GLENDALE, Ariz. -- In a basement locker room inside the University of Phoenix Stadium on Thursday, Jordan Bell dutifully fielded questions for 25 minutes, all the while spinning his cell phone between his hands, just out of view of the cameras encircling him.

Every few moments, the phone's screen lit up, the sign of a new notification, of the world wanting more of the 6-foot-9, 225-pound Bell.

Ever since his eight blocks and countless altered shots against Kansas in the NCAA Tournament's Midwest Regional final Saturday, the Oregon forward has transformed from a fan favorite in the Pacific Northwest into a social media sensation -- half-man, half-meme -- across all of college basketball.

After Oregon's win against Kansas last Saturday, a victory that propelled UO to its first Final Four since the program won the first NCAA basketball tournament ever played, in 1939, fans began inserting an image of Bell's outstretched arm, mid-block, into unrelated photos. Now, a quick search delivers scenes of Bell holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa, blocking President Donald Trump's hair from flying away, and swatting E.T. on his bike ride to the moon. A Twitter account, followed by more than 500 people, was even created, devoted solely to distributing these altered photos.

"Hilarious," Bell called them.

#ThingsJordanBellCouldBlock



That Auburn field goal that should have never happened because Michael Dyer was down. #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/eJj9ug2WOs — ThingsBellCouldBlock (@BellCouldBlock) March 28, 2017

At this point, Bell's top priority has become blocking out the hype surrounding his play.

For those just tuning into the junior's career, his defense and blocks have been a revelation of the tournament, and understandably so. Bell, who averages 10.9 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game, has increased those numbers to 12.5, 12.5 and 3.0 during UO's four games in the tournament despite facing extra attention from opponents due to the season-ending injury Chris Boucher suffered during the Pac-12 tournament.

But to those who've tracked Bell since he arrived in Eugene, his displays of outrageous athleticism are nothing new. Instead, his improvements mastering the game's nuances draw the most praise.

"Part of it has just been his focus," UO coach Dana Altman said. "And he's risen to the occasion. I think he knew when Chris went down that there was going to be more pressure on him to perform. And fortunately for us, he's handled that pressure very well."

That pressure will ratchet up Saturday when the Ducks face North Carolina in a national semifinal at 5:49 p.m. Led by 6-foot-10, 260-pound Kennedy Meeks, who ranks among the country's top-50 in both offensive and defensive rebounding rates, the Tar Heels are the best offensive-rebounding team in the country, grabbing 41.9 percent of available rebounds on that end, per KenPom.com. The Division I average is 29.3 percent.

And the Ducks won't have the 6-foot-11 Boucher, the team's second-leading rebounder, to provide depth in the frontcourt, due to his ACL tear.

"They're definitely the best rebounding team we've ever faced," Bell said.

Bell's effectiveness neutralizing Meeks and the Tar Heels defensively will take center stage in the 72,000-seat football stadium, but the work for this assignment began years ago in a small, sweaty high school gymnasium in Compton.

Since 2013, Bell has played in the Drew League, the summer circuit that bills itself as "the most elite summer league in the world." Current and former NBA players such as James Harden and Nick Young have been regulars. A high school-aged Bell entered this grown-man's world in 2013, while still in high school in Long Beach.

He played again in 2014, and last summer, too, when in one game he guarded nine-year pro JaVale McGee. Though McGee has often been the subject of derision for his head-scratching play in the NBA, he's still 7 feet tall, 270 pounds and as long as the drawl of North Carolina coach Roy Williams.

"He was just killing us in the post," Bell said. "It's very humbling because those guys are in the NBA. You want to be on that level, so it shows you the kind of time and effort you have to put in."

Bell has always relied on his athleticism, but that alone didn't work against players like McGee, he said. After a game last summer at Compton's King/Drew Magnet High School, McGee took Bell aside for a lesson on doing the little things better.

"He was telling me how to guard bigger people because I was doing one thing and he said no, you have to switch it up on people who are quicker and use that to my advantage," Bell said. "I learned how to make them read you, more than you read them."

The experience was invaluable, UO assistant Kevin McKenna said. He knows from experience.

In college, when McKenna would return from Creighton to suburban Chicago for the summer, he played in a pro-am league in the city, and said his teammates included future NBA stars Isiah Thomas, Doc Rivers and Mark Aguirre.

"I really felt like that's where I learned to play harder, tougher," McKenna said. "I was in college playing against 25-year-old men. That's a big difference, that five or six years of maturity and physicality and those guys knowing all the tricks of the trade.

"I'm sure Jordan's the same. Jordan's a sponge when it comes to basketball. He's a really good instinctive player and I'm sure those experiences playing against those guys have helped him."

Meeks of North Carolina will be "a totally different type of big man" to defend for Bell, McKenna said, because he's a more traditional low-post player. Though Bell had success against Landen Lucas of Kansas, who is of a similar mold, he's seen more "three-and-D" forwards such as Ivan Rabb of Cal and, in practice, Boucher -- players as likely to hoist a three as swat your shot.

As a freshman, that matchup might have been daunting. But Bell hasn't pressed since Boucher's injury, adhering instead to the goal of doing just "one extra thing."

"I don't think I've been doing anything differently as far as my play," Bell said. "I think I'm just probably playing harder knowing that I have to do more and knowing the stage we're on and it's win or go home.

"I don't think I've been playing different, I think I've just been doing my role better."

It's an understatement. He has grabbed at least 12 rebounds in his last five NCAA Tournament games dating to last year, a feat last accomplished by Hakeem Olajuwon in 1983-84. Oregon's rebounding, its Achilles' heel late this season, has become a strength. The Ducks are allowing 1.5 fewer offensive rebounds per game since Boucher's injury. Credit goes to Oregon's guards, who have made a concerted effort to run in for rebounds to help Bell and 6-11 Kavell Bigby-Williams, Boucher's reserve.

But, "Jordan has really been a monster," freshman point guard Payton Pritchard said.

Bell will have a decision to make regarding his future after the Final Four, with recent DraftExpress.com mock drafts listing Bell as an early second-round pick in June's NBA draft. DraftExpress also rates Bell the eighth-best NCAA junior.

Without the security of knowing he will be a no-doubt first-round pick, Bell seems to fit the target audience of an NCAA rule altered in 2016 to allow players more time to make a more informed decision on their draft stock. Players now can declare for the NBA draft multiple times and attend the league's combine and a team tryout, all while retaining their eligibility should they opt to return to college, so long as they don't hire an agent.

Time will tell how popular Bell is with NBA general managers.

But this March, there's no question he's been a hit with fans across the country.

Following the victory against Kansas, Super Bowl-winning linebacker Ray Lewis sent a tweet, just one of many to light up Bell's phone.

"Jordan Bell is a grown man," Lewis wrote. "My goodness."

-- Andrew Greif

agreif@oregonian.com

@andrewgreif