The hosts of the Blazer Focused podcast‚ Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian/OregonLive and Craig Birnbach, discuss the Blazers’ unexpected 127-113 win at Atlanta, Deni Avdija’s second triple-double, Toumani Camara’s chances of landing on the All-Defensive team and much more.

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The true joy of the NCAA Tournament is that it makes stars of unlikely players. And that can occur both on or off the court.

One example was a clip of The Oregonian Sports Podcast hosts Bill Oram and Brenna Greene during crunch time of Oregon’s second-round loss to Arizona in Seattle. Sitting behind the national TV broadcasters, the hosts engaged in animated conversation.

What were they talking about? Well, how good are your lip-reading skills?

On this week’s episode, Bill and Brenna relive the moment that went viral before moving onto more serious topics, including:

• The Ducks loss was thrilling but cost them a shot at top-ranked Duke

• The transfer portal comes for Oregon State’s best players

• Missing the NCAA Tournament may have been a blessing in disguise for the UP women

• An update on the Portland Diamond Project’s $800 million ask of state legislators — including one key endorsement

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The hosts of the Blazer Focused podcast‚ Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian/OregonLive and Craig Birnbach, discuss the Blazers making noise in the tight race for the final play-in berth in the Western Conference and more during the latest episode.

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The Oregon men are back in the NCAA Tournament and, like last year, back in a 5-12 matchup. Unlike last year, the Ducks are the 5-seed team. Can they overpower Liberty and play for a chance to get to the second weekend in Newark?

The Ducks are encountering one of the best three-point shooting teams in the country. And while March Madness is defined by buzzer-beaters and threes, will the Flames actually be able to outshoot Oregon if the Ducks exert their advantage in the paint?

On this week’s episode of the Oregonian Sports Podcast, hosts Bill Oram and Brenna Greene break down that matchup, while also looking ahead to both the Oregon and Oregon State women making their returns to the tournament field.

Also discussed on the show:

• Scenes from Selection Sunday in Eugene and Corvallis

• Which local team entering the NCAA Tournament has actually disappointed?

• A high school legend finally wins a trophy

• Did we witness a passing of the torch in 6A girls hoops?

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The hosts of the Blazer Focused podcast‚ Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian/OregonLive and Craig Birnbach, discuss the Portland Trail Blazers' fading play-in hopes, the play of Scoot Henderson and Deni Avdija, and more.

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Every once in a while something so remarkable happens that it jumps past all the other very important events of the day and becomes banner news.

So while the Oregon men are moving through the Big Ten tournament and two in-state women’s teams just battled for an NCAA Tournament berth, Bill Oram and Brenna Greene absolutely had to start this week’s episode of the Oregonian Sports Podcast with a thorough breakdown of Natalie Zito, nee Gilbert’s, surprise appearance to sing the national anthem in front of ex-Blazers coach Maurice Cheeks on Wednesday night.

While the Blazers have been on an upswing in the second half of the season, the franchise’s idea to reunite Gilbert and Cheeks may have been the season’s best moment.

Also discussed on this week’s episode:

• Combined with Bill Walton’s tribute night 72 hours earlier, this has been a big week for Blazers game ops

• Bill describes other memorable national anthem performances, including a notable freeze-job by an Oscar nominee

• Oregon State’s win over Portland in the WCC women’s title game was a celebration of Oregon hoops

• The Oregon men further burnished their March Madness resume with a win over Indiana on the Hoosiers’ home turf

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The Portland Diamond Project has been kicking around ideas for so long that it may take time for some to catch up to the fact that the proposal has transformed and gained real momentum among elected officials and business leaders.

Is baseball on the South Waterfront a real possibility? That’s unclear. But what’s certain is that this is an aptitude test for Portland when it comes to taking a big swing.

On this week’s episode of the Oregonian Sports podcast, hosts Bill Oram and Brenna Greene discuss the new renderings of a potential ballpark and the Diamond Project’s plans to seek up to $900 million in financing from the legislature, plus other topics.

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The hosts of the Blazer Focused podcast‚ Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian/OregonLive and Craig Birnbach, discuss the Blazers winning five out of six, what Kyrie Irving being lost for the season means for Dallas and the Blazers, the rise of Shaedon Sharpe and Deni Avdija, plus what reaching the play-in would mean for the franchise.

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The Oregon men’s basketball team has rediscovered the spark that keyed its early season run. After an impressive come-from-behind win at No. 11 Wisconsin, the Ducks are looking more and more like a team that could make noise in the NCAA Tournament. At the center of that is their Mr. Clutch, Jackson Shelstad.

On this episode of the Oregonian Sports Podcast, hosts Bill Oram and Brenna Greene discuss the fast-approaching college basketball postseason and the outlook for teams around the state, including the Ducks and Beavers

Also on this week’s episode: 

• Shaedon Sharpe’s dunk broke the Internet

• Bill gets a new puppy and, more vitally, gets to name it

• A history lesson about the time two NBA legends met in Corvallis

• Portland State football returns downtown — for a day

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The hosts of the Blazer Focused podcast‚ Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian/OregonLive and Craig Birnbach, discuss the team's recent winning streak, chances of reaching the play-in, Shaedon Sharpe’s career night and much more.

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