ANAHEIM, Calif. — Oregon forward Dillon Brooks scored 22 points and forward Elgin Cook had 16 as the top-seeded Ducks eliminated defending NCAA champion Duke with an 82-68 decision Thursday in a West Region semifinal at the Honda Center on Thursday.
Reserve forward Jordan Bell had 13 points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots as the Ducks (31-6) extended their school record for victories in a season.
Freshman Brandon Ingram led Duke with 24 points but was about the only Blue Devil who could keep up with Pac-12 regular-season and tournament champion Oregon’s quickness and athleticism.
Sophomore point guard Casey Benson had 11 points and eight assists as the Ducks advanced to meet second-seeded Oklahoma (28-7) in the regional final Saturday.
Benson made 3-pointers on the Ducks’ first two possessions of the second half, and a layup by Cook gave Oregon a 46-35 lead 2 1/2 minutes after the break.
Duke was never closer than seven points thereafter and was within single digits only twice in the final 14 minutes, the last at 77-68.
Sophomore guard Grayson Allen had 15 points and freshman guard Luke Kennard had 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Blue Devils, who lost top NBA draft picks Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow from their title team.
Oregon shot 49.2 percent from the field and posted a 42-32 rebounding edge.
Duke shot 44.1 percent.
Ingram, considered a possible top five pick in the NBA lottery if he declares for the draft, had 14 points in the first half but was the Blue Devils’ only effective offensive weapon against the Ducks’ switching zone and man-to-man defenses.
Ingram made consecutive 3-pointers during a 10-3 run for a 27-26 lead with about six minutes remaining in the half.
Brooks had 12 points in the first half and the Ducks received a lift off the bench from Bell, who had nine points, four rebounds and two blocks.
Bell’s reverse layup broke a tie at 31 before Cook made two free throws and Cook forced a steal that led to a free throw by Chris Boucher for a 36-31 halftime edge.
NOTES: Oregon’s so-called Big Firs won the first NCAA tournament title in 1939. … Duke won the only other meeting 98-71 in 2010 — Ducks’ coach Dana Altman’s first year. … Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has made 23 Sweet 16 appearances, five more than No. 2 Jim Boeheim of Syracuse. Duke has 15 Sweet 16 appearances since 1998, the most of any school in that span. … Oregon was the last Pac-12 team standing after the league received a record seven bids to the NCAA tournament. USC, California, Arizona, Oregon State and Colorado lost their first game, and Utah lost in second round. … The Ducks have the most wins in school history over the last three, four, five and six seasons. … David Robinson, whose son Justin plays for Duke, was at the game and shown on the video board. … Oregon F Elgin Cook, a member of the Pac-12 all-league team, is the son of former NBA star Alvin Robertson.