Ducks Drop Final Four Thriller, 77-76

Saturday, April 1

Glendale, Ariz.

5:45 PM

University of Oregon

33-6

North Carolina

32-7

OREGON

NORTH CAROLINA

Photo by: Eric Evans/GoDucks.com

04/01/17 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Oregon-North Carolina Box Score Oregon Ducks Season Stats Oregon Postgame Quotes North Carolina Postgame Quotes

Oregon rallied within one of North Carolina late in Saturday's Final Four matchup but couldn't get a couple key rebounds and saw its season end.

By: Rob Moseley

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Oregon's magical postseason run ended Saturday in the Final Four, as North Carolina used a late first-half run to grab momentum and then held off a late rally by the Ducks to win, 77-76, before 77,612 in University of Phoenix Stadium.

North Carolina (32-7) missed four free-throw attempts in the final six seconds but rebounded the second miss both times — two of 17 offensive rebounds by the Tar Heels in the game. UNC finished with 19 second-chance points, and scored 20 points of 16 turnovers, the most by the Ducks in six weeks.

The Ducks (33-6) saw their season end a game short of the national championship game, after setting a school record for wins, sharing the Pac-12's regular-season title and reaching the Final Four for the second time in school history.

"We didn't have our 'A' game," UO coach Dana Altman told the Ducks after the game. "But we stayed in the fight, and we had our chance. The competitiveness that I always brag about with you guys, it showed."

How It Happened: Dillon Brooks fouled out with 1:32 to go, and Joel Berry made 1-of-2 free throws for the Tar Heels. Jordan Bell rebounded a miss at the other end and scored to make it 75-71 and North Carolina turned it over out of a timeout, but Payton Pritchard missed a three-pointer and UNC tacked on two more free throws.

A Tyler Dorsey three-pointer got Oregon within 77-74 with 42 seconds left, and after a miss at the other end, Keith Smith made it a one-point game with 5.8 seconds left. Kennedy Meeks missed both free throws, but North Carolina got the rebound and Berry went back to the line. He also missed twice, but the Ducks couldn't collect the rebound and time expired.

Twice in the waning minutes, Oregon managed to get within five. It was 72-67 when Dylan Ennis and Bell couldn't connect on an alley oop. With North Carolina ahead 74-69, Brooks missed a three-pointer, and on the next possession Ennis had a shot blocked.

The Ducks scored the opening basket of the second half, but the Tar Heels (32-7) answered with seven straight, a run capped by Justin Jackson's three pointer. Oregon rallied within four at 51-47 despite a second Jackson three-pointer early in the half. But with a chance to make it a two-point game, Ennis missed a layup in transition and the Tar Heels quickly got the ball to Jackson for yet another three, and the lead was back to seven, on its way to 56-47.

Oregon enjoyed its biggest lead at 30-22 after back-to-back three-pointers by Ennis late in the first half, and despite minimal contributions from Dorsey and Brooks. But North Carolina flipped the script heading into halftime, going on a 17-6 run to take a 39-36 lead into the break and seize momentum in the game.

Who Stood Out: Dorsey scored 21 points, making a UO tournament single-game record 12 free throws on his way to scoring at least 20 points for the eighth straight game, every one this postseason. Ennis scored 18, and Bell added 13 points with a career-high 16 rebounds. It was Bell's sixth straight NCAA Tournament game with 12 or more rebounds, and his 10th double-double of the season. Brooks added 10 points and six rebounds before fouling out.

What It Means: Oregon came up a game short of playing for the national championship for the first time since the 1939 "Tall Firs" brought the title home to Eugene.

Notable: The crowd was the largest to ever see an Oregon basketball game. … Kavell Bigby-Williams became just the third player from Great Britain to play in the Final Four. The other two are Karl Brown of Georgia Tech (1990) and Luol Deng of Duke (2004). … Oregon broke the school record for points in a season (3,076), field goals (1,091), assists (614) and blocked shots (248). … Brooks is Oregon's career leader in NCAA Tournament scoring (162), field goals made (59) and assists (32), while Bell is the Ducks' career Tournament leader in rebounds (114) and blocked shots (33) and Dorsey is UO's NCAA Tournament career leader in three-pointers made (25).