Oregon vs. Creighton March Madness Preview and Prediction

In a No. 11 vs. No. 3 matchup in the NCAA Tournament Midwest Region, the Oregon Ducks face the Creighton Bluejays in second-round action.

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How to Watch Oregon vs. Creighton

When: 9:40 pm ET on Saturday, March 23rd

Where: PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Watch: TBS

Odds for Oregon vs. Creighton

(odds current at time of publish)

Spread: Creighton -6.5

Total: 147

DraftKings Betting Splits | Live College Basketball Odds | Oregon vs. Creighton Matchup

Midwest Region No. 11 Oregon Ducks

Oregon is coming off an impressive championship run in the Pac-12 tournament, which included a semi-final win over Arizona. The Ducks are now going to be a team that nobody wants to face in the dance. Oregon is always a well-coached team, with Dana Altman being one of the best coaches in the country. And this team has quite a bit of talent. N’Faly Dante has emerged as one of the best bigs in the entire country, and he has taken his game to new heights over the last few weeks. He’ll be a load to handle around the basket. And Oregon has plenty of guards that can do their part on the perimeter. But keep an eye on Jermaine Couisnard and Jackson Shelstad. Couisnard has been doing a great job of getting his teammates good looks, while also knowing when to be aggressive as a scorer. And Shelstad is just a dynamic backcourt talent, and he has saved his best stuff for the biggest games. This Oregon team also plays a confusing zone, which is always tough for opponents to figure out in the tournament.

Midwest Region No. 3 Creighton Bluejays

Creighton is pretty loaded this season with Trey Alexander, Baylor Scheierman and Ryan Kalkbrenner all being excellent players. Alexander is capable of scoring in a variety of different ways, and he’s also a very good passer and defender. Scheierman is a sniper from deep and is also a good rebounder for a player his size. On top of that, he constantly sets his teammates up, whether it’s with his passing or his overall gravity. Finally, Kalkbrenner is a massive body that can finish around the basket and protect the rim with the best of them. He can also really move his feet for a guy that stands at 7-foot-1, making him the perfect anchor for a Bluejays defense that is top 25 in the nation. And Creighton is even better on the offensive end. That speaks to this team’s balance. The Bluejays are as talented as anyone, and they play a winning brand of basketball.

Oregon vs. Creighton Preview & Prediction

Oregon’s match-up zone defense gave South Carolina all kinds of problems in the first round. The Ducks added to that by having one of their best offensive games of the season. Jermaine Couisnard went wild for Oregon, scoring 40 points on 14-of-22 shooting. He also dished out six assists to only one turnover. On top of that, N’Faly Dante continued to dominate around the basket, finishing with 23 points, six boards, two blocks and two steals. With Dana Altman at the helm, and momentum firmly on the Ducks side, this is a dangerous basketball team. But the Bluejays should be ready for this challenge.

Dante has the ability to bully most centers in the paint, but Ryan Kalkbrenner will give him some problems. Kalkbrenner can occasionally get pushed around a bit, but he’s one of the best rim protectors in the nation. And overall, Creighton is a borderline top-10 team when it comes to adjusted defensive efficiency. So, this is a pretty significant step up in competition for the Ducks, as the Gamecocks were just about 60th in the country in that regard. That makes it a little unrealistic to expect Oregon to shoot nearly 60% from the floor for a second game in a row. That means the Ducks will need to be flawless on the defensive end.

Oregon’s unique defensive look might give Creighton some problems early on, but good shooting teams tend to figure out ways to bust zones. And the Bluejays are a top-10 team in 3-point rate and shoot it at nearly 37.0%. That said, look for Baylor Scheierman, Steven Ashworth and Mason Miller to enjoy playing against the zone quite a bit. And Trey Alexander could also turn in a big performance. Alexander can shoot the 3, but he can also exploit the openings the zone will give him.

All in all, there’s a lot to overcome for Oregon here, with Creighton being the better team on both ends of the floor. The Ducks’ best chance of making this a game would be slowing things down and trying to make the Bluejays grind it out. That’s how Oregon won the Pac-12 tournament. But it’s easier said than done against a Creighton team that consistently gets good looks. The Bluejays don’t play at a very fast pace, yet they’re still capable of hanging 80 on anyone.

Estimated Score: Creighton 74.6 – Oregon 69

For expert predictions, go to our college basketball best bets page.

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