Photo by: Samuel Marshall/Eric Evans Photography
Ducks Loose, Confident Entering Elite Eight Matchup With Notre Dame
03/25/18 | Women's Basketball, @GoDucksMoseley
Oregon is finally the underdog in this NCAA Tournament, at least based on seeding, but you wouldn't know it from the Ducks' demeanor entering Monday's game (6 p.m., ESPN)
SPOKANE, Wash. — After thriving in the underdog role on the road to the 2017 Elite Eight, it's been a decidedly different path for the Oregon women's basketball team in 2018.
The Ducks earned the highest NCAA Tournament seed in school history, No. 2, and thus opened the Big Dance against a No. 15 seed, Seattle U. Due to upsets elsewhere in the Spokane Regional, the UO women then faced No. 10 Minnesota and No. 11 Central Michigan to get back to the Elite Eight.
That's where the run of double-digit seeds will end, as will Oregon's favorite status. But don't tell the Ducks yet — a day before meeting top-seeded Notre Dame on Monday (6 p.m., ESPN), the UO women were as loose and confident as ever during their practice day at Spokane Arena.
"They're ready," head coach Kelly Graves said. "I mean, they know what we're up against. I think we all feel that we're a good basketball team, and we have a chance tomorrow for 40 minutes to go prove it."
Looking at this season in isolation, the Ducks have every reason to believe they're a worthy peer to the Irish. Oregon is 33-4, three of its losses coming to fellow Elite Eight teams Oregon State, Mississippi State and Louisville; Notre Dame is 32-3, having lost to fellow No. 1 seeds UConn and Louisville (twice). The Ducks average 82.6 points per game, on 50.2 percent shooting; the Irish score 85.7 points per game, on 50.7 percent shooting.
But the two teams' traditions are divergent. Oregon had never made even a Sweet Sixteen until last season. Notre Dame has played in the Final Four seven teams, reached the title game five times and won the 2001 NCAA Championship.
"I don't think we're an underdog," UO sophomore Sabrina Ionescu said. "… Seeding-wise, you could say we're an underdog; they're the No. 1 seed. But I think once the game starts, it's anybody's game. I think we're just as talented as they are. So I'm excited to see how we match up with their player. I'm excited to see how we grow."
Notre Dame's season has been marked by an unfortunate rash of knee injuries, including to all-American Brianna Turner in last year's NCAA Tournament, sidelining her for this year. Guard Mychal Johnson was hurt in the preseason, forward Mikayla Vaughn played only six games in the fall and graduate transfer Lili Thompson was list for the year on New Year's Eve.
Still, the Irish had enough healthy talented to win all but three games entering Monday. In breaking down Notre Dame's offense, Graves identified three matchups in particular that should be key.
After player perimeter-oriented defense against the three-point shooting of Minnesota and Central Michigan in the previous two rounds, the Ducks will have to find an answer for Notre Dame's 6-foot-4 junior Jessica Shepard, "a load inside," Graves said. UO sophomore Ruthy Hebard has taken big steps as a one-on-one defender in the last year, and blocked six shots in Saturday's win over the Chippewas.
But the Ducks can't sag off the three-point line too much — junior guard Marina Mabrey was 7-of-11 behind the arc for the Irish in Saturday's win over Texas A&M. And in guard Arike Ogunbowale, the Irish feature a guard Graves compared with UCLA's Jordin Canada.
"Those kids are airplanes — jet airplanes," Graves said. "When they take off, we can't catch them. We've got to make sure we take care of the ball so that we can all get back and take away any driving lanes that Arike might have."
The Ducks will be looking for a bounce-back effort from freshman Satou Sabally after her 0-of-5 three-point performance Saturday, and they have good reason to expect one.
Sabally has had a knack for following off nights with prolific performances. After scoring three points against Oregon State on Jan. 19, she had 21 in the rematch two days later. Sabally scored three at Washington on Feb. 9, and 17 at WSU on the same road trip. And after going scoreless against USC to open the following weekend, she had 25 points on 7-of-9 three-point shooting in the epic Monday night win over UCLA in Matthew Knight Arena.
