Oregon Ducks
2015-2016 Overall Rank: #20
Conference Rank: #3 Pac-12
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Oregon was a very solid team last year. Almost all of their losses were respectable losses and they finished tied for second in the Pac-12 with a 13-5 record. The Ducks could never compete with Arizona, who they lost to three times by a total of 80 points, but Oregon won an NCAA Tournament game and played well against Wisconsin in the third round. There are losses to deal with, but Coach Dana Altman has brought in some experience and talented youngsters to help fill the void.
2014-15 Record: 26-10, 13-5
2014-15 Postseason: NCAA
Coach: Dana Altman
Coach Record: 123-57 at Oregon, 533-300 overall
Who’s Out:
Replacing Pac-12 leading scorer Joseph Young will not be easy. The Ducks relied on Young heavily to create shots and knock down three-pointers. Not only did he average 20.7 points per game, but Young also averaged 3.8 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.1 steals. Making matters worse, Jalil Abdul-Bassit and Ahmaad Rorie are gone too. Abdul-Bassit had a strong senior season, averaging 8.2 points per game and connecting on 43.4 percent of his three-point attempts. Rorie opted to transfer after starting 19 games at the point guard spot. Rorie is off to Montana, but he does leave a lot of inexperience in the Ducks backcourt. The only other departure is little used forward Michael Chandler.
Who’s In:
The addition of Dylan Ennis will give Oregon some much needed experience on the perimeter. Ennis, a graduate transfer, averaged 9.9 points and 3.5 assists at Villanova last season and will likely step right into a starting role. He is a capable shooter and a good scorer too. Incoming freshman Kendall Small will battle for major playing time at the point guard spot too. But the best of the incoming freshmen is shooting guard Tyler Dorsey. He is one of the top prospects coming out of California and is a huge scorer. There will be a lot of pressure on him to help replace Young’s production. The frontcourt adds a bit of experience too with junior college transfer Chris Boucher. The 6-10 forward was the junior college Player of the Year last year after averaging 22.5 points and 11.8 rebounds at Northwest College in Wyoming. Freshman Trevor Manuel is another big guy who is comfortable stepping out and knocking down shots.
Who to Watch:
And the frontcourt already has some scorers in Elgin Cook and Dillon Brooks. Cook is the team’s top returning scorer at 13.0 points per game. He is only 6-6, but he plays much bigger than that. Brooks was a double-digit scorer as well. The 6-6 small forward is a decent outside shooter, but he will do most of his scoring inside the arc. The frontcourt also boasts Dwayne Benjamin and Jordan Bell. Benjamin is an explosive athlete and gives Coach Altman even more potential scoring options at the forward spots. However, this team does lack a true post scorer. Bell had a great freshman campaign, averaging 5.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.7 blocks, but he is not much of an interior scoring threat. There is still time for Bell to develop more of an offensive game, but even if he does not, Oregon’s tough defense will start with Bell under the basket. Roman Sorkin missed most of last season, but he is a talented forward who can play some quality minutes.
Final Projection:
This could be a very, very good Oregon team if the backcourt can come together. Ennis has experience, but not at Oregon and this team will rely heavily on Ennis and Dorsey, two players who have yet to play for the Ducks. Sophomore Casey Benson is the most experienced guard when it comes to playing at Oregon. He averaged 3.5 points and 2.0 assists as a freshman and can be capable of doing more if needed. But eventually, the freshmen will take over and the sooner that happens, the better for Oregon.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
Projected Starting Five:
Dylan Ennis, Senior, Guard, 9.9 points per game at Villanova
Tyler Dorsey, Freshman, Guard, DNP last season
Dillon Brooks, Sophomore, Forward, 11.5 points per game
Elgin Cook, Senior, Forward, 13.0 points per game
Jordan Bell, Sophomore, Forward, 5.1 points per game
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 75.4 (23rd in nation, 2nd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 70.8 (284, 10)
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.3 (50, 3)
Field-Goal Defense: 42.2 (130, 7)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.3 (70, 2)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 36.2 (83, 4)
Free-Throw Percentage: 76.1 (12, 1)
Rebound Margin: 1.3 (138, 7)
Assists Per Game: 14.1 (69, 2)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.7 (88, 6)
Madness 2015 Men’s Basketball Recruit Rankings:
#27 Tyler Dorsey
#92 Trevor Manuel
#100 Kendall Small
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