We are in the middle of college football season, with the Oregon Ducks in great shape 4-0but we are also two months away from a college basketball season it could be memorable for Oregon. Leading the Ducks will be the second-year point guard Jackson Shelstadwho was named to the preseason All-Big-Ten team on Tuesday.
Shelstad’s selection comes as no surprise after his spectacular freshman season. Playing in 32 games in 2023, Shelstad averaged 12.8 points, 2.8 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game while shooting 45% from the field, 34.5% from three and 85.7% from the free throw line.
The Ducks’ 2023 season ended with an incredible and improbable run to the NCAA Tournament. With no chance of earning an at-large bid, the Ducks beat UCLA, Arizona and Colorado consecutively to win the final Pac-12 championship, punching their ticket to March Madness where they upset South Carolina in the first round and took three seeds. Creighton in overtime in the round of 16.
Shelstad was a major factor in the Ducks’ winning streak at the end of the season, averaging 13.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists, with shooting splits of 40%/ 32%/85% in Pac-12 and NCAA tournaments. Shelstad hit some big shots in those games, but like the entire season, he struggled with consistency.
A lack of consistency is no surprise for a freshman like Shelstad. Instead, it’s waiting. But now, as a sophomore, he’s hopefully developed that part of his game, because Oregon will need it. With the departure of N’Faly Dante and Jermaine Couisnard – the other two stars of the 2023 teams – Shelstad will have the task of leading the Ducks back to the NCAA tournament.
