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Oregon senior Chris Boucher -- the Ducks’ third-leading scorer, second-leading rebounder and leading shot-blocker -- suffered a torn ACL in Friday’s 73-65 Pac-12 Tournament semifinal victory over Cal that will sideline him for the rest of the season, a source confirmed to CBS Sports.
Consequently, Boucher’s college career is over.
Boucher was averaging 11.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.5 blocks in 23.5 minutes for the Ducks, who are scheduled to play Arizona Saturday in the Pac-12 Tournament title game. Oregon will, with a win, be 30-4 and in possession of a résumé worthy of consideration for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. But Boucher’s injury could be the thing that prevents Dana Altman’s team from getting it.
NCAA Tournament selection chair Mark Hollis reiterated to CBS Sports this weekend, in an unrelated conversation before Boucher’s injury, that the selection committee does account for injuries and has the leeway to adjust teams’ seeds based on who is and is not available for the NCAA Tournament. Oregon suddenly appears to be a perfect candidate for such treatment. Bottom line, win or lose Saturday night, it’s now doubtful Oregon will get a No. 1 seed. That’s the immediate impact of Boucher’s loss.
