Oregon Hands Men’s Basketball Season-Opening Defeat

EUGENE, Ore. – A 10-2 run early in the second half allowed Oregon to pull away from Texas Southern as the Tigers dropped their 2021-22 season opener by an 83-66 margin Tuesday night.
 
Oregon jumped out to a 13-4 lead six minutes into the contest but TSU cut it to 13-8 after baskets from AJ Lawson and John Walker III over the next minute. The scoring would cease by both teams for nearly two minutes until an Oregon basket while TSU wouldn’t return to the scoring column until the 9:47 mark after a Karl Nicholas layup. John Jones’ trey drew TSU to within 16-14 with 9:17 remaining but again, scoring was at a premium for both teams as TSU was held to only five points over the next five minutes while Oregon increased its lead to 24-19. Yahuza Rasas’ layup drew TSU within 24-21 but Oregon answered with a 12-3 surge behind 5-of-6 shooting to lead 36-24 with time winding down. PJ Henry would close out the half on a strong note with four points over the final 48 seconds to keep TSU close as they trailed 36-26 at the half.
 
A Justin Hopkins’ basket would draw TSU to within 36-28 to open the second half but consecutive treys from the Ducks upped the margin back to 16 over the next two minutes. TSU managed to stay within 14 over the next few possessions but the Ducks upped their lead to 63-40 and never looked back from that point.
 
Walker III led TSU with 19 points, six rebounds and two blocks while Henry also finished in double digits with 10 points, a team-high three assists and four rebounds.
 
TSU is back in action on Friday as they’ll face Saint Mary’s in Moraga, Calif. at 9 p.m.