January 12, 2007

Associated Press
Rivals.com College Basketball

TEMPE, Ariz. -Aaron Brooks scored 11 of his 16 points in the second half, including a pair of game-clinching free throws with 3.6 seconds to play, and 15th-ranked Oregon escaped with a 60-55 victory over Arizona State on Thursday night.

The Ducks (15-1, 3-1 Pac-10) led by as many as 15 points in the second half before the Sun Devils (6-10, 0-5) rallied to cut it to three.

Bryce Taylor also scored 16 for Oregon, 12 in the first half. Arizona State's Jeff Pendergraph had 18 points on 7-for-8 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds. Derek Glasser added 12 points but was only 4-of-14 from the floor.

Malik Hairston, back after missing five games with a foot injury, scored 13 for the Ducks, who play at No. 10 Arizona on Sunday night.

Brooks made a pair of 3-pointers and 5-foot-6 freshman Tajuan Porter added one in a 12-0 run that put the Ducks ahead 50-35 with 10:53 to play.

The Sun Devils, though, responded with a 14-2 outburst, punctuated by Jerren Shipp's 3-pointer from the corner that cut Oregon's lead to 54-51 with 4:14 left.

But Arizona State could get no closer. Taylor's tip-in with 3:45 to go made it 56-51, then Allen Morill made two free throws to cut it to 56-53.

The Sun Devils had a chance to get within one, but Shipp missed a layup in traffic and Porter made a 15-foot floater and Oregon led 58-53 1:21 from the finish.

Antwi Atuahene's rebound basket with 57 seconds left cut the lead to 58-55, and the Sun Devils got the ball back after Porter missed a 3. But ASU threw the ball away, and Brooks sealed the victory by making both ends of a one-and-one.

The Ducks had trouble all night with Arizona State's glacial pace.

A total of 10 points were scored - by both teams - in the final 7:35 of the first half.

The Sun Devils went 6 1/2 minutes without a field goal and still trailed only 29-26 when Pendergraph ended the drought with an inside basket with 1:36 left in the half. That was the score at the break.

Hairston had a torn tissue in his left heel. He also missed the first five games of the season with a groin injury.

Taylor was 5-of-6 in the first half.

For more coverage of Arizona State, visit ASUDevils.com; for more on , visit DuckSportsAuthority.com.