What’s All the Hype About Chris Boucher?
Chris Boucher, the 6-10, 190 pound, senior forward for the University of Oregon men’s basketball team was born in Castries, St. Lucia. St. Lucia is a small country in the Caribbean. However, Boucher actually grew up in Montreal, Quebec where he attended Damase Boulanger High School and developed his love for the game. After high school, he attended New Mexico Junior College, before playing his sophomore year at Northwest College in Wyoming, where he averaged 22.5 points and 11.8 rebounds, earning All-American honors.
Last year as a transfer for the UO, he was a big time contributor on both ends of the floor. Boucher appeared in all 38 games last season, starting in 35. He averaged 12.1 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.9 blocks, on 54% field goal shooting. The lengthy and agile defensive specialist led the Pac-12 in total blocks last season, swatting a monstrous total of 110. Last season, he also became the only Pac-12 player in history with 35 three-pointers and 100 blocks in the same season. Add 9 double-doubles to his stats from last year, and you can already see that he quickly became a huge threat in NCAA basketball in just his first year with Oregon. Chris, as well as the rest of team, looks to carry this momentum from last season into the 2016-2017 season, hoping to advance even further into the tournament this year than last.
Their No. 5 ranking this season, after their appearance in the Elite Eight last year, puts them as one of the best teams in the nation. Boucher is looking to have an even more dominant season than last year. In their annual exhibition game against Northwest Christian University, he put up 25 points on 10 of 13 shooting. His presence on the defensive end was felt, as per usual, he worked aggressively to get to the rack, and he even displayed a more improved outside shot. If Boucher can continue to play at this elite level for the entirety of the season, the Ducks should have no problem 1-Upping last year's performance.
