one plays at a faster tempo than Oregon and that should surprise no one because it just seems to be the Oregon way.
Will Oregon win it all?
I don’t think so, but I wouldn’t necessarily bet against them due to their veteran leadership.