University of Oregon
14-5, 3-5Pac-12
Utah
12-7, 4-4Pac-12
Ducks Take Down Utah, 77-65
01/24/16 | Women's Basketball
SALT LAKE CITY – The Ducks sprinted out to a double-digit lead in the first quarter and went on to a 77-65 win over Utah on Sunday afternoon at the Huntsman Center.
Oregon (14-5, 3-5 Pac-12) have won three straight games and swept a road weekend in the Pac-12 for the first time since taking down the Washington schools in 2008-09. The win is Oregon's best this season in terms of RPI, as Utah entered the game ranked No. 39.
Jillian Alleyne led the Ducks with 26 points and 12 rebounds for her 85th career double-double, matching Chiney Ogwumike's Pac-12 record. Lexi Petersen added 18 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter.
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Ducks started the game 6-of-10 from the floor and lead Utah, 12-5, with 3:26 left in the first quarter. Alleyne had eight of those first 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting early. Oregon maintained the pressure on both offense and defense through the rest of the quarter, leading 18-8 after the first 10 minutes.
Oregon still led by 10, 29-19, with 4:37 left in the second quarter but Kat Cooper hit back-to-back three-pointers to extend the lead. The Ducks ended the half on a 10-4 run and led by 16 points, 42-26, at the break.
Alleyne finished the first half with a ridiculous 23 points and seven rebounds. As a freshman Alleyne scored a career-high 38 points in a double-overtime game against Portland State. She tallied eight points in the first half of that game, 20 in the second and 10 over the two overtime periods.
Utah was able to trim the Oregon lead to just nine points, 53-44, with 2:31 left in the third, but Lexi Bando and Cooper hit back-to-back threes to put the Ducks back up by 15 points, 59-44.
The Utes came at the Ducks again in the fourth quarter, cutting the lead to eight points, 64-56, with 7:21 remaining. Petersen answered for the Ducks, scoring seven straight points on a three-pointer, jumper and two free throws to put UO up 71-58 with 5:48 left to play. Utah cut the lead to eight once more, late in the fourth, but clutch free throws by Petersen down the stretch iced the win for the Ducks.
QUOTABLE: Head coach Kelly Graves – “We had a really, really good weekend. Other than the first quarter at Colorado, I thought we played hard and played well all weekend. We're starting to show some toughness – diving for loose balls and playing hard on defense. Those are the things winning teams do.”
UP NEXT: The Ducks return to Eugene to host No. 8 Arizona State at 8 PM on Friday and Arizona at noon on Sunday. Both games will be carried live on Pac-12 Networks.
