EUGENE, Ore. — On a day the Oregon men's basketball team announced it would be without its starting center due to a knee injury, the Ducks still managed an historic defensive performance in an 80-41 victory over Portland on Saturday in Matthew Knight Arena.
The Ducks held Portland to 21 percent shooting (12-of-56), the best defensive effort by Oregon in arena history. The Pilots scored the fewest points by a UO opponent in MKA since Washington had 40 on Feb. 8, 2018. All of that came despite the absence of center N'Faly Dante, who was determined to have suffered a torn ACL in Thursday's win over San Francisco, which will require season-ending surgery.