Freshman Shelstad leads Oregon to 64-59 victory over UCLA

Dec 31, 2023, 12:01 am

EUGENE, Ore. -- — Freshman Jackson Shelstad scored 20 points and made two free throws with 10 seconds left to help Oregon hold off UCLA 64-59 on Saturday.

Shelstad made 7 of 13 shots, including 4 of 7 from 3-point range, and both of his foul shots for the Ducks (10-3, 2-0 Pac-12). Shelstad had a season-high 21 points in Oregon's 82-74 home win over USC on Thursday to open conference play. The Ducks, Washington and both L.A. schools are heading to the Big Ten Conference next season.

Jermaine Couisnard had 15 points and three steals for Oregon. Reserve Jadrian Tracey contributed 10 points and four assists.

Adem Bona finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds and five blocked shots to pace the Bruins (6-7, 1-1), who have lost four of their last five games. Freshman Berke Buyuktuncel scored a season-high 12, while Lazar Stefanovic pitched in with 10 points and eight rebounds.

Couisnard and Brennan Rigsby both scored eight points to help Oregon take a 33-31 lead into halftime. Bona had seven points and seven rebounds to keep UCLA close.

The Bruins used a 9-0 run early in the second half to grab a 42-37 lead. Oregon answered with a 3-pointer from Couisnard and two from Shelstad in a 9-2 surge to retake the lead. The Ducks stayed in front and were up seven until two straight layups by Bona cut the Bruins' deficit to 60-57 with 2:43 left to play.

Kario Oquendo missed twice from beyond the arc for Oregon and UCLA answered with a Dylan Andrews basket and trailed by one with 30 seconds to go. Oregon scored on a dunk by Kwame Evans Jr. coming out of a Bruins timeout and Andrews missed a 3-pointer. Shelstad grabbed the rebound and his two free throws wrapped up the win.

The Ducks lost three times to the Bruins last season — the final time in the semifinals of the conference tournament.

UCLA leads 93-41 all time in a series that dates to 1937. The Bruins snapped a four-game losing streak with a 69-62 road win over Oregon State to begin their final Pac-12 season.

Oregon travels to play Washington on Thursday and Washington State on Saturday. UCLA returns home to play Stanford on Wednesday and California on Saturday.

------

Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here

------

AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball