By Stephen Vilardo, SuperWest Sports
Sports
Derailed by Injuries, Ducks Hoping to Finish Strong
In his first 15 seasons as head coach of the Oregon men’s basketball program, Dana Altman strung together 15-straight 20+ win seasons, never missing a postseason appearance.
The expectations were largely predicated on the health and play of Altman’s top two players, Jackson Shelstad and Nate Bittle, both of whom have struggled through injuries.
Here’s a look at the season no one saw coming.
Oregon’s 2025-26 season took a hit before the first preseason game, when Jackson Shelstad broke his right hand in October.
He returned after missing only a few contests, and hopes remained high—but not for long.
The star guard not only showed signs of rust but also sustained ligament damage to the same hand on December 28 against Omaha, sidelining him for the season.
Nate Bittle has faced significant setbacks as well, including an ankle injury in late November 2025 and a more serious foot injury on January 13, 2026, against Nebraska.
As if the Ducks haven’t been banged up enough, Bittle’s backup, Ege Demir, has missed the last five games, while Devon Pryor has dealt with a groin injury for the last two weeks.
In short, the Oregon roster has been beaten up all season.
Bittle returned to the floor last weekend against Purdue after missing the better part of the last month, leading the team with 23 points in 34 minutes as UO nearly upset the 13th-ranked Boilermakers.
Despite the promising outing at Purdue, the Ducks followed the close loss with a blowout defeat at Indiana two days later, stretching their losing streak to 10 games.
Currently the fifth-longest skid in the nation—and the longest among all Power Five programs—it marks the first time in Dana Altman’s 37-year career that his troops have dropped 10 straight.
It is also Oregon’s longest losing streak since the 2008-09 season, before Altman’s arrival, when the Ducks lost 14 in a row en route to dropping 17 of their last 19 games.
The bugaboo for Oregon all season long has been their struggles from the floor. The Ducks rank 309th in the nation in shooting percentage at 42.5%.
That was an issue again on the most recent road trip.
Against Purdue, they lit it up in the first half, only to connect on just 37% of their shots after halftime, allowing the game to slip away in the end.
Their shooting woes continued for much of Monday night as they shot just 40% against Indiana in the first half.
In the second half, they managed to knock down 50% from the floor, but it’s little help when you allow the opposition to connect on 81.8% of their shots.
And that brings us to another recurring problem this season: The Ducks have struggled to protect the hoop.
Oregon has allowed opponents to shoot 49.2% from the floor during their 10-game slide. On the season, they are 239th nationally in FG defense.
Again, a big reason for that has been injuries and the loss of their All-Big Ten-caliber defender for a significant time. Bittle has not been playing at the all-conference level on that side of the ball.
But who can blame him?
He is playing on not one, but two bad ankles at the moment, and he just doesn’t have the lift he needs to contest shots. He has been plagued by a foot injury of some kind all season.
Credit the fifth-year senior for continuing to battle. It would have been easy for him to pack it in for the season.
Missing a pair of All-Big Ten-caliber performers is never easy to overcome; add in the numerous other injuries and missed time in the lineup, and the result has been predictably disastrous.
It has certainly shown on the offensive end of the floor. The Ducks just don’t have the firepower to keep up when the defense gets away from them.
This figures to be the first time in Altman’s tenure in Eugene that his Ducks fail to win at least 20 games.
Yet, much like Bittle, the team is still playing hard and battling, as was evident in taking Purdue to the wire in West Lafayette.
The Schedule will ease up slightly with four of the last seven games at home and only two away from the West Coast.
Over the next month of the season, Altman can hope the effort remains steady, enabling his squad to climb out of the league’s cellar.
That would allow Oregon to build some momentum to carry into the offseason.
The opportunity for a positive result is there for the taking on Saturday as fellow Big Ten bottom-dweller Penn State (11-14, 2-12) visits Matthew Knight Arena.
That outcome could signal the start of a strong finish, or signify a new low in a season full of valleys.
writes about various topics for SuperWest sports, including stats and records, college sports, and motorsports. He also founded and runs the Sports and Entertainment Research Center (SERC).
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