Oregon Ducks men's basketball | ||||
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University | University of Oregon | |||
Conference | Pac-12 | |||
Location | Eugene, OR | |||
Head coach | Dana Altman (7th year) | |||
Arena |
Matthew Knight Arena (Capacity: 12,364) |
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Nickname | Ducks | |||
Student section | Oregon Pit Crew | |||
Colors | Green and Yellow |
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Uniforms | ||||
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NCAA Tournament champions | ||||
1939 | ||||
NCAA Tournament Final Four | ||||
1939, 2017 | ||||
NCAA Tournament Elite Eight | ||||
1939, 1945, 1960, 2002, 2007, 2016, 2017 | ||||
NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen | ||||
1960, 2002, 2007, 2013, 2016, 2017 | ||||
NCAA Tournament Round of 32 | ||||
2002, 2007, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 | ||||
NCAA Tournament appearances | ||||
1939, 1945, 1960, 1961, 1995, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 | ||||
Conference tournament champions | ||||
2003, 2007, 2013, 2016 | ||||
Conference regular season champions | ||||
1919, 1939, 1944, 2002, 2016, 2017 |
The Oregon Ducks men's basketball team is an intercollegiate basketball program that competes in the NCAA Division I and is a member of the Pac-12 Conference, representing the University of Oregon. The Ducks play their home games at Matthew Knight Arena. Oregon, then coached by Howard Hobson, won the first NCAA men's basketball national championship in 1939. The basketball team has appeared in the NCAA tournament 15 times and has won the conference championship six times.
The University of Oregon men's basketball team played its first season in 1902–03 with Charles Burden as the head coach. Only two games were played that season with Oregon losing both games. Oregon did not record a win until its fourth season in 1907 against Roseburg. The season ended with a winning record of 4–3, under Hugo Bezdek, who also coached the football team. Bezdek left after that season to coach at Arkansas until 1913 when he went back to Oregon to coach until 1917.
During Bezdek's absence, the basketball team was coached largely by William Hayward, Oregon's track coach. In 1923, William Reinhart took over as the head coach and remained through the erection of McArthur Court until 1935. Coach Reinhart suffered only one losing season at Oregon.
Howard Hobson, an alumnus of the university, became the head coach in 1935, following Reinhart's departure. His ideas were considered cutting edge during his years at Oregon and he was well ahead of his time. He ran a fast break offense little used by anyone else in the country at the time and his defenses were an unorthodox hybrid defense. He lobbied for the installment of a shot clock and three-point field goal years before they were first introduced. In 1939, the Oregon Ducks became the first team to win the NCAA Basketball Championship. Sports editor L. H. Gregory coined the phrase "Tall Firs" to describe the Oregon players due to their taller stature compared to other teams in the country. The season started with a long trip to the east coast for a series of games, ending with a loss to Stanford back west in San Francisco. The Ducks went 6–3 during that trip but gained valuable experience for the remainder of the season. Oregon went 14–2 to claim the North Division title in the Pacific Coast Conference, which set off a best-of-three playoff against the California Golden Bears. The Ducks won two games straight to claim the conference title.