Read more at our Ducks blog, Addicted To Quack, and our Cougars blog, CougCenter.
Oregon 91, Washington State 89 (2OT): Tajuan Porter Leads Ducks To Thrilling Road Win
December 31, 2009 – Pullman, WA (Sports Network) – Scoring a total of 18 points in the two overtime periods, Tajuan Porter finished with 31 overall as he and the Oregon Ducks picked up the hard-fought 91-89 win over the Washington State Cougars in the Pac-10 opener for both programs at Friel Court.
Porter shot 11-of-26 from the field for the Ducks (8-5, 1-0 Pac-10) as they won their fifth straight outing to close the 2009 calendar year. Also having a strong game was Michael Dunigan with his 22 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots to offset his six turnovers. Malcolm Armstead tacked on 16 points and seven assists in the win as well.
The Cougars (10-3, 0-1), who had a four-game win streak snapped, were led by Klay Thompson who tallied a game-high 33 points, although he made only 6-of-19 shots from the floor and 2-of-10 behind the three-point line. Thompson made up for it with an impressive 19-of-21 showing at the charity stripe. DeAngelo Casto logged a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Nikola Koprivica and Xavier Thames contributed 11 points apiece and Reggie Moore 10 in the setback.
Oregon came out shooting well from the field in the first half, converting 61.5 percent to move out to a 38-27 lead at the break.
In the second half WSU made its move at the free-throw line, knocking down 11- of-12 at the charity stripe to rebound from an eight-point deficit with just over 12:30 remaining in regulation, eventually sending the game to overtime tied at 65-65.
In the first overtime frame the Cougars moved out to a 74-69 advantage, but it wasn’t enough. Casto made a layup with 0.3 seconds left to play to give WSU an 80-78 edge, but when his teammates rushed the floor they were assessed a technical foul and Porter made both free throws to tie the game at 80-80 and send the meeting into a second overtime.
The second overtime stanza saw Oregon outscore the hosts by an 11-9 margin to capture the stunning win.
The Ducks, who turned the ball over 18 times, almost let the win slip away as they watched Washington State outscore them at the charity stripe, 34-11.
See More:
