We have located Dominic Artis.

Artis was strapped to the leather cushioning of the bench due to an injury for nine games, while Oregon fans waited seemingly half the season for the freshman point guard to return to the floor.

Finally, healthy enough to play, he returned against Oregon State over three weeks ago. His return was in earnest: 12 minutes and six points. But that was to be expected. He will fall into his old scoring and dishing habits soon enough, right?

In his next five games, he tallied a total of 11 points, with zero in the stat column for two of those appearances.

With his team in need of his help and an effort worthy of facing one of the country’s top point guards in Marcus Smart, Artis awoke from his slumber.

In an inspired performance in Oregon’s first game of the March Madness bracket, he showed up.

His defense was handy and pesky, converting a steal into points for a teammate, a trend he would push during his 17 minutes of play against Oklahoma State on Thursday, March 21. His offense looked smooth, taking open shots and setting up friends for baskets.

By game’s end, he had tallied 13 points and four steals, taking the load off Johnathan Loyd, who has been forced to produce late game heroics as of late.

The HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., served as a sort of homecoming for Artis, who is from the Bay Area. He missed his first chance to play in front of family and friends back in February when he was sidelined for the Ducks’ game against the Golden Bears.

“As far as being back home, just seeing my family and friends from high school and everything, (it) really gave me the extra adrenaline and helped us come out with a win,” Artis said.

“I keep telling him it takes longer for a freshman to come back from an injury when you are out for six weeks, than it would a junior or senior because he doesn’t have the experience to draw upon,” Oregon head coach Dana Altman said.