Oregon Clinches Share of Pac-12 Title with Win at Arizona

Friday, March 1

Tucson, AZ

7:00 PM

University of Oregon

26-3

Arizona

17-11

Oregon

Arizona

Oregon Clinches Share of Pac-12 Title with Win at Arizona

03/01/19 | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box: Oregon 83, Arizona 54

By: Joe Waltasti

TUCSON, Ariz. – For the second straight season, the Oregon women's basketball team are Pac-12 regular season champions. The No. 6 ranked Ducks clinched at least a share of the league title with an 83-54 win over Arizona on Friday night at the McKale Center.

"It's been incredible watching this team mature over the last three and four years," said head coach Kelly Graves. "This team has some big goals this season and we still have some work to do."

PAC-12 CHAMPIONS: This is the fourth Pac-12/10 title in program history. Before going back-to-back last year and this season, the Ducks shared a Pac-10 regular season championship in 1998-99 and won an outright title in 1999-2000. Oregon can win a third outright Pac-12 championship with a win on Sunday at No. 21 Arizona State. If Oregon were to lose on Sunday, Stanford is one game back of the Ducks in the standings and could claim a share of the title with a win at Washington. Graves secured his 12th career regular season conference title (10 at Gonzaga, two at Oregon).

DEJA VU: Oregon clinched a share of the Pac-12 title in Tempe last year before winning the outright title in Tucson. This year the Ducks can do it in reverse.

HOW IT HAPPENED: After Arizona took an early lead, a wing three by Sabrina Ionescu gave Oregon a 9-8 lead with 5:02 left in the first quarter. The Ducks owned a 20-16 lead going to the second as Ionescu had a team-high eight points plus four rebounds and four assists.

Oregon led by as much as 10 points in the second quarter, when Ionescu buried another three-pointer with 1:38 left. The Ducks led by eight at the break as Ionescu scored another eight points in the period for 16 in the first half on 6-of-9 shooting. Ruthy Hebard had eight points and a pair of rebounds.

The Ducks started to pull away in the third quarter, using a 9-0 run to lead the Wildcats, 55-38, with 6:16 on the clock. Maite Cazorla scored five straight in the run as she hit a three after a pair of free throws. Arizona cut into the UO lead, however, and the Ducks led by 10 going to the fourth quarter, 64-54. Ionescu had 22 points at the end of the third while Maite Cazorla, Satou Sabally and Hebard were also in double figures.

The Ducks completely dominated the fourth quarter, holding Arizona scoreless, before winning big, 83-54.

FOURTH QUARTER SHUTOUT: Oregon blanked the Wildcats in the fourth, outscoring them 19-0 in the quarter. Arizona was 0-for-13 shooting in the fourth while the Ducks were 9-of-16. Oregon held Arizona to just four points in the first quarter earlier this season in Eugene. Since the NCAA switch from halves to quarters in 2015-16, this is the first time Oregon has held an opponent scoreless in any quarter. The previous low was a two-point quarter against Colorado this season.

NOTES: Oregon dominated Arizona in the post, outscoring Arizona 50-16 on points in the paint...Sabally tallied her third double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds...Ionescu tied her career-high with six three-pointers to go with a team-high 22 points...Ionescu and Cazorla each tallied eight assists...the Ducks defeated Arizona for a sixth straight time, one shy of the program's all-time best winning streak against the Wildcats.

UP NEXT: Oregon visits No. 21 Arizona State at 12 PM PT on Sunday. Catch the broadcast on Pac-12 Networks.