Oregon basketball vs. Arizona: Who has the edge in the 2025 NCAA Tournament Second Round
Oregon basketball vs. Arizona: Who has the edge in the 2025 NCAA Tournament Second Round
After dismantling the Liberty Flames, 81-52, in the first round on Friday night, the Oregon Ducks are advancing to the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Their matchup is the Arizona Wildcats — a 4-seed and a former Pac-12 foe — in a 6:40 p.m. PT game on Sunday night.
Like Oregon, Arizona destroyed their first-round opponent, the Akron Zips, defeating the 13-seed 93-65. Oregon and Arizona have been on similar paths all year. The Ducks finished the Big Ten Tournament with a 24-9 season record, and after their conference tournament, the Wildcats were 22-12 on the year. This season, most of Arizona's opponents were in Quadrant 1, and the Wildcats went 10-11 in those games. The Ducks played fewer Quad 1 games than Arizona but went 8-7 in them.
The Wildcats are led by Tommy Lloyd, one of the better young coaches in college basketball. This is Lloyd's fourth year at Arizona, and while he's taken his team to the tournament all four years, he's 5-3 once he gets there. Only two of those wins have come after the first round, and in 2023, Arizona lost as a 2-seed to 15-seeded Princeton in the first round.
The last time the Ducks and Wildcats met was in the semifinal of last year's Pac-12 Championship. Arizona was a Top-10 team in the country and a shoo-in for March Madness while Oregon's only road to the NCAA Tournament was as an automatic qualifier. The Wildcats had destroyed the Ducks twice already that season, but in the conference tournament, Oregon came out on top and booked their ticket to the tournament the next day with a win over Colorado.
Last time, this matchup was lopsided, but this time around, this pair of teams is of even caliber. Sunday's game will be the 61st meeting between these two teams, and that history should make for a great game. Below are our predictions for how things will shake out.
Players To Know
Oregon
PG Jackson Shelstad: 13.4 Pts, 2.9 Reb, 2.7 Ast, 1.0 Stl, 37.5 3P%
C Nate Bittle: 14.1 Pts, 7.5 Reb, 1.9 Ast, 2.2 Blk, 51.0 FG%
G TJ Bamba: 10.3 Pts, 3.4 Reb, 3.0 Ast, 1.8 Stl, 38.5 FG%
Arizona
PG Caleb Love: 16.4 Pts, 4.3 Reb, 3.5 Ast, 1.2 Stl, 38.7 FG%
G Jaden Bradley: 12.0 Pts, 3.4 Reb, 3.7 Ast, 18.8 Stl, 46.5 FG%
F Henry Veesar: 9.4 Pts, 5.1 Reb, 1.3 Ast, 1.1 Blk, 60.4 FG%
Keys to the Game
Oregon
Control the tempo, especially on defense. Arizona likes to play with pace which helps them score a lot of points.
Force Caleb Love to take bad shots.
Force Arizona to take threes. As a team, they shoot over 20 per game but make less than a third.
Arizona
Get Caleb Love hot early.
Force Bittle into switches on pick-and-rolls to open up the paint. The Wildcats are one of the most efficient interior offenses in the country.
Protect the defensive glass. Arizona has been bad at preventing offensive rebounds and second-chance points all year.
