When Dana Altman took the Oregon job 15 years ago, he looked at two programs – Arizona and UCLA – and determined if he was going to elevate the Ducks, he at least needed to be able to compete with those teams.

“Those are the programs we got to beat,” Altman remembered telling his staff.

He's been more successful than not against the Wildcats as the Ducks went 15-12 in Altman's first 14 seasons.

They’ll need to beat their former Pac-12 rival again on Sunday if they want the season to continue.

No. 5-seeded Oregon (25-9) and No. 4 Arizona (23-12) will play in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at 6:40 p.m. in Climate Pledge Arena.

The winner will advance to the Sweet 16 and a potential game against No. 1 Duke and first-team All-American Cooper Flagg on Thursday at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. The Blue Devils play No. 9 Baylor at 11:40 a.m. Sunday.

“It was always a big game,” Altman said of the annual two-game conference series the Ducks and Wildcats played before Oregon moved to the Big Ten and Arizona the Big 12 in 2024. “But we are looking forward to the challenge again.”

Altman wasn't alone in his thinking.

Fifth-year senior guard TJ Bamba played Arizona when he was at Washington State before transferring to Villanova for one season and then Oregon.

“I’m super looking forward to it,” Bamba said. “Being in the Pac-12, Arizona was the team you always wanted to be. Getting to play them in March Madness, I feel like it don’t get no better than that.”

Oregon vs. Arizona score updates in March Madness (second round)

Oregon’s NCAA Tournament run is over, as the hot-starting Ducks lost a double-digit lead in what became a 87-83 loss to Arizona in a second-round game at Climate Pledge Arena.

In a game that came down to the final seconds, Jackson Shelstad led No. 5 Oregon (25-10) with 25 points, TJ Bamba had 17 points and Nate Bittle had 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Trailing 80-73, Oregon scored five straight on a 3-pointer by Keeshawn Barthelemy and score inside by Bittle made it 80-78 with 49 seconds left.

The Ducks forced a turnover on the in-bound’s play after Bittle’s score, but Bamba missed the potential score-tying jumper with 32 seconds on the clock.

After Arizona’s Jaden Bradley missed the second of two free throws with 20 seconds left, Shelstad scored on a layup at the other end with 10.6 to play to make it a one-point game, 81-80.

Anthony Dell’Orso made 83-80 Arizona with two free throws with nine seconds left, points that Shelstad matched at the other end from the line to keep it a one-point game 83-82 with 5.2 to play.

Dell’Orso again answered the call for the Wildcats with two more free throws with 5.2 to play to make it 85-82 and the Ducks couldn’t overcome the disadvantage as time ran out.

The Ducks led 19-4 in the opening five minutes, but the No. 4 Wildcats rallied to take a 56-45 advantage early in the second half.

A jumper by Shelstad cut the Ducks’ deficit to 72-70 with 4:34 to play but the Wildcats – specifically Caleb Love – was able to answer every Oregon challenge in the final minutes.

Love scored seven-straight for Arizona after Shelstad’s jumper, on two 3-pointers and a thunderous dunk to make it 80-73 with 2:01 to play.

Love finished with 29 points.

Arizona's lead is 80-76 with 1:19 to play as refs go to replay to review who last touched the ball when it went out of bounds under the Wildcats' basket.

Oregon trails 77-70 with 2:27 to play. A jumper by Jackson Shelstad made it 72-70 but Arizona has scored the last five points.

Kwame Evans Jr. will go to the line for two free throws when play resumes with 7:38 to play in the game. Arizona is up 68-64 but the Ducks aren't going away.

The Ducks have scored seven straight to cut the Wildcats' lead to 56-52 with 14:10 to play.

The Wildcats are on an 8-0 run with Anthony Dell'Orso scoring the last five on a layup and then 3-pointer off an offensive rebound to ignite the pro-Arizona crowd. The lead is 54-43 with 16:42 to play and Dana Altman called a timeout after the 3 to settle his team down.

The Ducks got out to a 19-4 lead in the first 5-plus minutes but the Wildcats stormed back and lead by four points at halftime.

Jackson Shelstad paces the Ducks with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting, but Nate Bittle has just five points, five rebounds and three turnovers.

Jaden Bradley leads Arizona with 11 points and Tobe Awaka has six points and 11 rebounds.

Arizona is outshooting Oregon 45.7% to 43.2%, and outrebounding them 23-19.

A 3-pointer by Anthony Dell'Orso gave the Wildcats a 35-33 led with 4:19 to play and that's the score at the media timeout with 3:43 left until halftime. The Ducks had led by as many as 15 points.

Shelstad ended a 13-2 Arizona run with a jumper to make it 28-23 Oregon with 7:46 to play before halftime. It's the Ducks' only basket over the last four minutes.

Jackson Shelstad has 10 points and is 4 of 6 from the field with two 3-pointers for the Ducks, who are up 26-14 at the 11:35 mark of the first half. After starting 1 for 5 from the field, the Wildcats have made four of their last six shots.

Nate Bittle, Brandon Angel and Jackson Shelstad have made 3-pointers and the Ducks have scored seven points off turnovers to take a 17-4 lead with 15:11 to play in the first half. Kwame Evans Jr. will be at the free-throw line to try and complete a three-point play when play resumes.

Ducks: PG Jackson Shelstad, G TJ Bamba, G Keeshawn Barthelemy, F Brandon Angel, C Nate Bittle.

Wildcats: G Caleb Love, G Anthony Dell’Orso, G Jaden Bradley, F Trey Townsend, F Tobe Awaka.

What channel is Oregon vs Arizona on today? Where to watch, stream live

Oregon will tip off vs. Arizona on TBS . Streaming options include the NCAA March Madness Live app and Sling TV . Announcers for the game are Lisa Byington, Robbie Hummel, Jalen Rose and Andy Katz.

Oregon vs Arizona start time, TV channel, location

Oregon vs Arizona odds, betting line, spread

Oregon vs Arizona prediction, game picks

The ESPN matchup predictor gives Oregon a 31.3% chance to defeat Arizona.

Oregon vs Arizona championship odds

Arizona basketball schedule 2024-25

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