University of Oregon
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Kansas
Oregon Makes Statement Against Kansas
12/07/02 | Men's Basketball
Jackson scores 26, Ridnour adds 25 in Ducks' 84-78 win at the Rose Garden.
Dec 7, 2002
By ANNE M. PETERSON
AP Sports Writer
PORTLAND, Ore. - For Luke Ridnour, it was like March in December. Only better.
Ridnour had 25 points, nine assists and seven rebounds Saturday as No. 7 Oregon avenged last season's NCAA Tournament loss with an 84-78 victory Saturday over No. 14 Kansas.
"This was like a March game," Ridnour marveled. "It will be good for us down the road."
Fellow guard Luke Jackson had 26 points and nine rebounds for the Ducks (5-0), who fought off a second-half Kansas rally.
"I'd like to call it a statement game," said coach Ernie Kent, who earned his 99th win at Oregon. "It felt like a postseason atmosphere."
Kirk Hinrich led the Jayhawks (3-3) with 24 points and Keith Langford added 21 in the rematch between the two teams, played before 20,762 fans at Portland's Rose Garden Arena.
Last season, the teams met in the Midwest Regional final in Madison, Wis., and Kansas emerged with a 104-86 victory and their first trip to the Final Four since 1993.
"They did put us out last year," Ridnour said. "And that sticks with you all summer."
Luke Ridnour, center, and Luke Jackson, left, receive the player of the game award after defeating Kansas 74-68. The two shared the award.
The victory snapped Oregon's three-game losing streak against Kansas. The Ducks had not defeated the Jayhawks since beating them twice in the 1947-48 season.
The Ducks, who led by just four at the half, stretched their lead to as many as 11 points when Andre Joseph's free throws made it 72-61 with 8:40 left.
But the Jayhawks came back to tie it at 74-all on Langford's layup with 3:39 left.
Speedy Oregon inched away, going on a 10-2 run that was punctuated by Ridnour's 3-pointer and a foul shot that made it 84-76 with 49.6 seconds left.
Kansas guard Michael Lee, who went to high school in Portland, made a tip-in with 23 seconds left for the final margin.
Nick Collison, who gave the Ducks so much trouble with 25 points and 15 rebounds last year in the tournament, got into early foul trouble early and played sporadically. He finished with seven points and four rebounds in 24 minutes.
The Ducks built their lead to as many as 14 points in the first half when Ridnour's 3-pointer made it 39-25 with 5:27 left. After the shot, Ridnour raised his hands to the crowd, eliciting a rousing ovation.
One fan borrowed a line from "Star Wars" to cheer on Oregon's two Lukes, lofting a sign that said "Use the Force, Lukes."
"We had a sour taste from last year's loss and from them beating us up down low," Jackson said. "For our guys to dominate from the beginning was good for us."
But Kansas whittled away, cutting Oregon's lead to just 47-43 at the half.
Hinrich was back for the Jayhawks after sitting out their decisive 97-70 victory over Central Missouri State on Wednesday night with a strained back.
He had a scare in the second half when he left the court limping, but he returned after treatment on the bench.
Kansas was already reeling from losses in the Preseason NIT to North Carolina and Florida. After Oregon, the Jayhawks play on the road against No. 19 Tulsa on Wednesday.
"It was a tough atmosphere and to hang in there was good for this team," Kansas coach Roy Williams said. "But we're not into moral victories. Never have been, never will be."
The game was played as part of the fifth annual Pape Jam. The crowd was estimated to be the largest ever to attend a college basketball game in the state of Oregon.
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No. 7 Oregon 84, No. 14 Kansas 78
Official Basketball Box Score -- GAME TOTALS -- FINAL STATISTICS
Kansas vs Oregon
12-07-02 12:30 PM at Rose Garden, Portland, Ore.
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VISITORS: Kansas 3-3
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
04 Collison, Nick...... f 3-9 0-0 1-2 2 6 8 4 7 0 4 1 1 24
23 Simien, Wayne....... f 5-8 0-0 0-0 2 5 7 5 10 0 1 0 0 23
05 Langford, Keith..... g 7-14 2-4 5-8 1 2 3 2 21 1 4 3 1 37
10 Hinrich, Kirk....... g 8-19 1-4 7-11 2 4 6 2 24 2 2 0 0 39
11 Miles, Aaron........ g 1-11 1-5 1-2 1 1 2 2 4 4 7 0 1 36
01 Hawkins, Jeff....... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1
25 Lee, Michael........ 3-5 1-1 4-5 3 5 8 3 11 2 2 0 0 20
33 Nash, Bryant........ 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
42 Graves, Jeff........ 0-1 0-0 1-2 0 6 6 1 1 0 1 0 1 13
55 Niang, Moulaye...... 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 5
TEAM................ 6 3 9
Totals.............. 27-68 5-14 19-30 17 32 49 21 78 9 22 4 4 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 14-31 45.2% 2nd Half: 13-37 35.1% Game: 39.7% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 3-6 50.0% 2nd Half: 2-8 25.0% Game: 35.7% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 12-16 75.0% 2nd Half: 7-14 50.0% Game: 63.3% 3
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HOME TEAM: Oregon 5-0
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
03 Johnson, Robert..... f 5-6 0-0 2-2 2 8 10 5 12 0 4 0 1 25
33 Jackson, Luke....... f 9-19 2-3 6-7 4 5 9 1 26 3 2 0 1 39
40 Helquist, Brian..... c 1-1 0-0 0-2 0 6 6 4 2 0 3 0 2 17
01 Davis, James........ g 1-7 1-3 0-0 0 2 2 4 3 0 1 1 2 20
13 Ridnour, Luke....... g 10-25 4-8 1-2 3 4 7 3 25 9 2 0 3 39
05 Short, Matt......... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
11 Crosswhite, Ian..... 2-4 1-1 0-0 1 2 3 5 5 0 2 0 0 15
35 Joseph, Andre....... 1-4 0-1 2-3 0 1 1 3 4 4 2 2 0 24
55 Anderson, Jay....... 3-8 1-2 0-0 1 1 2 1 7 0 1 0 0 20
TEAM................ 1 2 3
Totals.............. 32-74 9-18 11-16 12 31 43 26 84 16 17 3 9 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 17-33 51.5% 2nd Half: 15-41 36.6% Game: 43.2% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 7-9 77.8% 2nd Half: 2-9 22.2% Game: 50.0% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 6-7 85.7% 2nd Half: 5-9 55.6% Game: 68.8% 3,1
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Officials: Dave Libbey, Tommy Nunez, Michael Irving
Technical fouls: Kansas-None. Oregon-None.
Attendance: 20762
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
Kansas........................ 43 35 - 78
Oregon........................ 47 37 - 84
Largest crowd for a college basketball game in State of Oregon history.
