Ducks won’t forego inside track

Oregon’s Bryce Taylor drove the lane and challenged his opponent with a right-handed floater.

Swatted.

In the same game Friday, Ducks teammate Tajuan Porter knifed into the lane and tried to loft a shot over a Miami (Ohio) player.

Rejected.

Same result for Oregon guard Aaron Brooks late in the second half when Miami’s Michael Bramos blocked Brooks’ layup attempt.

The Ducks (27-7) aren’t about to abandon their penchant for attacking the lane, however, when they suit up against Winthrop (29-4) today in the second round of the NCAA tournament subregional at the Arena.

“We try to share the ball,” Taylor said, “and that’s one of the ways we do it, just using our quickness to get by our defender. Then when we drive, we try to kick it to whoever is open and keep the ball moving until somebody gets a good shot.”

Few teams still alive in the tournament boast the Ducks’ talent in the backcourt. Fortunately for those in attendance today, Oregon’s opponent is one of those teams.

The Eagles don’t attack the basket with Oregon’s tenacity, but that can be attributed more to coach Gregg Marshall’s system than the players on Winthrop’s roster. Guards Torrell Martin, Michael Jenkins and Chris Gaynor all possess the quickness to beat their opponents off the dribble, although Jenkins acknowledged that they may not be as aggressive finishing at the basket as the Ducks.

“With us, if we penetrate, we look to kick the ball more than get all the way to the basket,” Jenkins said. “But if we’re open, yeah, we’ll go all the way. But most of the time we penetrate to find the open man.”

Martin said Winthrop is more focused on impeding the Ducks when they try to drive. That is easier said than done, particularly because Oregon coach Ernie Kent frequently calls on the pick and roll to create separation between his players and those defending them. Kent also prefers a fast lineup on the floor, often employing a four-guard lineup.

“We feel like we’re a very quick and explosive basketball team in the full court and even in the halfcourt,” Kent said. “And one of the things that we spent a lot of time on is attacking defenses once you get them spread out with the dribble.”

Winthrop defenders can’t find themselves caught out of position or so far away from the ball-handler that they can’t rotate over to help on defense.

“They run a lot of ball screens, a lot of pick and rolls, a lot of things like that,” Martin said. “So we have to stick to our principles and get under their ball screens and focus on really not coming out (to challenge long shots).”

“The big part of the game is going to be stopping dribble penetration on our part,” Jenkins said. “Because if we don’t contain their guards, we’re going to have a tough time winning.”