ANAHEIM, Calif.—Hoping to avoid a shot-clock violation as the clock wound down on Oregon’s 82-68 Sweet 16 victory against Duke, Oregon’s Dillon Brooks pulled up from well beyond the 3-point line and canned yet another triple.
Given how the rest of the sophomore’s night went, the fact that he got another three to go down was not surprising.
Brooks stole the show for the Ducks with 22 points, five rebounds and six assists, hitting big shot after shot as the Blue Devils looked to get back in the game. The forward torched Duke by using his position at the foul line of the Blue Devils’ zone defense to hit easy shots or kick to open teammates.
Brooks reacted demonstratively to his late 3-pointer, and as the teams went through the handshake line, cameras captured Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski having an extended conversation with the Oregon swingman—one in which Brooks said Krzyzewski told him he was too good to be showing off.
"He just told me that I’m too good of a player to be showing out at the end," Brooks said after the game, according to USA Today. "And he’s right. I’ve got to respect Duke."
But that was not how Duke’s head coach said the scenario played out.
“I didn't say that. You can say whatever you want. Dillon Brooks is a hell of a player,” Krzyzewski said. “I said, 'You're a terrific player.' And you can take whatever he said and then go with it, all right?"
The fiery Brooks brought emotion to the table all game for Oregon as it recorded one of its biggest wins in program history. In the first half, the sophomore appeared to exchange words with the Blue Devil bench after nailing a corner three. Before the game, Brooks talked about how big playing Duke in an NCAA tournament game was for the Ducks—who have flown under the radar on the West Coast this season—during Wednesday’s media session
“I know a lot of the guys are really motivated,” Brooks said Wednesday. “I've been watching Duke all our lives, and once we see the lettering "D-U-K-E", we're going to come out there with red on our face and just really take it to them.”
Behind Brooks, the Ducks are headed to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2007 with a chance to reach the Final Four for the first time since 1939. The sophomore was Oregon’s leading scorer during the regular season at 17.0 points per game and has combined for 47 points on 16-of-32 shooting in the Ducks’ last two wins.
“He makes their team go,” Krzyzewski said. “He doesn't have a position. He plays all positions, and he plays them so strong. His versatility, Dana [Altman] uses it so well. They have a few guys like that, but obviously he's the best one.”
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