MENS BASKETBALL
Minnesota 77, Oregon 69
ASSOCIATED PRESS
MINNEAPOLIS — Dawson Garcia scored a season-high 31 points on 13-for-19 shooting and Parker Fox had 13 points and 11 rebounds to help Minnesota beat No. 15 Oregon 77-69 on Saturday. Lu'Cye Patterson added 11 points for the Gophers (11-9, 3-6), who won their third straight Big Ten game to match their longest such streak in four seasons under coach Ben Johnson. Brandon Angel scored 18 points and T.J. Bamba and Jackson Shelstad each had 15 points for the Ducks (16-4, 5-4), who lost for the first time in five true road games this season. Garcia had three blocks to help hold Oregon leading scorer Nate Bittle scoreless. Minnesota built a 26-8 lead and trailed for only 22 seconds in the second half after a three-point play by Bamba, who had a critical bad-pass turnover with 2:59 left and Oregon down by five. Garcia drew a charging foul on Bamba with 1:18 remaining and Minnesota up by two. THE TAKEAWAY
Oregon: For such a deep, experienced team, another slow start was concerning. The Ducks outscored Washington 20-9 over the final 5:36 to complete their comeback victory on Tuesday. Minnesota: After beating then-No. 20 Michigan last week and winning at Iowa for the first time in 10 years on Tuesday, the Gophers finally have some confidence and momentum. The lowest-scoring team in the Big Ten continually found gaps in Oregon's paint defense for dunks and layups. KEY MOMENT
Minnesota had 10 passes on one possession that ended with a 3-pointer by Patterson for a 40-28 lead, with Garcia driving and screening all over the court. KEY STAT
Oregon had no second-chance points. Fox had six offensive rebounds alone, and the Ducks had just four.
January 25, 2025