Oregon dominates Utah to win Pac-12 championship
Think of Saturday’s Pacific 12 Conference tournament championship game as the final mile of a three-day endurance road race and one of the cars had just enough fuel left in its tank to cross the finish line.
That would be Oregon, the tournament’s top seed, which danced on the floor and cut down the nets at the MGM Grand Garden after its 88-57 win over Utah that clinched a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
The second-seeded Utes appeared to be running on fumes in the first half and were out of gas by early in the second.
“It was just our night,” Oregon coach Dana Altman said. “We played really hard, really well for 40 minutes. It’s not the game we anticipated, but we got on a roll, and to our guys’ credit, they were ready to play.”
Both teams played overtime semifinal games Friday. The Utes, in particular, were not their usual selves, certainly not with 13 first-half turnovers and allowing Oregon to push the pace and dominate inside.
“We were tired,” Utes coach Larry Krystkowiak said. “It’s no excuse. We felt like we were in the 12th round of a heavyweight fight when the game started, and it was going to be who could finish it off.”
After being briefly challenged in the first 11 minutes, Oregon led by 17 at halftime and showed no signs of letting up when the second half began. The lead grew to 44-23 two minutes into the half in what was the Pac-12’s final tournament game in the Grand Garden. The league will move to the 18,500-seat T-Mobile Arena next March for the next three years.
Oregon, which won the title for the second time in four years, extended its lead to 60-30 with 12:16 remaining and led by as many as 36. By then, Ducks fans among the announced sellout crowd of 12,916 were wondering whether their team deserves to be a No. 1 seed when the NCAA selection committee announces the 68-team field today.
“That’s for the committee to decide,” Altman said. “We’re just anxious to get in. Wherever they send us, we’ll be happy to go.”
Oregon (28-6) was led by Tyler Dorsey with 23 points. Dillon Brooks scored 18 and Chris Boucher 15.
Center Jakob Poeltl led the Utes with 13 points. Utah shot 43 percent, was outrebounded 36-25, had a season-high 20 turnovers and gave up 28 points off those miscues.
Now, the Utes (26-8) will wait to see where the committee sends them.
“You can’t give away that many points and expect to win,” Krystkowiak said. “But I’m excited to see what Sunday holds for us.”
■ NOTE — Oregon’s Elgin Cook was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Joining him on the all-tournament team were Dorsey, Brooks and Boucher, Poeltl and California’s Ivan Rabb.
Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.