Betting Odds
Moneyline: Oregon: +146 | Arizona: -176
Spread: Arizona: -3.5 points
Over/Under: 152.5 points
My Picks
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Alabama Recruiting Flip Sparks Celebration for Dan Lanning, Oregon Ducks
Alabama Recruiting Flip Sparks Celebration for Dan Lanning, Oregon Ducks originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Alabama Crimson Tide scored a win on the recruiting trail early on Tuesday morning, flipping 4-star quarterback Jett Thomalla, the No. 234 player and No. 15 QB in the 2026 class, per 247Sports. Advertisement Thomalla had previously been committed to the Iowa State Cyclones since April of this year, but after picking up an Alabama offer in May, he decided to flip his commitment, joining the Crimson Tide's 2026 class. While this is a big pickup for Alabama, it really spells victory for Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks. Over the past week, both Oregon and Alabama have been in on 4-star quarterback Bryson Beaver, who decommitted from the Boise State Broncos last week. He has since picked up several offers, and taken visits to Ole Miss and Alabama. Beaver is now scheduled to take a visit to Oregon this weekend, and picked up a prediction to commit to the Ducks from 247Sports recruiting analyst Blair Angulo. Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning leads his team onto the Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK Now, with Alabama adding a QB to their 2026 class, it appears to bode well for the Ducks, who are trying to land their passer for the cycle. Advertisement If the Ducks do end up landing Beaver, who is rated as the No. 19 QB in the class, per On3, they will likely still push for 5-star QB Ryder Lyons, who was on campus for an official visit this past weekend. While Lyons is one of the top players in the 2026 class, he is expected to take an LDS mission out of high school, so he won't be on campus as a true freshman until 2027. The Ducks and BYU Cougars are currently after Lyons. Related: Surprise 5-star Decision Sparks Speculation From Oregon, Texas A&M Fans This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 17, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Son of Oregon Ducks Legend Sends Shockwaves With Commitment to Rival Program
Son of Oregon Ducks Legend Sends Shockwaves With Commitment to Rival Program originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Just over 30 years ago, Oregon Ducks cornerback Kenny Wheaton sent shockwaves through the entire city of Eugene with his pick-six that won the game for Oregon against the rival Washington Huskies in the 1994 season. Advertisement Now, it is Wheaton's son, Kai, who is sending shockwaves through Eugene, but for different reasons. On Wednesday afternoon, Kai Wheaton announced that he would be committing to the school up north, the Oregon State Beavers, joining his dad's alma mater's biggest rival. Wheaton is rated as a 3-star commit who is ranked by the 247Sports Composite as the No. 1,218 player in the 2026 class. Nov 18, 2023; Corvallis, Oregon, USA; Oregon State Beavers team huddles during a timeout in the first half against the Washington Huskies at Reser Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Craig Strobeck-USA TODAY SportsCraig Strobeck-USA TODAY Sports To further twist the knife, it was cornerbacks coach Rod Chance, who used to be a coach at the University of Oregon, who acted as the lead recruiter for Wheaton along the way. With the addition of Wheaton, Oregon State now has the No. 72 class in the 2026 cycle. Meanwhile, Oregon has its sites set on some bigger fish, with all due respect to Wheaton. Advertisement The Ducks are currently waiting to have commitments announced for 5-star S Jett Washington, 5-star CB Brandon Arrington, and 4-star CB Davon Benjamin, all of whom are strongly considering the Ducks, if not projected to pick Oregon in the end. The Ducks and Beavers play in Week 3 of the season this year, with Oregon State traveling down to Autzen Stadium for the matchup. Next year, when Wheaton is on campus and part of the team, the game will be played back up in Corvallis at Reeser Stadium. We'll have to see which school colors Kenny Wheaton is wearing in the stands. Related: Alabama Recruiting Flip Sparks Celebration for Dan Lanning, Oregon Ducks This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 18, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
5-Star QB Ryder Lyons Makes Major Recruiting Announcement
5-Star QB Ryder Lyons Makes Major Recruiting Announcement originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The world of college football recruiting tends to heat up in the month of June, and the next week is going to be something else for a handful of the top prospects left on the board. Advertisement One of those top prospects, 5-star quarterback Ryder Lyons, announced on Wednesday that he is set to make his commitment in the coming days, officially revealing where he is going to go on Tuesday, June 24th. Lyons is rated by 247Sports as the No. 13 player in the 2026 class, and the No. 4 quarterback. At this point, he is the top-ranked uncommitted QB in the nation. Folsom quarterback Ryder Lyons (3), who is taking a visit with the Oregon DucksJOE LUMAYA/SPECIAL TO THE STAR / USA TODAY NETWORK There is a feeling that the two leading teams in Lyons' recruitment are the Oregon Ducks and BYU Cougars. Lyons took an official visit to Eugene last weekend, and he is heading to see the Cougars this week. While his connection with Dan Lanning and Oregon OC Will Stein are strong, with a love for the Ducks' QB development and high-flying offense, there are religious ties to BYU, as Lyons is expected to take an LDS mission out of high school for a year before enrolling in school. Advertisement On top of that, multiple reports show that BYU is offering Lyons a massive NIL deal, in the ballpark of what Bryce Underwood made from the Michigan Wolverines, which was reported to be between $10-12 million. Whether Lyons chooses to go with the money, or with the winning culture and development is yet to be seen, but we won't have to wait long to figure out what the 5-star player is going to decide. Related: Son of Oregon Ducks Legend Sends Shockwaves With Commitment to Rival Program This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 19, 2025, where it first appeared.
