Eastern Washington vs Oregon Picks and Odds
- Oregon is a 13.5-point favorite over visiting Eastern Washington in Monday’s game at the Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene (7:00 pm ET)
- The game was originally scheduled to be both teams’ opener (on Nov. 25) but was postponed because of COVID-19 concerns
- Eastern Washington is 0-2 but both losses have been by three points to Pac-12 teams on the road
In a sign of the times of the 2020-21 college basketball, a game scheduled to be played on the first day of the season will now be played 12 days later.
Oregon hosts Eastern Washington at 7 p.m. ET on Monday at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene. The Ducks, who are favored, and Eagles were originally supposed to square off Nov. 25 but the game was cancelled because of a COVID-19 outbreak on Eastern Washington.
Eastern Washington vs Oregon Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Washington | +900 | +13.5 (-106) | Over 143.5 (-114) |
| Oregon | -1600 | -13.5 (-114) | Under 143.5 (-106) |
Odds taken Dec. 7 from FanDuel
Oregon has split its first two games and is also 1-1 against the spread. Eastern Washington is 0-2, losing both games to Pac-12 teams, but is 2-0 ATS.
Transfers Spark Oregon
Oregon was No. 21 in the Associated Press’ media poll going into its delayed opener against Missouri 83-75 but fell out of the rankings after losing to the Tigers in Omaha, Neb., last week.
The Ducks were 3.5-point favorites in that game.
They bounced back two days later, also in Omaha, to beat Seton Hall 83-70 as four-point picks.
Transfer Eugene Omoruyi has quickly emerged as Oregon’s top player. The former Rutgers standout forward had 31 points and 11 rebounds against Missouri then followed with a 22-point effort versus Seton Hall.
@OregonMBB will host Eastern Washington for their home opener at 4pm PST. Look for Eugene Omoruyi to continue his stellar play for the Ducks as he is averaging 26.5 PPG, 7.5 RPG while shooting 55.6% from the field. #GameDay @NetScouts #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/nKrcnSZOG3
— Chad Mart (@ChadMart1) December 7, 2020
Omoruyi sat out last season as a redshirt after averaging 13.8 points and 7.2 rebounds for the Scarlet Knights in 2018-19.
Another transfer making an impact as junior forward Eric Williams Jr. has scored 28 points in two games. He comes from Duquesne, where he scored nearly 1,000 points in two seasons.
Senior guard Chris Duarte has also helped make up for the scoring and passing lost when All-American guard Payton Pritchard’s eligibility ran out at the end of last season. Duarte is scoring 18.0 points a game and dishing out a team-high 4.5 assists.
The NCAA ruled senior wing I.J. Figueroa eligible the day of the Seton Hall game. The St. John’s transfer had six points, nine rebounds and four steals in 26 minutes.
EWU Hanging Tough
Eastern Washington has shown it can be competitive with Pac-12 schools on the road.
The Eagles lost 71-68 to Washington State in their opener as 5.5-point underdogs. Eastern Washington then fell 80-77 at Arizona on Saturday as 12.5-point dogs.
Sophomore Tyler Robertson lead the team with a career high 14 points against Arizona yesterday!
We are headed to Oregon for another Pac12 challenge! #GoEags pic.twitter.com/VY3XTEOfhv
— EWU Men's Basketball 🏀 (@EWUMBB) December 7, 2020
Eastern Washington have been able to use just eight players in the first two games because of coronavirus concerns.
Eastern Washington led Arizona 43-38 at halftime and were 8 of 17 on 3-pointers. However, the Eagles went 2 of 15 from beyond the arc after halftime as the Wildcats rallied and avoided a rare non-conference loss at the McKale Center.
Perhaps the closeness of those games should not be a surprise. Eastern Washington won the Big Sky Conference regular-season title last season with a 23-8 record before the pandemic dashed its hopes of reaching the NCAA Tournament for the third time in school history.
The Eagles have four players back from that title-winning team, including junior forward Tanner Grove. He leads the way with averages of 15.0 points and 7.0 rebounds a game, both team-leading figures.
Sophomore wings Tyler Robertson (14.0) and Jacob Grove (13.0) – Tanner’s brother – are also scoring in double digits along with sophomore guard Casson Rouse (13.0) and junior wing Kim Aiken Jr. (10.0).
Closer This Time?
Oregon has won all three of its games against Eastern Washington with a 22.7-point average margin of victory.
The teams last played Nov. 9, 2018 with Oregon rolling to an 81-47 victory in Eugene, easily covering as a 23-point favorite.
Look for Eastern Washington to keep it closer this time, especially coming off two narrow losses.
Pick: Eastern Washington +13.5 (-106)
John Perrotto has been covering and writing about sports for various outlets for over 40 years. His work has appeared in the likes of USA TODAY, ESPN.com, SI.com, Forbes.com, The Associated Press, Baseball Digest, and more. John is based out of Beaver Falls, PA.
