FACTS & STATS: Site: Palace of Auburn Hills (22,076) -- Auburn Hills, Michigan. Television: ESPNU. Home Record: Oregon 5-0, Oakland 5-2. Away Record: Oregon 2-1, Oakland 0-4. Neutral Record: Oregon 1-1, Oakland 0-0. Conference Record: Oregon 0-0, Oakland 1-1. Series Record: First-ever meeting.

GAME NOTES: The 23rd-ranked Oregon Ducks are set to collide with the Oakland Golden Grizzlies at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Michigan. Oregon hopes to bounce back strong from an 88-79 overtime loss to Nebraska last Saturday. That setback halted a four-game win streak for the Ducks, who are 8-2 overall. They have not scored fewer than 75 points in any of the 10 games played to date, proof of their offensive prowess. Oakland is also a strong offensive team, but shaky defense has resulted in a 5-6 record. The Golden Grizzlies did manage to halt a two-game skid on Wednesday with a 67-53 decision over Rochester College. This game marks the first-ever meeting between Oregon and Oakland on the hardwood.

At the time that Oregon compiled its release for this game against Oakland, the Ducks ranked fourth nationally in scoring with 88.6 ppg. They are shooting 50.2 percent from the field, including 41.8 percent from three-point range. Five players average double figures in scoring, and Malik Hairston leads the balanced attack with 17.4 ppg on 56.3 percent shooting from the field, including 54.5 percent accuracy from behind the arc. Tajuan Porter checks in with 17.2 ppg, and Bryce Taylor is netting 14.9 ppg. Maarty Leunen brings 14.7 ppg and 10.2 rpg to the table, and Joevan Catron is posting 11.2 ppg and 8.9 rpg. So what went wrong for Oregon in the loss to Nebraska last time out? Well, the Ducks only finished with 12 assists against 18 turnovers and shot a modest 42.4 percent from the field. They only forced seven turnovers in the tilt as well.

Oakland is posting 81.3 ppg this season, slightly better than the 79.6 ppg that the squad is giving up. Derick Nelson is scoring 19.6 ppg as the team's leading scorer, and he is also tops with 7.5 rpg and 24 steals. Erik Kangas adds 15.1 ppg, and Johnathon Jones is contributing 13.8 ppg to go along with 63 assists. In the win over Rochester on Wednesday, Oakland was limited to an uncharacteristically low 67 points, but the club limited the opposition to 53 points in that tilt. Nelson scored 18 points to pace his team, and Dan Waterstradt had 12 points and 12 rebounds from his center position. Keith Benson and Jones pitched in 10 points apiece, and Benson pulled down nine boards for the Golden Grizzlies, who finished with a 19-8 advantage on the offensive glass.

Oakland may hang around for a while, but Oregon is clearly the better team and will win this game by double digits. Balance makes the Ducks a dangerous squad, regardless of the competition.

Predicted Outcome

Oregon 88, Oakland 75