With No. 9 Arizona visiting Oregon on Saturday, it became clear early that the Wildcats would be in for a fight. Ducks center N'Faly Dante sent a very loud message to Arizona less than a minute after tipoff.
Arizona's Kerr Kriisa tried to break Oregon's press by heaving the ball down the court, but Dante stepped in front of his pass and grabbed it for a steal. Dante got a head of steam heading toward the basket, and things only got worse for Kriisa.
The 6-foot-3 Kriisa tried to step in front of the 6-foot-11 Dante in hopes of drawing a charge, but Dante took flight several feet from the hoop. The result was a thunderous dunk from Dante, who went soaring over Kriisa and drew a charge for the and-one.
N’FALY DANTE OH MY 😨😨
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) January 14, 2023
(via @SportsCenter)
pic.twitter.com/MymLFQdRRW
Dante, now in his senior season with the Ducks, has developed into an integral part of Dana Altman's team. Coming into this game against Arizona, Dante was averaging 13.0 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game.
Dante was a five-star recruit and the No. 14 overall player in the 2019 signing class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. In his 247Sports Scouting Report, Dante projected as a future first-round NBA Draft pick and drew a comparison to former Utah Jazz center Ekpe Udoh.
