Indiana basketball finishes off its brief two-game west coast trip as it heads to Eugene to take on the Oregon Ducks in a Tuesday night clash.
The Hoosiers (18-11, 9-9 in Big Ten play) were dominant from start to finish in a 16-point victory over Washington in Seattle. The Ducks (21-8, 10-8 in Big Ten play) enter are fresh off a 21-point win at home against USC on Saturday night.
Prior to tip-off on Tuesday evening, preview the matchup between Indiana and Oregon.
HEAD COACH PROFILE
Head Coach: Dana Altmann
Record: 775-403 in 36 seasons, 365–160 in 15 seasons at Oregon
Altman arrived at the University of Oregon after spending 16 seasons at Creighton where he became the school’s all-time winningest coach with a record of 327-176 (.650). He led the Blue Jays to 13 consecutive postseason appearances, a stretch of 11 straight seasons with 20-plus wins, all while producing 10 or more league victories in each of the last 14 seasons.
Last season, Altman led the Ducks back to the NCAA Tournament for the 18th time in school history and eighth under his leadership.
The Wilber, Nebraska native is one of only three active coaches in NCAA Division I with 27 consecutive winning seasons. He is part of an exclusive fraternity that includes Hall-of-Famers Tom Izzo and Bill Self. Altman became the 24th head coach to record 700 career wins at the Division I level in 2021-22 and is the winningest head coach in Oregon history with 345 wins.
THIS SEASON
It has been another patented Oregon season under Dana Altman as the Ducks have won 20-plus games for the 15th-straight season.
The Ducks went through their non conference schedule unblemished, beating top-20 teams such as Alabama and Texas A&M. Such wins had the Ducks ranked ninth in the country as the calendar flipped to 2025.
Oregon remained in the top-25 well into January, but a four-game skid at the end of the month into February dropped the Ducks from Big Ten title contention.
Entering Tuesday's tilt with Indiana, Oregon is eighth in the Big Ten and are a projected six seed in the NCAA tournament.
So far this year, Oregon is averaging a prolific 76.8 points per game, while allowing opponents 71.4 points a contest. The Ducks are shooting 45.7% from the field and 34.7% from 3-point range as a team. On the flip side, Oregon allows its opponents to 43.5% from the floor and 31.5 % from deep.
The Ducks turn the ball 11.1 times per game, while forcing opponents into averaging 12.6 turnovers this season.
Oregon currently ranks 33rd in KenPom, holding the nation's 35th-ranked offensive and 40th-ranked defense. The Ducks sit 31st in the NET entering Saturday night.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Guard Jackson Shelstad - Fresh off a selection to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team, the 6 foot guard from West Linn, Oregon has been the go-to guy for Dana Altman's team this year. Starting in every game this season, Shelstad is scoring a team-best 13.4 points per game on 44.8% shooting. The guard is shooting 39.7% from three, averaging nearly two triples a night. His all around game continues as Shelstad averages 3.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists a night. Shelstad's 79 assists puts him at second on the team, only behind fellow guard TJ Bamba.
Forward Nate Bittle - Standing at 7 feet, 240 pounds, Bittle has solidified himself as one of the best big men in the Big Ten. A career 50.5% shooter, Bittle is scoring a career-best 13.3 points per game while also grabbing 7.1 rebounds a contest. After only attempting nine threes last season, the Central Point, Oregon native has made 29 of his 89 shots from distance in his senior season in Eugene.
Guard Keeshawn Barthelemy - A spark-plug off the bench, Barthelemy averages 10.2 points per game while averaging just 27.2 minutes a contest. The native of Montreal, Quebec, Canada shoots 42.6% from the field and 43.2% from downtown, making 54 of his 125 attempts from three. In addition to his scoring, the Colorado transfer has dished out 75 assists, good enough for third highest on the team.
STORYLINES TO WATCH
Can Indiana finish 2-0 out west...
After winning a pair of games in Bloomington, Indiana went out to Seattle and took care of business with a 16-point win against a struggling Washington team. Now that the Hoosiers won their first game of the trip, there is increasing optimism that they could boost their resumé with a quad-one victory on the road in Eugene.
Saturday's finale in Bloomington against Ohio State is shaping up to be a quad-two game; therefore, this will be Indiana's last regular season game against a quad-one opponent.
Will Indiana continue to lean on Reneau...
Malik Reneau has been dominant as of late, posting 17.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists on 61.7% shooting in his last five appearances. The junior came back from an illness and scored a game-high 22 points on an efficient 10-of-13 from the field, making his first six, pushing him to 17-straight shots from the floor.
As the season winds down, Indiana must continue to lean on its most dominant player on offense to win games down the stretch.
Will Indiana continue to be a balanced attack...
Though Luke Goode and Malik Reneau combined for over half of Indiana's points on Saturday night, the Hoosiers were firing on all cylinders. Eight different Hoosiers scored in what was the team's most dominant conference game all season. After hitting 10 threes against Penn State, Indiana went 9-of-23 from deep on Saturday, continuing the Hoosiers' hot stretch of shooting.
Combining the prolific three-point stretch and its dominance in the paint, Indiana may very well be in position to go into Eugene and beat Oregon on Tuesday evening.
QUICK HITTERS
Who: Indiana (18-11, 9-9) vs. (RV) Oregon (21-8, 10-8)
Series History: Indiana leads the series 3-0 (Last Meeting: Indiana won 68-60 on December 28, 1978)
When: Mar. 4, 2025, 9:00 p.m. ET
Where: Matthew Knight Arena, Eugene, Oregon
TV: FS1: Guy Haberman (play-by-play), Casey Jacobsen (analyst)
Radio: IU Radio Network: Don Fischer (Play-by-Play), Errek Suhr (Analyst), John Herrick
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