PORTLAND, Ore. – Dee Brown had 26 points and seven assists as No. 11 Illinois cruised to a 89-59 win over Oregon on Saturday in the Pape’ Jam.
Rich McBride had 13 points and James Augustine added eight points and 11 rebounds for the Fighting Illini (10-0)
Reserve forward Ivan Johnson had 16 points to lead the Ducks (4-3), losers of three straight. Malik Hairston added 12. Oregon shot just 35 percent from the field, including 26 percent in the first half.
Brown, an All-American last year, entered the game averaging 14.1 points but was shooting just 33 percent from the field and 27 percent on 3-pointers.
The senior point guard and team leader hit 9 of 15 shots, including 5-of-8 on 3s in his best performance of the season.
The Ducks struggled against an Illinois defense that forced 13 turnovers and shut off the middle early. The Illini were up 12-6 in the first half when a flurry of 3s quickly doubled their lead. Brown hit two 3-pointers and Rich McBride had added two more as Illinois went up 24-11.
As the Illini began to sprint away, the Ducks hurt their cause by forcing up bad shots. Oregon missed all seven of its first-half 3-pointers, while Brown knocked down two more 3s to make it 34-18.
The Ducks only bright spot was Johnson, who entered the game midway into the first half and quickly made three of his first four shots.
The strong shooting continued into the second half for Illinois with Brown directing the offense with pinpoint efficiency. The Illini, who are holding opponents to under 57 points per game, led by as many as 31.
Oregon has lost each of its three previous meetings with Illinois, including an 83-66 setback last Dec. 11 at the United Center.
The Ducks were coming off a tough last-second loss to Vanderbilt, and a dismal and uninspired 71-57 defeat at the hands of Georgetown last weekend.
The Illini fared much better against the Hoyas ball-control defense, beating Georgetown by 10 on Thursday.
Oregon had never loss in its holiday tournament, going 7-0 since 1998 while beating the likes of Kansas, Massachusetts, Vanderbilt and Louisville.
AP-ES-12-10-05 2238EST
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