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Nelson, Oakland stun No. 23 Oregon 68-62
By Associated Press
Dec 22, 2007 - 11:30:58 PM

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AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Derick Nelson had 22 points and nine rebounds, and Oakland stunned No. 23 Oregon 68-62 Saturday night.

Oakland's Johnathon Jones (23) and Tim Williams (33) celebrate their 68-62 win over No. 23 Oregon in a basketball game Saturday, Dec. 22, 2007, in Auburn Hills, Mich. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)


It was the first win over a Top 25 team in school history for Oakland (5-6), the small school from Michigan. The Ducks (8-3) had a 20-0 run in the second half, but still couldn't avoid their second-straight loss.

The game was played as the second game of a doubleheader with Texas-Michigan State, and was supposed to provide a happy homecoming for Detroit natives Malik Hairston and Tajuan Porter.

The duo won a state championship at Renaissance High School in Detroit in 2004, but struggled in their return. Oregon's two leading scorers missed 17 of their 22 shots. Porter was just 1-of-9.

Erik Kangas and Johnathan Jones added 12 each for Oakland.

Joevan Catron led Oregon with 15 points, while Maarty Leunen had 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Oakland hit seven of their first eight 3-pointers on the way to an early double-digit advantage. It went 0-for-4 from beyond the arc the rest of the first half, but still took a 37-26 lead into intermission.

Keith Benson's dunk just 12 seconds into the second half made it a 14-point game, but Oakland didn't score again for nearly six minutes.

In the meantime, two Bryce Taylor jumpers started a 20-0 Oregon run that gave the Ducks a 46-39 lead with 14:33 to go. Leunen had eight points in the surge, while Oakland missed nine straight shots.

The Golden Grizzlies, though, rallied to take a 53-52 lead on Nelson's layup with 7:37 left. After a Hairston put-back, Kangas hit a 3-pointer to give Oakland a two-point edge.

The margin got as high as six, but Porter's first basket of the game, a 3-pointer, tied it at 60 with three minutes left.

Nelson put Oakland back ahead with two free throws, and after Hairston was called for traveling, Jones made it 64-60 from the line.

Porter missed a 3-pointer, then turned the ball over with 47 seconds left, forcing Oregon to start fouling.

The Golden Grizzlies missed two free throws in the final seconds, but it wasn't enough to allow the Ducks back into the game.


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