Sunday, November 20
Eugene, OR
2:00 PM
University of Oregon
3-0
77
vs
63
UTSA
1-3
1
2
3
4
F
UTSA
9
12
18
24
63
Oregon
19
21
24
13
77
Photo by: Eric Evans/GoDucks.com
Ionescu Finds Her Shot As Ducks Reach 3-0
11/20/16 | Women's Basketball
Freshman guard Sabrina Ionescu made five three-pointers Sunday as Oregon beat Texas-San Antonio, 77-63.
EUGENE, Ore. — The Oregon women's basketball team won its third straight to open the season by beating Texas-San Antonio on Sunday, 77-63, before 1,917 in Matthew Knight Arena. The Ducks handled their toughest challenge yet, two days before the schedule takes another uptick when Michigan State comes to town.
How It Happened: The Ducks used stifling defense to lead 19-9 after the first quarter and 40-21 at halftime. Ball movement in the post was key in the first quarter, as Lauren Yearwood set up Ruthy Hebard for a layup and a 10-3 lead, Yearwood scored off a dish from Jayde Woods on the next possession and Woods nailed a three on a pass from Yearwood to make it 19-7.
The score was 23-13 in the second when Oregon really broke it open. Lexi Bando's three-pointer capped a run of eight straight that put the Ducks up 31-13, and after UTSA ended the run, Sabrina Ionescu added another three-pointer for a 34-15 advantage.
After holding the Roadrunners (1-3) to .267 shooting in the first half, the Ducks weren't as intense in the second. UO coach Kelly Graves was working with a multitude of lineup combinations until, with 2:55 left, UTSA cut what was once a 25-point lead all the way down to 12. Graves re-inserted starters Ionescu, Hebard and Maite Cazorla, and they stabilized things as Oregon held on.
Who Stood Out: Ionescu led all scorers with 26 points on 9-of-14 shooting, including 5-of-7 from three-point range, after going 5-of-18 in the previous two games. She nearly had her second straight double-double, finishing with eight rebounds. Bando hit two three-pointers on her way to 10 points, and Cazorla had four assists to tie Ionescu for the team lead. In her first career start, Hebard had five points and seven rebounds.
What It Means: For the third time in three games, UO coach Kelly Graves used all 14 of his available players by halftime. He has said his rotation will need to be cut down closer to nine or 10 for the bulk of the season, with player performance dictating those decisions. "I think they're making themselves," Graves said.
Quotable:
Kelly Graves, UO head coach
On the 15-point victory
"Defensively in the first half we were terrific. I thought we put together a good game. We switched up our defenses a little bit better. I just thought we finished with a dud."
On needing to turn to his starters in the final minutes
"Just a little disappointed in the way the game finished for us. I wish we would have finished on a high note, built a nice lead. I wanted to rest our backcourt for a big game on Tuesday night. But they went back out and kind of re-established it."
Sabrina Ionescu, freshman guard
On shooting 9-of-14, and 5-of-7 from three
"The competition definitely went up this game, so I was a little more driven. But I've also not shot the ball very well the last two games. My mindset's changed a little bit, and I definitely got in the gym and shot a lot."
Up Next: The Ducks host Michigan State of the Big Ten on Tuesday (8 p.m., Pac-12 Network).
How It Happened: The Ducks used stifling defense to lead 19-9 after the first quarter and 40-21 at halftime. Ball movement in the post was key in the first quarter, as Lauren Yearwood set up Ruthy Hebard for a layup and a 10-3 lead, Yearwood scored off a dish from Jayde Woods on the next possession and Woods nailed a three on a pass from Yearwood to make it 19-7.
The score was 23-13 in the second when Oregon really broke it open. Lexi Bando's three-pointer capped a run of eight straight that put the Ducks up 31-13, and after UTSA ended the run, Sabrina Ionescu added another three-pointer for a 34-15 advantage.
After holding the Roadrunners (1-3) to .267 shooting in the first half, the Ducks weren't as intense in the second. UO coach Kelly Graves was working with a multitude of lineup combinations until, with 2:55 left, UTSA cut what was once a 25-point lead all the way down to 12. Graves re-inserted starters Ionescu, Hebard and Maite Cazorla, and they stabilized things as Oregon held on.
Who Stood Out: Ionescu led all scorers with 26 points on 9-of-14 shooting, including 5-of-7 from three-point range, after going 5-of-18 in the previous two games. She nearly had her second straight double-double, finishing with eight rebounds. Bando hit two three-pointers on her way to 10 points, and Cazorla had four assists to tie Ionescu for the team lead. In her first career start, Hebard had five points and seven rebounds.
What It Means: For the third time in three games, UO coach Kelly Graves used all 14 of his available players by halftime. He has said his rotation will need to be cut down closer to nine or 10 for the bulk of the season, with player performance dictating those decisions. "I think they're making themselves," Graves said.
Quotable:
Kelly Graves, UO head coach
On the 15-point victory
"Defensively in the first half we were terrific. I thought we put together a good game. We switched up our defenses a little bit better. I just thought we finished with a dud."
On needing to turn to his starters in the final minutes
"Just a little disappointed in the way the game finished for us. I wish we would have finished on a high note, built a nice lead. I wanted to rest our backcourt for a big game on Tuesday night. But they went back out and kind of re-established it."
Sabrina Ionescu, freshman guard
On shooting 9-of-14, and 5-of-7 from three
"The competition definitely went up this game, so I was a little more driven. But I've also not shot the ball very well the last two games. My mindset's changed a little bit, and I definitely got in the gym and shot a lot."
Up Next: The Ducks host Michigan State of the Big Ten on Tuesday (8 p.m., Pac-12 Network).
Team Stats
UTSA
ORE
FG%
.355
.467
3FG%
.263
.409
FT%
.636
.600
RB
36
42
TO
14
16
STL
8
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
26
FGM
9
3FGM
5
FTM
3
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
7
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ 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
