URI had no timeouts left in the final minute of the game which they could have used to set up a play.
There are three timeouts in the second half that URI head coach Dan Hurley might like to have back.
"We need to use the timeouts against a team of that level just to be in the position that we were in. Would we have loved to have saved a timeout in case we had the ball with 18 seconds left down 3? You're trying to, in the moment, you know, stay -- keep the lead or stop surges from those guys," said URI head coach Dan Hurley after the game.
Following the media timeout at the eight-minute mark, Hurley called another timeout with 7:46 to play and URI leading 64-60. Out of the timeout, URI got a jumper from Jared Terrell to extend their lead to 66-60 with 7:30 to play.
Hurley took another timeout with 4:39 to play and URI trailing 68-66 in the game. There was a media timeout coming at the four-minute mark.
Out of the timeout, Terrell missed a jumper, but the Rams would force a turnover and then tied the game on a running jumper from E.C. Matthews following the four-minute timeout.
Hurley would call his final timeout with 1:09 to play and the game tied at 72. Out of the timeout, Jared Terrell would turn the ball over leading to the game winning three by Oregon's Tyler Dorsey with just under a minute to play to give Oregon a 75-72 lead. The score they would go on to win by.
"The difference in the game there, Tyler Dorsey hit a contested three and we missed a contested three," Hurley said.
URI's Final Possessions
Now trailing 75-72 with 26 seconds left and no timeouts, the Rams would have two chances to tie the game.
The first chance came from Stanford Robinson who launched a three, but it would miss the mark. URI freshman Jeff Dowtin would grab the offensive rebound leading to URI's second opportunity.
After Oregon gave a foul with 11 seconds to play, URI had the ball in the hands of Matthews with a couple of seconds left.
Matthews would take a contested three, but it would be an airball. The Ducks would grab the offensive rebound and seal the win.
"We do something called winning time every day. We did it in the ballroom today. We did it yesterday in practice. We ran an action that we ran against Houston to get a three earlier in the year, but their switching screwed us up and they did a great job of taking away the three-point line," said Hurley about the final possession.
Matthews only scored three points in the second half after scoring ten points in the first.
Hassan Martin Foul Trouble
In the biggest game of the season, senior forward Hasan Martin only played 14 minutes, did not score a point and did not grab a rebound.
Martin, who has picked up at least four fouls nine times this season, picked up two fouls in the opening minutes and only played three minutes in the first half.
Martin returned in the second half, but picked up his third foul with 14:50 to play. Martin would be in and out of the game the rest of the way, but would not be effective.
Hurley said after the game that Martin was also battling a knee injury.
"Obviously Hassan was struggling physically out there. His knee has been a problem. His knee was a problem coming out of the A-10 Tournament. It was an issue that week that we tried not to talk about," Hurley said.
URI Can't Hold on in 2nd
After leading by as much as 11 points in the second half, URI saw their lead cut to one, 66-65, with 5:34 to play following a layup from Oregon's Jordan Bell.
Hassan Martin would miss a jumper on the Rams ensuing possession and it would turn into a three from Dillon Brooks on the other end to give Oregon a 68-66 lead.
Martin did not score a point or grab a rebound in his final game as a Ram.
Matthews would tie the game at 68 on a running jumper in the lane. The jumper sparked the Rams on a quick 6-0 run to take a 72-68 lead with 2:20 left to play in the game.
However, Oregon would close the game on a 7-0 run to advance to the Sweet 16.
Dan Hurley has officially put Rhode Island on the national radar. Rams are in position to be a brand name outside the power six leagues.
The Rams were carried by their bench in the first half, namely Robinson and Cyril Langevine.
The two combined for 22 points (Robinson 13, Langevine 9) to lead URI to a 46-38 halftime lead.
Rhode Island trailed by as much as eight points on three different occasions, the final time coming with 7:28 to play.
Two free throws from Dorsey gave the Ducks a 28-20 lead before the Rams went on a 9-4 run to cut their deficit to 32-29 following a layup from Matthews.
URI would eventually take the lead in the half when Robinson knocked down a three to put URI up 37-36 with 2:54 to go.
From that point, Rhode Island closed the half on a 9-2 run to take a 46-38 lead into the break.
URI shot 59% from the field in the first half and forced Oregon into 10 turnovers. Rhode Island scored 16 points off those turnovers.
The Leaders
Robinson led the Rams with a season-high 21 points on 10 of 12 shooting off the bench for Rhode Island.
"Stan was big-time. He's come such a long way as a player since he transferred in. This was a guy that I think he was changing from lefty to righty at one point in Indiana and now he's running around hitting jump shots. He was so aggressive and downhill," Hurley said.
