Kario Oquendo, Oregon Thrash California Baptist

Oregon Men's Basketball vs California Baptist

Reserve guard Kario Oquendo led a balanced attack with a season-best 20 points and Oregon completed an unbeaten homestand with a third straight win, turning back California Baptist 76-55 on Tuesday in a nonconference game at Eugene, Ore.

Jackson Shelstad complemented a game-high eight assists with 17 points, Brennan Rigsby turned three 3-pointers into a majority of his 11, Jadrian Tracey came off the bench for 10 and Kwame Evans Jr. added nine points for the Ducks (7-2), who ran their home record to 5-0 this season.

Dominique Daniels Jr. had a team-high 13 points and Hunter Goodrick put up 10 points for the Lancers (6-3), who lost their second straight after a 6-1 start.

Seeking to bounce back from a 72-69 home loss to Utah Tech on Dec. 6, California Baptist played Oregon evenly for almost 15 minutes, with Blondeau Tchoukuiegno’s layup at the 5:26 mark of the first half creating a 23-all tie.

Oregon went on to lead 36-31 at the break before dominating the second half. The Ducks got a 3-pointer from Rigsby and a short-range jumper from Shelstad to quickly double their advantage and create the game’s first double-digit margin early in the second period.

Warming up for a neutral-site showdown with Syracuse on Sunday in Sioux Falls, S.D., the Ducks gradually pulled away, going up by as many as 22 before the night’s end.

Oquendo, a transfer from Georgia, hit seven of his 12 shots to better the 17 points he had in a loss to Alabama last month. He had 14 20-plus-point games in his two-year Georgia career, once going for 33 at Texas A&M.

Rigsby’s three 3-pointers came on four attempts for Oregon, which shot 9-for-18 from beyond the arc and outscored the visitors 27-9 on threes.

Jermaine Couisnard was the Ducks’ leading rebounder with a game-high-tying eight to complement five points.

Goodrick was the Lancers’ leading rebounder with eight, while Tchoukuiegno had a team-high two assists to go with eight points.

Yvan Ouedraogo added nine points and Brantly Stevenson seven for California Baptist, a Western Athletic Conference program that was playing just its second true road game of the season.

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    WCC to Add Grand Canyon and Seattle in 2025

    WCC adding Seattle U and Grand Canyon University

    WCC adding Seattle U and Grand Canyon University

    Seattle and Grand Canyon will be leaving the Western Athletic Conference and moving to the West Coast Conference starting July 2025.

    The nine current members of the conference are private universities with a religious affiliation. Seattle is a Jesuit institution, while Grand Canyon, situated in Phoenix, is a Christian college.

    Grand Canyon’s basketball achievements were a significant factor in attracting WCC commissioner Stu Jackson. The team has participated in the last two NCAA Tournaments and three of the previous four under the leadership of coach Bryce Drew.

    As the 12th-seeded Antelopes defeated fifth-seeded Saint Mary’s before losing to Alabama in the tournament this season.

    Saint Mary’s is currently a member of the West Coast Conference.

    The WCC, while also integrating Oregon State and Washington State this autumn (excluding football), will expand from 11 to 13 members by the 2025-26 season.

    The future beyond 2026 looks uncertain, with Oregon State and Washington State appearing unlikely to continue with the WCC.

    The former Pac-12 schools are under a two-year contract, expiring on June 30, 2026. Sources from CBS Sports suggest that the odds of the two Pacific Northwest institutions staying are slim, with a move to the Mountain West or a new conference formation being more probable.

    Following the departures of Sam Houston and New Mexico State last year, Seattle and Grand Canyon’s exit from the WAC will reduce the conference’s membership to just eight by July 2025.

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    Ex-Cal State Fullerton G Max Jones Commits to Kansas State

    Kansas State adds athletic wing in left-handed shooter Max Jones

    Kansas State adds athletic wing in left-handed shooter Max Jones

    Former guard of Cal State Fullerton Max Jones has made a decision to join Kansas State for his upcoming collegiate season, according to reports.

    Notable alternatives that Jones purportedly pondered were New Mexico, Texas A&M, Mississippi State, Florida Atlantic, and Loyola Chicago.

    During the previous season with the Titans, Jones maintained an average of 15.3 points and 3.0 rebounds across 24 games, in which he started 21. He secured the second-highest scoring position within the team, alongside being the second in 3-pointers with 42 baskets and 41 steals.

    In the season prior, Jones held an average of 12.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in 32 games, amassing 34 three-pointers and 30 steals.

    Before making his way to Cal State Fullerton post the 2021-22 season, Jones spent two years at Division II Tampa, where he managed to achieve an average of 21.9 points across 21 games during his sophomore year with the Spartans.

    In the recent offseason, Kansas State acquired Dug McDaniel, a former player from Michigan recognized as one of the premier point guards available in this year’s transfer portal.

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    Stanford Names Basketball Court in Honor of Tara VanDerveer

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    View From The Top with Tara VanDerveer, Former Coach of Stanford Women’s Basketball

    Tara VanDerveer’s legacy at Stanford will now be visibly acknowledged, with the school revealing on Thursday that the basketball arena’s floor will bear the name of the esteemed Hall of Fame coach.

    At the age of 70, VanDerveer stepped down following her 38th season at the helm of the Cardinal.

    She steered Stanford to 14 Final Fours and secured three national championships (1990, 1992, 2021). VanDerveer embarked on her coaching journey at Idaho (1978-80) and later coached at Ohio State (1980-85).

    In January, she surpassed Mike Krzyzewski to clinch the title of the most successful college basketball coach in history, across both men’s and women’s teams. VanDerveer concluded with a remarkable 1,216-271 record, boasting a 1,064-220 tally with the Cardinal.

    Alongside the unveiling of the Tara VanDerveer Court at Maples Pavilion this November, Stanford also established an endowed position in women’s basketball for an assistant coach in VanDerveer’s honor.

    VanDerveer said in a statement, “This endowment will go a long way to strengthening the future of Stanford women’s basketball. I have many wonderful memories of leading the women’s basketball program at Maples Pavilion.”

    “It’s an honor, and a little surreal, to know that my name will be linked to both in these ways, and I look forward to celebrating with all our fans this fall.”

    Last month, Stanford appointed Kate Paye, one of VanDerveer’s longtime assistant coaches who played for the Cardinal from 1991-95 and began coaching under VanDerveer in 2007, as the new head coach.

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