Bibbins’ 19 leads Utah past Oregon 66-56 in Pac-12 opener
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) – Justin Bibbins scored 16 of his 19 points in the second half to lead Utah to a 66-56 victory over Oregon on Friday night in the Pac-12 opener for both teams.
Sedrick Barefield added 16 points for the Utes (9-3), who snapped a nine-game losing streak against the Ducks. It was Utah’s first road win in a conference opener since joining the Pac-12 on 2011.
David Collette had 11 points, and Tyler Rawson had 10 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Utes.
Troy Brown scored 16 points to lead Oregon (10-4), and MiKyle McIntosh added 14 before fouling out. Elijah Brown had 12 points.
Oregon, which had won five in a row, had its 25-game home winning streak against conference teams snapped. The last Pac-12 team to beat the Ducks at Matthew Knight Arena had been Arizona on Jan. 8, 2015.
Utah outscored the Ducks 43-25 in the second half behind Bibbins, who was 4 of 4 from 3-point range after the break. The Utes finished with just three turnovers as neither team scored a fast-break point.
Utah came in allowing 67.9 points per game, best in the Pac-12, and held the Ducks to nearly 30 points below their season average.
After being held to a season-low 23 points in the first half, Utah scored the first eight points of the second half to tie at 31-31. The Utes went ahead to stay with 10½ minutes left and scored the last nine points of the game.
BIG PICTURE
Oregon, which has averaged 8.4 conference wins at home in Altman’s first seven seasons, needs to split its opening weekend to be a factor in the Pac-12 race. The Ducks, picked for fourth by the conference coaches, have lost twice at home for the first time in four seasons.
Utah got starters David Collette and Gabe Bealer back after one-game injury absences, and they combined for 10 points in the second half and 14 overall. The Utes are now in position to sweep the Oregon schools on the road for the first time.
UP NEXT
Utah: Plays at Oregon State on Sunday.
Oregon: Hosts Colorado on Sunday night.
