Media Credit: Jarod Opperman Senior Malik Hairston attempts a dunk during Oregon's 76-69 loss to Mississippi State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday.

Media Credit: Jarod Opperman Bulldog post Charles Rhodes put up a game-high 34 points on the Ducks, shooting 10 of 12 from the field.

Media Credit: Jarod Opperman Seniors Bryce Taylor (4) and Malik Hairston console each other after their final game in an Oregon uniform Friday in Little Rock, Ark.

Media Credit: Jarod Opperman Hairston, who finished with 22 points to lead all Oregon scorers, goes up for a lay in against Mississippi State's Jarvis Varnado.

Media Credit: Jarod Opperman A double team of Charles Rhodes and Jarvis Varnado disrupt a Malik Hairston shot attempt.

Media Credit: Jarod Opperman Oregon's Churchill Odia (left) and Maarty Leunen (middle) watch Charles Rhodes during their 76-69 loss to the Bulldogs Friday.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - The Ducks' season, and the careers of three of their all-time most prolific players, came to an end Friday night at Alltel Arena, where they fell 76-69 to the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

"They've just raised the bar for our program," said Oregon coach Ernie Kent of Maarty Leunen, Malik Hairston and Bryce Taylor, his trio of senior starters. "Maybe it will take our community some time, but eventually they will look back and realize that those guys left footprints in our program."

Oregon (18-14) led 38-28 at the half on 7-of-17 shooting from three-point range, and increased its lead to 41-28 on a Hairston three from the left wing early in the second half.

"We did a very good job in the first half," Kent said. "Maybe some of the best basketball we've played."

But then the offense sputtered, the shots stopped falling and the Ducks went the next five minutes without a field goal.

"In essence, we got some of the same great looks in the second half that we got in the first half. The ball just didn't go down," Kent said.

Still, they led by eight points at 51-43 with 12 minutes remaining on the strength of Hairston's performance. He scored 13 of the Ducks first 18 points in the second half, and finished with a team-high 22 points and seven rebounds.

But from its 51-43 deficit at the 12-minute mark, Mississippi State (23-10) would go on a 14-3 run over the next four minutes to lead 57-54 with 8:01 remaining. Oregon would take the lead back one minute later at 58-57, but the Bulldogs jumped right back on top and never looked back, leading the last seven minutes and pulling away to post the final margin.

Mississippi State was led by senior forward Charles Rhodes, who led all scorers with 34 points on 10-of-12 shooting from the field, 14 of 18 from the charity stripe.

"He's a guy that has taken over a lot of games from what I understand," Kent said of Rhodes. "He was phenomenal in the game."

The Bulldogs' leading scorer during the season, junior guard Jamont Gordon, was held in check by the Ducks for most of the night, but still had a near triple-double, pulling down a game-high 11 rebounds while adding nine assists and eight points.

Tajuan Porter scored 18 for the Ducks, and Leunen added 13 points and seven rebounds.

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