Friday, February 22
Eugene, OR
8:00 PM
University of Oregon
69
vs
74
UCLA
1
2
3
4
F
UCLA
12
15
21
26
74
Oregon
23
19
11
16
69
Photo by: Samuel Marshall
Ducks Drop Second Straight
02/22/19 | Women's Basketball
The UO women's basketball team struggled without junior post Ruthy Hebard in a loss Friday to visiting UCLA.
EUGENE, Ore. — Life without Ruthy Hebard continued to be difficult for the UO women's basketball team, which lost consecutive games for the first time all season with a 74-69 loss to UCLA on Friday before 8,858 fans in Matthew Knight Arena.
Hebard didn't suit up after injuring her knee in the Ducks' loss Monday at Oregon State. In her absence Oregon shot 44.4 percent as a team Friday, including 6-of-26 from three-point range, and the Bruins had a 33-32 edge on the boards — after a 47-29 advantage for the UO women the first time the two teams met in January, 18 of those by Hebard.
"Of course we missed Ruthy," said sophomore Erin Boley, who led the Ducks with 20 points. "But at the same time, we have to step up in certain areas. We have to do a better job of rebounding."
How It Happened: Early on there was little indication of the upset that was brewing. With the Ducks up 9-7 in the opening minutes, Boley hit a three-pointer that sparked a 14-3 run, helping Oregon to a 23-12 lead after one quarter. The Ducks continued to pour it on in the second, ripping off a 10-0 run capped by another Boley three to go up 40-18. Ominously, though, UCLA closed the first half with seven straight points to pull within 42-27.
In the third quarter, Sabrina Ionescu made a three-pointer late in the period that seemed to hold the Bruins at bay, keeping the UO lead in double digits at 53-43. But in a half in which Oregon was 2-of-14 from long range, the Ducks didn't hit another three until Ionescu made another late in the game to get them within 70-69. By that point the Bruins had taken the lead for a good with a 9-0 run that made it 59-56, and they scored another seven straight to go up 68-60.
"The third quarter we just lost some intensity defensively," UO coach Kelly Graves said. "And then offensively we've been a mess for a while. Teams like this who switch, those are the nights you need to have your hammer. If you have Ruthy inside, they have no match for that. And we didn't."
Who Stood Out: Boley finished with 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting, and Ionescu added 18 points with eight assists and six rebounds. But Ionescu also fouled out while fighting for a rebound late in the game, and Satou Sabally also fouled out after enduring a 3-of-14 shooting night, including 0-of-7 from three.
What It Means: The Ducks began this week by being elevated to No. 2 in the country, comfortably in position to earn a No. 1 seed into the NCAA Tournament and thus host not only the first two rounds of the tournament in Eugene, but potentially play the second weekend in Portland as well. Graves said he addressed those goals in the postgame locker room Friday, for the first time all season. "We've got to finish this thing," he said. "We're still 24-3 and we've hit a little rough patch. If this doesn't light a fire under us, I don't know what does."
Up Next: The Ducks host their final regular-season home game of 2019 against USC on Sunday (11 a.m., Pac-12 Network).
Hebard didn't suit up after injuring her knee in the Ducks' loss Monday at Oregon State. In her absence Oregon shot 44.4 percent as a team Friday, including 6-of-26 from three-point range, and the Bruins had a 33-32 edge on the boards — after a 47-29 advantage for the UO women the first time the two teams met in January, 18 of those by Hebard.
"Of course we missed Ruthy," said sophomore Erin Boley, who led the Ducks with 20 points. "But at the same time, we have to step up in certain areas. We have to do a better job of rebounding."
How It Happened: Early on there was little indication of the upset that was brewing. With the Ducks up 9-7 in the opening minutes, Boley hit a three-pointer that sparked a 14-3 run, helping Oregon to a 23-12 lead after one quarter. The Ducks continued to pour it on in the second, ripping off a 10-0 run capped by another Boley three to go up 40-18. Ominously, though, UCLA closed the first half with seven straight points to pull within 42-27.
In the third quarter, Sabrina Ionescu made a three-pointer late in the period that seemed to hold the Bruins at bay, keeping the UO lead in double digits at 53-43. But in a half in which Oregon was 2-of-14 from long range, the Ducks didn't hit another three until Ionescu made another late in the game to get them within 70-69. By that point the Bruins had taken the lead for a good with a 9-0 run that made it 59-56, and they scored another seven straight to go up 68-60.
"The third quarter we just lost some intensity defensively," UO coach Kelly Graves said. "And then offensively we've been a mess for a while. Teams like this who switch, those are the nights you need to have your hammer. If you have Ruthy inside, they have no match for that. And we didn't."
Who Stood Out: Boley finished with 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting, and Ionescu added 18 points with eight assists and six rebounds. But Ionescu also fouled out while fighting for a rebound late in the game, and Satou Sabally also fouled out after enduring a 3-of-14 shooting night, including 0-of-7 from three.
What It Means: The Ducks began this week by being elevated to No. 2 in the country, comfortably in position to earn a No. 1 seed into the NCAA Tournament and thus host not only the first two rounds of the tournament in Eugene, but potentially play the second weekend in Portland as well. Graves said he addressed those goals in the postgame locker room Friday, for the first time all season. "We've got to finish this thing," he said. "We're still 24-3 and we've hit a little rough patch. If this doesn't light a fire under us, I don't know what does."
Up Next: The Ducks host their final regular-season home game of 2019 against USC on Sunday (11 a.m., Pac-12 Network).
Team Stats
UCLA
Oregon
FG%
.435
.444
3FG%
.350
.231
FT%
.813
.778
RB
33
32
TO
10
14
STL
8
3
Game Leaders
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
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