PORTLAND, Ore. — It wasn’t the size of the Ducks in this fight. It was the shooting, passing and depth of the UConn men’s basketball team that proved to be a sizable advantage.
The Huskies (6-0) weren’t playing a mid-major this time, but nevertheless looked to be on another level than their opponent in the first-round game of the Phil Knight Invitational bracket Thursday night, blowing out Oregon, 83-59 at the Moda Center.
UConn made 17 or 37 shots from 3-point range, including seven by Tristen Newton, who scored 21 points in the first half, 23 for the game. Newton, Joey Calcaterra, Jordan Hawkins and the rest of UConn’s multiple waves of shooters negated the Ducks’ huge front court, shooting over them and defeating the matchup zone defense. To get those open threes the Huskies, 30-for-63 from the floor, used crisp ball movement, which has been a signature so far this season, getting 22 assists on 30 baskets from from eight different players.
