GameDay: Ducks Win 2011 CBI Championship!

Trafton B.

April 2, 2011 - 10:00 AM

Ducks Win! Ducks Win! Holy crap the Ducks Win!

Last night the Oregon Men's Basketball beat the Creighton Bluejays to win the 2011 College Basketball Invitational (CBI) Championship. Sophomore Forward EJ Singler hit a running 1-foot jumper off the glass with 2.0 seconds left in the game that gave Oregon the victory. I can't believe it. That game was insane. What a way to close out the first season in Matthew Knight Arena, huh?

That was probably the best Ducks basketball game I've ever seen. The score was tied at 65 with 2:34 left in the second half. Creighton's Gregory Echenique made two free throws to pull ahead and then Oregon Senior Joevan Catron hit a jumper to tie it up again. Echenique responded with a go-ahead slam dunk, and Garret Sim answered back with a jumper for Oregon. On the next possession Antoine Young, who led Creighton's team with 21 points and seven assists, was called on a backcourt violation that turned the ball over to the Ducks 18 seconds left in the game. Singer hits the jumper. Creighton misses the last second prayer from half-court. And the rest, as they say, is history. It was the Ducks' first postseason victory in basketball since the Tall Firs won the first ever NCAA basketball tournament in 1939.

Knight Arena has definitely received it's fair share of attention (and criticism) since opening in January. There's a forest printed on the court. It cost $227-million to build, thanks Uncle Phil. They're hosting obnoxiously loud monster truck events. One thing that you might not have heard in the news, however, is that the half-court line on the basketball court is practically non-existent. It's too faint for spectators or cameras to pick up, but supposedly everyone on the court can see it just fine. Well, don't tell that to Creighton's Antoine Young. The backcourt violation, also know as an over-and-back might have cost the Bluejay the championship. Would Young have made the same mistake on another court? I really couldn't tell you. There is one thing I'm pretty certain of though. Come next year, I'd put money on there being a freshly painted, very dark center court line at Knight Arena because I don't think anyone wants to lose a game, let along a championship just because the court doesn't have a center line.

On a separate note, congratulations to Oregon's Joevan Catron. In his final game, the fifth-year senior from Phoenix, Illinois scored a career high 29 points. Catron averaged 20.7 points and nine rebounds throughout the CBI, enough to make him the tournament MVP. Best of luck next year, Joevan. We'll miss you.

Speaking of next year, I'm excited to see how the Ducks do in 2012. We were picked to finish last in the Pac-10 Conference this year, and we shocked the nation by winning the CBI. Last year's CBI champions, Virginia Commonwealth University, made it to the NCAA Final Four this year, so who knows what can happen. I think a berth in the NCAA Tournament is well within reach. I won't be here to watch them, but I'll be rooting for the Ducks whoever I end up next year.

Congratulations to Oregon Men's Basketball. Congrats to Coach Dana Altman for bringing home a victory in your first season as Oregon's head coach, and a special kudos for doing it against your former team. Congratulations Ducks! We can't wait to see what you can do next year.

Photo courtesty of Alex McDougal, Oregon Daily Emerald