"She's been a good bounce-back player, which shows maturity in her," Graves said. "She knows we have confidence in her."
The Ducks earned the highest NCAA Tournament seed in school history, No. 2, and thus opened the Big Dance against a No. 15 seed, Seattle U. Due to upsets elsewhere in the Spokane Regional, the UO women then faced No. 10 Minnesota and No. 11 Central Michigan to get back to the Elite Eight.
That's where the run of double-digit seeds will end, as will Oregon's favorite status. But don't tell the Ducks yet — a day before meeting top-seeded Notre Dame on Monday (6 p.m., ESPN), the UO women were as loose and confident as ever during their practice day at Spokane Arena.
"They're ready," head coach Kelly Graves said. "I mean, they know what we're up against. I think we all feel that we're a good basketball team, and we have a chance tomorrow for 40 minutes to go prove it."
Looking at this season in isolation, the Ducks have every reason to believe they're a worthy peer to the Irish. Oregon is 33-4, three of its losses coming to fellow Elite Eight teams Oregon State, Mississippi State and Louisville; Notre Dame is 32-3, having lost to fellow No. 1 seeds UConn and Louisville (twice). The Ducks average 82.6 points per game, on 50.2 percent shooting; the Irish score 85.7 points per game, on 50.7 percent shooting.
But the two teams' traditions are divergent. Oregon had never made even a Sweet Sixteen until last season. Notre Dame has played in the Final Four seven teams, reached the title game five times and won the 2001 NCAA Championship.
"I don't think we're an underdog," UO sophomore Sabrina Ionescu said. "… Seeding-wise, you could say we're an underdog; they're the No. 1 seed. But I think once the game starts, it's anybody's game. I think we're just as talented as they are. So I'm excited to see how we match up with their player. I'm excited to see how we grow."
Notre Dame's season has been marked by an unfortunate rash of knee injuries, including to all-American Brianna Turner in last year's NCAA Tournament, sidelining her for this year. Guard Mychal Johnson was hurt in the preseason, forward Mikayla Vaughn played only six games in the fall and graduate transfer Lili Thompson was list for the year on New Year's Eve.
Still, the Irish had enough healthy talented to win all but three games entering Monday. In breaking down Notre Dame's offense, Graves identified three matchups in particular that should be key.
After player perimeter-oriented defense against the three-point shooting of Minnesota and Central Michigan in the previous two rounds, the Ducks will have to find an answer for Notre Dame's 6-foot-4 junior Jessica Shepard, "a load inside," Graves said. UO sophomore Ruthy Hebard has taken big steps as a one-on-one defender in the last year, and blocked six shots in Saturday's win over the Chippewas.
But the Ducks can't sag off the three-point line too much — junior guard Marina Mabrey was 7-of-11 behind the arc for the Irish in Saturday's win over Texas A&M. And in guard Arike Ogunbowale, the Irish feature a guard Graves compared with UCLA's Jordin Canada.
"Those kids are airplanes — jet airplanes," Graves said. "When they take off, we can't catch them. We've got to make sure we take care of the ball so that we can all get back and take away any driving lanes that Arike might have."
The Ducks will be looking for a bounce-back effort from freshman Satou Sabally after her 0-of-5 three-point performance Saturday, and they have good reason to expect one.
Sabally has had a knack for following off nights with prolific performances. After scoring three points against Oregon State on Jan. 19, she had 21 in the rematch two days later. Sabally scored three at Washington on Feb. 9, and 17 at WSU on the same road trip. And after going scoreless against USC to open the following weekend, she had 25 points on 7-of-9 three-point shooting in the epic Monday night win over UCLA in Matthew Knight Arena.
"She's been a good bounce-back player, which shows maturity in her," Graves said. "She knows we have confidence in her."
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's BasketballKelly Graves | Selection Sunday
Monday, March 17
Deja Kelly, Peyton Scott & Phillipina Kyei | Selection Sunday
Monday, March 17
Peyton Scott & Ari Long: "A good, competitive basketball game."
Thursday, February 27
Kelly Graves: "We've played really well."
Thursday, February 27
