2013 NCAA Tournament: Will No. 12 Oregon Ducks Make the Elite Eight?

The No. 12 Oregon Ducks have pulled off two upsets on the way to the Sweet 16. However, can they pull off another upset against the No. 1 Louisville Cardinals and make it to the Elite Eight?

Assuming that Oregon figures out Louisville’s stingy defense, this is very possible. Damyean Dotson has been great in the 2013 NCAA Tournament so far. His 20 points per game in the Big Dance is evident of that. Keep in mind that Dotson is only averaging 11.3 points per game this year, so he is clearly stepping up his game when it matters most.

Beating the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds in your region is one thing, but only limiting both of those teams to an average of 56 points per game is a whole different story. If the Ducks can continue this trend, the Cardinals are going to have to worry about Oregon’s defense and not the other way around.

Oregon has made eight three-pointers in both of its tournament games and that could really spread the game open against Louisville if the Ducks can continue knocking down shots from behind the arc.

The Ducks need to keep up their balanced attack though. Against No. 5 Oklahoma State, four players scored in double digits and against No. 4 Saint Louis, three players scored 14 points or more. That kind of production will be crucial against one of the best defenses in college basketball.

Although Oregon has faced much tougher competition in the NCAA Tournament than Louisville, the Cardinals are the No. 1 overall seed for a reason. They are on a 12-game winning streak and have won by an average margin of 28.5 points per game, while only giving up an average of 52 points per game in two tournament games.

Give the Ducks all of the credit in the world for making it this far, but they will likely not be making it to the Sweet 16 this year.