Elite 8 run caps Oregon's season

Aaron Brooks punctuated his college career, while Tajuan Porter started his.

The senior and freshman backcourt duo took the surprising Oregon Ducks on a 29-8 season and a run to the round of eight in the NCAA tournament.

"I had fun. It's been a road," Brooks said. "I've grown a lot through these years."

After a season when the Ducks finished 15-18 and ended seventh in the Pacific-10 Conference, the team opened with 15 straight wins. Although they lost their 16th game to Southern California, they responded in the next with a 68-66 victory over top-ranked UCLA at McArthur Court.

They stumbled down the stretch with losses in six of eight games, but the Ducks won their final three heading into the Pac-10 tournament, where they defeated Arizona, California and the Trojans for the tourney championship and an automatic NCAA berth.

Oregon was the only team in the nation this season to defeat three teams in the top 10: UCLA (1), Arizona (10) and Washington State (9). They were ranked No. 10 in the season's final AP poll.

The third-seeded Ducks played their way through Miami of Ohio, Winthrop and UNLV to the round of eight, before being beaten 85-77 by defending national champion Florida on Sunday.

Through it all, there were Brooks and Porter.

Brooks, the Pac-10's scoring leader at 17.7 points per game, was a third-team All-America selection, becoming the Ducks' first All-American since Luke Jackson in 2004. He finished his Oregon career ranked ninth in scoring with 1,521 points.

He is one of only five Oregon players to rank in the school's top 10 in scoring, assists and steals. And in six games this season, Brooks scored to tie or put Oregon ahead in the final minute or overtime.

Porter, at 5-foot-6, set Oregon and Pac-10 records for 3-pointers by a freshman with 110.

In Oregon's 76-72 victory over UNLV in the round of 16, Porter scored 33 points and matched an NCAA regional record with eight 3-pointers. He also had four 3-pointers in the second round against Winthrop, breaking open a close game.

Porter didn't fare so well against Florida, hitting 2-for-10 from beyond the arc, but no one was blaming him.

"He's done such a great job all year long, and like Aaron said, you can't fault him, he's one of the reasons why we got here," coach Ernie Kent said. "He's going to break a lot of records or set a lot of records here at the University of Oregon."

Kent was also a winner this season. After last season, many had questioned whether he'd be around much longer as Oregon's coach.

This season the Ducks' quieted those critics.

Although he's been mentioned as a possible candidate for the Michigan job, and there's been speculative talk that new Oregon athletic director Pat Kilkenny might be interested in Gonzaga coach Mark Few, a good friend, Kent told reporters after Sunday's loss he wants to remain a Duck.

The Ducks, who credit much of their success this season to a preseason playing tour of the Bahamas, will return their starting lineup with the exception of Brooks next season.

Forwards Malik Hairston and Bryce Taylor, and center Maarty Luenen are currently juniors.

"It's just a matter of recruiting, recruiting, recruiting," Kent said. "But we've got a great group coming back."

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