Pac-12 basketball: Oregon wins in OT after Washington State's ill-timed foul

Pullman, Wash. • Oregon's E.J. Singler was prepared for a lot of possible scenarios as he dribbled the ball up the court with the Ducks and Washington State tied in the final seconds of overtime.

What he didn't expect was WSU's Dexter Kernich-Drew to reach out and foul him.

Singler sank both free throws with 3.8 seconds left in overtime as No. 23 Oregon escaped with a 79-77 win over slumping Washington State on Saturday.

"Some of the guys were calling 'foul,' so I don't think he knew what the score was," said Singler, who finished with 25 points. "I was shocked."

Washington State players and coaches rallied around Kernich-Drew, saying one mistake did not cause the defeat.

"It was just a mistake," WSU's Brock Motum said. "It's in the past now. He needs to keep his head up."

"If not for him we wouldn't have been in the game," Washington State coach Ken Bone said of Kernich-Drew, who had several key baskets.

Carlos Emory added 20 points for Oregon (21-5, 10-3 Pac-12), which held on to first place in the conference.

Royce Woolridge scored a career-high 36 points for Washington State (11-15, 2-11), losers of six straight. Woolridge missed a half-court shot as time expired.

Washington State built an 18-point lead in the first half, and led by 11 at halftime. But Ducks erased that in the early minutes of the second half.