EUGENE -- A little over a week ago in Portland, after the Oregon Ducks had beaten UNLV inside the Moda Center, Dana Altman was asked about what stats he remembers.

The question was prompted after Altman, without a stat sheet in front of him, rattled off Jordan Bell's turnovers per game average.

He doesn't know them all by heart, Altman said, just the ones that matter.

Ten days later in Eugene, more stats poured out of Altman on the eve of the Ducks' biggest game of the season to date.

UCLA shoots the ball 55 percent from the field, he said. The Bruins are 43 percent from three-point range, he continued, and have wracked up a whopping 307 assists in 13 games.

Upon review after Tuesday's media availability, Altman's stats on UCLA were dead on.

He says he only memorizes the stats that jump out to him, and it seems that there are plenty of those from a Bruins team that comes to Eugene on Wednesday with a 13-0 record and a No. 2 ranking.

"They're making a lot of plays for each other and shooting the ball really well," Altman said. "It will really test our defense. We haven't seen a team that was this good offensively all year."

Wednesday's game marks just the second game in Matthew Knight Arena history that will feature two teams ranked in the top 25 -- the first coming last year against Baylor. For many, this December matchup being a ranked contest doesn't come as a surprise in itself, but it comes with a bit of a role reversal from what many anticipated in the preseason.

The Ducks came into the year with a preseason top five ranking and were picked by the media to win the Pac-12 title. With four returning starters from last year's Elite Eight squad, the Ducks were a trendy Final Four prediction.

And while Oregon hasn't fallen dramatically below expectations, the Ducks were 2-2 early in the season before embarking on their current nine-game winning streak -- a streak that's been buoyed by the return of Dillon Brooks to the starting lineup and the jelling of some new pieces like guards Payton Pritchard and Dylan Ennis.

But, frankly, UCLA has come out of nowhere. The Bruins were so bad a year ago at 15-17 that head coach Steve Alford penned a letter to UCLA fans pledging to return a contract extension he had signed a year earlier.

"I fell short of our own expectations," Alford wrote. "...As a coaching staff, we intend to earn that extension back."

Nine months later, few in the country have done as good of a job as Alford and his Bruins. Paced by standout freshmen Lonzo Ball and T.J. Leaf, it's not just that the Bruins are undefeated, it's that they've made the first half of the season look like a cake walk. Only one of their wins have come by fewer than eight points, and that was a 97-92 win at then-No. 1 Kentucky.

The Bruins have the No. 2 scoring offensive in the country at 95.8 points per game, their shooting percentage is the best in the country and UCLA's 307 assists are 39 more than the next best team in the country.

"They move the ball. They don't take a lot of dribbles," said Oregon sophomore Tyler Dorsey. "They kick it up and they play fast. I think the efficiency of their offense has changed."

The Bruins were expected to get better with the additions of Ball and Leaf, but the two freshmen have transformed the Bruins into a contender in a matter of months.

Ball, a 6-foot-6 guard, is averaging 13.7 points, 8.3 assists and 5.8 rebounds per game and Leaf leads the team in scoring with 17.5 points per game while pulling down 9.2 rebounds per game with his 6-foot-9 frame.

The play of the freshmen has been a shot in the arm for a Bruins team that is already getting steady play from veterans like Isaac Hamilton (16.8 ppg, 4.2 rpg) and Bryce Alford (16.4 ppg).

UCLA's ability to run and gun means that Altman would like to avoid a high-tempo game at all costs. And while Oregon's offense has struggled at times this season, the Ducks have held opponents below 75 points in 11 straight games and have won their last three by double figures.

"We are not as smooth and together as we need to be to stay with them offensively in a shootout," Altman said, "so we are going to have to guard."

Part of Oregon's recent success has been Brooks, who returned to the starting lineup against UNLV after coming off the bench for most of the season. On Wednesday, Chris Boucher is expected to rejoin Brooks back in the starting lineup after the 6-foot-10 senior missed the last two games with a sprained ankle -- meaning that, for the first time this season, the Ducks will field a complete and healthy starting lineup. This will present enough of a challenge for the Bruins that, like Altman, Steve Alford was reciting some stats himself.

"Like us, they have had some injuries," Steve Alford said. "...But they have won nine in a row and 33 in a row at home.

"So that is a very dangerous team."

-- Tyson Alger

talger@oregonian.com

@tysonalger