Arizona vs. Oregon: Score, Twitter Reaction for Pac-12 Championship 2015

Arizona earned its first Pac-12 tournament title since 2002 with an 80-52 win over Oregon.

The Wildcats are known for their defense, but they showcased their offensive ability by making 54.5 percent of their shots from the floor. Brandon Ashley was the star of the day with 20 points and five rebounds, leading to this reaction from Jon Gold of the Arizona Daily Star:

"

Brandon Ashley is playing in this Pac-12 Tournament like he's trying to make up for missing the last one.

— Jon Gold (@TheCoolSub) March 15, 2015"

Gold also had Sean Miller's thoughts on the win:

"

"You tell them, when anyone asks when Arizona last won the Pac-12 championship, you tell them 2015," said Sean Miller, smashing Larry Scott.

— Jon Gold (@TheCoolSub) March 15, 2015"

ESPN States & Info noted the irony behind the final score:

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson filled up the box score with seven points, nine rebounds and five assists, while Stanley Johnson also had a big game with 14 points, earning what seemed like praise from announcer Bill Walton (via Rob Dauster of NBC Sports):

Pac-12 Player of the Year Joseph Young ended up with 19 points, but inconsistent shooting and a lack of help ended any chance of an Oregon upset.

After the Ducks got out to a 10-4 lead, the game quickly shifted in Arizona's favor with a 14-0 run. As Jeff Eisenberg of Yahoo Sports noted, it got bad in a hurry for the underdogs:

The Wildcats were able to go into halftime with a 36-21 lead thanks mostly to the ability to shut down Young. Greg Hanson of the Arizona Daily Star broke down the senior's struggles in the first half:

He did finally pick up his offensive game in the second half as he tried to will the Ducks back into the game, as noted by Doug Haller of AZCentral Sports:

Still, the lack of defense on the other end made sure Arizona stayed in front and even expanded the lead. Sports Illustrated explained how insane the scoring got in the second half:

Once the Wildcats got back to playing the type of defense they were capable of, the manageable deficit turned into a blowout. Andrew Greif of The Oregonian had the same reaction as many others watching:

Arizona was able to play its bench players for the final few minutes as it closed out a 28-point victory. 

Oregon came into the game as the heavy underdog, but the players were relatively relaxed for such a big moment. 

"We'll go into the game pretty loose," head coach Dana Altman said on the school's website. "They have beaten us bad twice, so our guys will be loose. We'll tell them to go swing away and have fun with the game."

Point guard T.J. McConnell made a note of something after the game that could have factored into the team's attitude, per FoxSportsArizona.com's Anthony Gimono:

This strategy didn't end up helping out, as the results were pretty much the same as the last time out, but the positive mindset should still help the Ducks heading into the NCAA tournament. 

Oregon is safely in the field, although the eventual seed will be an interesting storyline to follow. With a good RPI and an impressive end to the year to counter some poor losses at the start of league play, the squad could end up anywhere from a No. 5 to a No. 9.

With the win, Arizona will be right on the brink of either a No. 1 or No. 2 seed depending on what the selection committee values, although the squad will be a tough team to beat regardless of where it begins its run.

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