Jared Terrell followed up with 15 points, 6 assists, and 4 steals.
Related Slideshow: Starting Lineup Projections for URI, PC, Bryant & Brown Basketball Teams
The biggest story line for the upcoming college basketball season in Rhode Island is the return of Matthews from a torn ACL, which he suffered in the first game of the 2015-16 season.
"Anytime you return a guy who is a potential player of the year candidate and potential NBA Draft pick, it gives the entire team a shot in the arm," said URI head coach Dan Hurley.
Matthews was named second team all-conference at the Atlantic 10 media day, and most recently, he was named to the Jerry West Award watch list for the third straight season.
For his career, Matthews averages 16 points per game.
Terrell has started 64 of the 65 games that he has played in his career, and this season will split back court duties with E.C. Matthews, giving the Rams one of the best back courts in the conference.
Last season, Terrell averaged 13.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game for the Rams, reaching double figures in scoring in 13 of URI's final 14 games.
In those 13 games, Terrell had at least 20 points in six of them.
Martin was named to the A-10's preseason all-defensive team and also second team all conference at A-10 media day.
"When Hassan was at his best was during his sophomore year when he was just a complete animal. I think you will see some of that this year," said Hurley.
Martin had 103 blocked shots and 24 steals during his sophomore season, while averaging 11.4 points per game, helping the Rams earn a spot in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT).
In 2015-16, Martin averaged 2.5 blocks per game overall, and 2.4 blocks per game in conference play, putting him atop the league leaders for the third straight season. The 2.5 blocks per game was 18th best in the country.
Martin finished his 2015-16 season with 65 blocked shots, ranking him sixth in program history for most blocks in a season. He is also second all-time on URI's career blocked shots list with 248 blocks.
Offensively, Martin averaged 12 points per game last season, averaging nine points per game for his career.
Reunited with Matthews, the two will serve as one of the top 1-2 punches in the A-10.
Now in his second season with the Rams after transferring in from Memphis, Iverson is coming off a 2015-16 campaign where he averaged 9.8 points per game, and recorded four double-doubles.
Expect to see Iverson get much better looks this year with the return of E.C. Matthews.
"I think for him its just simplyfiyng his game. He has so much talent on the floor, he needs to focus on doing a couple of things really well," said Hurley. "He has the ability to be an elite offensive rebounder, just needs to keep it simple."
Iverson is the cousin of NBA Hall of Famer Allen Iverson.
Kyron Cartwright has big shoes to fill as he replaces Kris Dunn at the point guard position.
"We are looking for Kyron to be a vocal leader, and a leader on the floor. We need him in order to get where we want to go," said Providence head coach Ed Cooley.
During the 2015-16 season, Cartwright averaged six points and four assists per game for the Friars in an average of 24.2 minutes of action per game.
Sharpshooter Ryan Fazekas started 12 of 28 games for the Friars in his freshman season, but missed about a month of action due to mono.
Fazekas averaged five points per game for PC, and shot 34% from behind the three-point line for the year.
"I think that he is developing great, he continues to put the work in. He should be a focal point in our offense this year," said Ed Cooley.
His best game came against Brown in the third game of the season, when he connected on five of the eight three pointers that he attempted, scoring a career high 17 points.
Kris Dunn and Ben Bentil are gone, mean Bullock is going to be one of the go-to guys in the Friars offense.
"His role is going to change, Kyron's role is going to change. We are going to rely heavily on them for offense, and will need both of them to score points" said Cooley.
Bullock averaged 11.4 points and 6.8 rebounds while playing an average of 32 minutes per game.
The 2015-16 campaign was Bullock's first season of college basketball after he tore his ACL in October of 2014, and was suspended for the 2013-14 season.
Holt, a 6 '7" forward with a 7'3" wingspan, comes to the Friars from Indian Hills Community College where he averaged 11.6 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, while shooting 69% from the field.
That incident came just ten months after he hit teammate Devin Davis with his car, while having alcohol in his system.
"Emmitt is an impressive young name with a bright future, and he will have a successful final two seasons at Providence. Emmitt is the type of person and player that will try to do whatever is asked of him. He is very unselfish and will fit great into the basketball program at Providence, as well as in PC's community," said Indian Hills head coach, Hank Piona, upon Holt's commitment to Providence.
Young is a 6'9" forward with a 7'0" wingspan from Toronto, Canada where he attended Orangeville Prep. He is ranked as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com.
