No. 12 Liberty (28-6, 13-5 CUSA) vs. No. 5 Oregon (24-9, 12-8)
Seattle, Washington – Climate Pledge Arena
Friday, Mar. 21, 10:10 p.m. ET
NCAA Tournament First Round
TruTV (Lisa Byington, Robbie Hummel, Jalen Rose, Andy Katz)

Last Meeting: N/A
Series History: This will be the first ever meeting between the two programs.

Projected LU Starters:

0 Colin Porter (Jr., 5-10) – 9.3 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 4.3 apg
3 Kaden Metheny (R-Sr., 5-11) – 13.5 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 2.0 apg
32 Jayvon Maughmer (R-Sr., 6-6) – 8.8 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 1.5 apg
25 Zach Cleveland (Jr., 6-7) – 10.9 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 5.1 apg
8 Owen Aquino (Jr., 6-8) – 8.8 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 2.1 apg

Projected Oregon Starters:

3 Jackson Shelstad (So., 6-0) – 13.2 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 2.7 apg
9 Keeshawn Barthelemy (Sr., 6-1) – 10.1 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.6 apg
5 TJ Bamba (Sr., 6-5) – 10.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.9 apg
21 Brandon Angel (Sr., 6-9) – 8.5 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.7 apg
32 Nate Bittle (Sr., 7-0) – 14.1 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.9 apg

QUICK FACTS

  • This game is scheduled to be the last game of the NCAA Round of 64 to tip-off.
  • Liberty earned the automatic bid from Conference USA with a 79-67 victory over Jacksonville State this past Saturday. The Flames won both the CUSA regular season and tournament titles.
  • This is Liberty’s second time as a No. 12 seed in the NCAA Tournament, tied for the best mark in program history.
  • Oregon earned an at-large bid in their first season in the Big Ten.
  • Oregon saw their 8-game win streak halted their last time out, a 74-64 setback to Michigan State in the Big Ten Quarterfinals on Friday. They previously had a 5-game losing streak in conference play that led into the win streak.
  • In 8 previous tournament appearances at Oregon, the Ducks and head coach Dana Altman have won at least one game each time.
  • The Ducks are currently ranked No. 25 in the AP Top 25 Poll. The Flames are 0-20 all-time against AP Top 25 teams.
  • Liberty is 0-7 all-time against the Big Ten.
  • Liberty is 16-0 this season when shooting 50% or better from the field.
  • The Flames are 25-0 this year when holding its opponent under 70 points.

PREVIEW

Back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in four years, No. 12 seed Liberty will be taking on No. 5 seed Oregon on Friday night in Seattle in a first-round game. It is the last game scheduled to start in the first round over the course of the first two days of the Tournament. The winner of Liberty will advance to the second round to play the winner of Friday’s game between No. 4 Arizona vs. No. 13 Akron on Sunday.

Champions of Conference USA, the Flames will be taking on an Oregon team that finished tied for 7th in their first year in the Big Ten. Both Liberty and Oregon opened the year with identical 12-1 records as the teams got out to strong starts in non-conference play. The Ducks’ hot start included wins over Alabama and Texas A&M on a neutral floor. Moving to 15-2 and 4-2 in conference play, the Ducks then struggled over the course of just less than a month. During that stretch, they lost six out of seven, including a season high five game losing skid. Things got turned around for Oregon at that point, winning their last seven games of the regular season before knocking off Indiana in the Big Ten’s second round before bowing out in the Quarterfinals with a loss to Michigan State.

“It doesn’t get any easier,” Liberty head coach Ritchie McKay said of Oregon. “They have won eight of their last nine. They’ve really found a commitment on the defensive end that I think has illuminated the success they have had of late. They are playing really good basketball.”

Head coach Dana Altman always has his teams prepared in March. Under Altman, the Ducks are 15-8 in NCAA Tournament games and have won at least one game in each appearance they have made. This will be their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance the ninth in Altman’s 15 years with the team. They advanced to the second-round last year as an 11-seed before falling to Creighton in double overtime.

Liberty has been playing their best basketball on the offensive end over the past few weeks. The Flames scored 80 or more points in five straight games before scoring 79 in the CUSA title game against Jax State. The streak of five straight 80+ games marked the first time Liberty had done that since 1997. Liberty is shooting 53.7% from the field over the last six contests, including a 44.7% mark from three. Taelon Peter is shooting 75% from the field and 66.7% from three-point range while leading the team in scoring at 18.8 points per game in that span. Over the course of the entire season, Liberty ranks No. 2 nationally in effective field goal percentage (58.9) and No. 6 nationally in both field goal percentage (49.4) and three-point percentage (39.0).

“It will test our defense,” Altman said of the Flames and their ability to shoot the three. “You don’t win 28 games by accident. They were going to do something well. We will just have to challenge shooters. Our defense will have to be good and try to limit their threes, but a team like that is always dangerous if they get it going.”

The Flames will have their hands full with Oregon big man Nate Bittle. The 7-footer was a five-star prospect out of high school but had a slow first few years at Oregon. He has put it together this year. Bittle leads the team in scoring (14.1), rebounding (7.4), and blocks (2.2). He also has the ability to step out and shoot the three, making 34 of 102 triples this season, good for 33.3%. 6’0″ point guard Jackson Shelstad is the engine for the Ducks’ offense. The second-year player is averaging 13.2 points per game while shooting 36.6% from three.

“Nate Bittle, he’s really good offensively, but he’s a terrific rim protector, great anticipation, vision,” McKay said. “They come off the bench with a bunch of dudes that I think can stem the tide, especially on the defensive end of the floor. Well balanced team, but anyone that’s followed college basketball for any duration of time, they know how terrific of a coach Dana Altman is. He and his staff, they do a terrific job on both ends. We have our work cut out for us, but it’s the NCAA Tournament. Any time you qualify for that, you are going to play somebody really good.”

Oregon is a very balanced team. behind Bittle and Shelstad, they have several playmakers that could have an impact. Most notable is 6’5″ guard TJ Bamba. The former Washington State and Villanova transfer, Bamba is averaging 10.4 points per game in his first season in Eugene. He has struggled from three-point range, only making 25.5% of his shots behind the arc, but he is a career 35.5% three-point shooter. Keeshawn Barthelemy has taken a step in his third year at Oregon. He’s averaging 10.1 points per game while shooting 41.7% from three.

“Bamba is really good,” McKay said. “He’s not just a scorer, he can facilitate. They put him in a bunch of isolations. He’s a tough guard. Shelstad, he’s arguably one of the best guards in the (country). If he’s not an NBA prospect, I’d be surprised. He’s got unbelievably deep range. He’s a big shot taker. He gets great separation off the bounce. They are really good. There is a reason why they have had the success that they have had.”

KENPOM PREDICTION

Oregon 72, Liberty 68

ODDS

Oregon -6.5, Total 139.5