Final: Top-seeded Oregon dispatches Duke, moves one step from first Final Four since 1939

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Oregon forward Chris Boucher finds himself fenced in by several Duke players during the first half of Thursday's NCAA West Region semifinal at Honda Center. MICHAEL GOULDING, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

ANAHEIM – Oregon is moving on in the NCAA Tournament ^[1] at the expense of the defending national champions.

Dillon Brooks scored 22 points to lift the top-seeded Ducks to an 82-68 victory over fourth-seeded Duke in a West Region semifinal Thursday night at Honda Center. Oregon is on the brink of its first Final Four since the Final Four began – way back in 1939.

Elgin Cook had 16 points and nine rebounds for the top-seeded Ducks (31-6), who will meet second-seeded Oklahoma on Saturday. The Sooners routed Texas A&M, 77-63, earlier Thursday.

After a season-long rise in the Pacific Northwest, the Pac-12 champion Ducks emphatically arrived on the national stage with a strong second-half rally to beat the mighty Blue Devils (25-11) for the first time in school history.

Freshman Brandon Ingram scored 24 points, but Duke fell short of its third Elite Eight trip in five years. The Blue Devils lost five of their final 10 games.

Duke's leading scorer this season, Grayson Allen, struggled and finished with 15 points on 4-for-13 shooting.

More to come on this story.

Contact the writer: bkeisser@ocregister.com ^[2]