Catron Leads Ducks to 86-74 Victory

Eugene, OR - The Oregon Ducks defeated the Long Beach State 49ers 86-74 on Monday night at McArthur Court in Eugene evening their non-conference record at 6-6 as they head into Pac-10 play on Friday at home against USC. Oregon was led by junior forward Joevan Catron who recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds as well as adding four assists.

“It was important for us to get a win” commented Oregon coach Ernie Kent. “The game was spotty. We made it more difficult than it needed to be.

It was a sloppy contest from the start as the small 49ers were careless with the basketball. Despite shooting 66.7% from the field in the first half, Long Beach St. (5-7) found itself behind 45-39 at the break after turning the ball over 12 times in the first 20 minutes.

TaJuan Porter, who was only 1 of 10 from the floor, hit a three pointer breaking a 17-17 tie in the first half, and the Ducks would never trail again. Catron carried Oregon early scoring 11 points in the opening half.

Oregon started the second half on an 8-0 run behind a three pointer from Garrett Sim, a bucket from center Michael Dunigan and a mid-range jumper from leading scorer Lekendric Longmire who led the Ducks with 14 points.

Oregon increased the intensity on the defensive end to start the second half and pressured the 49ers full court. The result was a lot of Long Beach St. turnovers, they finished with 22 for the game, and easy Oregon buckets.

“Our full-court pressure defense was outstanding” added Kent. “We have pressed everyone the entire year” said Kent. “We have to play that way” in order to take advantage of our depth.

Oregon’s defense led to consecutive Longmire breakaway buckets to stretch the lead to 59-41. The Ducks were never seriously threatened again.

Long Beach St. was led by senior guard Donovan Morris who had 18 points on 7-15 shooting from the field. Morris leads the 49ers in scoring and rebounding on the season averaging 17 points and four rebounds per game.

Oregon shot 43.3 percent from the field for the game while Long Beach St. shot 50 percent on 28 of 56 from the field. The Ducks outrebounded the 49ers 37-33.

Long Beach St. is coached by former Gonzaga coach Dan Monson, the son of former Duck coach Don Monson. The 49ers were 5-25 last season, Monson’s first as head coach.