On the freshman class, Cooley said, "They are learning, they are nervous, they are trying not to make a mistake, which means they are making every mistake, but they will be okay. We just have to coach their confidence."
Last spring, Young played for the CIA Bounce of the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) and averaged 6.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.
Hunter Ware started 29 of the 30 games that he played in for Bryant last season, and scored at least 20 points on six different occasions for the Bulldogs.
On the season, Ware averaged 12.7 points per game, while shooting 41% from the field.
"He has been around, now he is a junior so he has a great feel for what we are trying to do. The biggest thing for him is to show consistency with his shooting," said Bryant associate head coach Happy Dobbs.
According to Dobbs, freshman Ikenna Ndugba will be in the starting lineup for the Bulldogs when they tip off their season in November.
Ndugba is from Boston where he played for coach John McVeigh at the Brooks School.
In his senior season, he led his team in scoring with 13 points, 6.5 assists and four steals per game while finishing third in rebounding, averaging six rebounds per game.
When the season ended, Ndugba was named Independent School League Player of the Year, New England Class B Player of the year and MVP of the New England Class B Tournament Team.
As a freshman, Brockton's Zouzoua became only the second freshman to lead the Bulldogs in scoring in the program's Division I history. The previous freshman to do so was Alex Francis.
Zouzoua appeared in 31 games for the Bulldogs, starting 25 of them. He was selected to the NEC All-Rookie team after leading Bryant with 12.8 points per game.
He also showed his range, knocking down 60 three-pointers on the year, and shooting 37% from behind the three-point line. The 60 three-pointers ranked second most among league rookies.
North Providence's Pettway became only the second player in program history to earn the NEC Rookie of the Year award, after Alex Francis did it in 2011. He will look to build on that success in 2016-17.
"He is more confident coming back this year. Now he is just working on every aspect of his game and focusing more on his free throw shooting," said Dobbs.
In 2015-16, Pettway started the last 22 games for Bryant and finished his freshman year averaging 11.4 points per game, fourth best among league rookies. Pettway shot 59.7 percent from the field on the season and recorded 8 double-doubles, including a career high 26 points and 11 rebounds against Fairleigh Dickinson.
The 8 double-doubles are tied for most by a freshman in Bryant's Division I history.
Named a captain for the 2016-17 season, Blackmon is coming off a 2015-16 season in which he dished out 5.5 assists per game to lead the Ivy League, while ranking fourth in three-point field goal percentage - shooting 44% from behind the three-point line.
"All of our captains are important, but it all starts with Tavon. He is our point guard, the ball is in his hands. As we say, he is our engine," said Brown head coach Mike Martin.
Along with the assists, Blackmon also reached double figures in scoring 20 times, and scored at least 20 points on four different occasions for the Bears.
For his career, Blackmon averages ten points and 4.3 assists per game.
Named one of three captains for the 2016-17 season, sharpshooter Hobbie enters his final season ranking fifth all-time at Brown with 191 career three-pointers made. In 2015-16 he ranked third in the Ivy League in three-pointers made per game with an average of 2.6.
"JR is one of the best shooters that I have ever been around, he is a huge weapon for us," said Martin.
For his career, Hobbie averages 7.9 points per game and shoots 42% from three-point land.
Named one of three captains for the 2016-17 season, Spieth is coming off a 2015-16 campaign where averaged 10.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game for the Bears.
In his career, Spieth has started 86 of the 87 games that he has played in and has averaged 9.6 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.
Spieth is the brother of professional golf star Jordan Spieth, who has won two major championships in his career, and most recently helped Team USA win the Ryder Cup.
6'9" forward, Erebor is a rated as a two-star recruit, according to Scout.com, out of Our Lady of Carmel School in Maryland.
“David is a talented front court player, who comes with a very high ceiling. He's mobile, athletic, and can protect the rim defensively. Offensively, he is comfortable with his back to the basket or facing up. He will make an impact at both ends of the floor," said Brown head coach Mike Martin.
As a senior at Our Lady of Mount Carmel High School, Erebor averaged 15 points and eight rebounds per game.
He was named Defensive Player of the Year in his senior season.
Charnov is a 6'11" freshman out of Kinkaid High School in Houston, Texas, and brings the Bears much needed size and scoring up front.
Charnov is rated as a two-star recruit, according to Verbal Commits.com, and averaged 15 points and nine rebounds per game in his senior year of high school.
"All of our freshmen are working hard, we are throwing a lot at them. It's obviously a big adjustment for them both on and off the court, but they were all recruited for a reason and our hope is that they will be able to contribute sooner rather than later," said Martin.
