Friday, January 24
Eugene, OR
7:00 PM
University of Oregon
16-2,6-1Pac-12
76
vs
64
Oregon State
16-3,4-3Pac-12
1
2
3
4
F
Oregon St.
18
11
17
18
64
Oregon
25
20
17
14
76
Photo by: Samuel Marshall/Eric Evans Photography
A Loud Opening Statement
01/24/20 | Women's Basketball
This week's Civil War doubleheader began with a 76-64 victory by the Oregon women at home on Friday.
EUGENE, Ore. — The "Big Three" were big indeed Friday night as the No. 4 Oregon women's basketball team dominated for much of the night in a 76-64 victory over No. 7 Oregon State before a sellout crowd of 12,364 fans in Matthew Knight Arena.
Sabrina Ionescu had buzzer-beating three-pointers to end the first and third quarters on her way to 23 points, and Satou Sabally beat the shot clock with another three late in the game as the Ducks quelled an OSU rally and held on to win after leading at one point by 21 points. Sabally and Ruthy Hebard each scored 17 points as the UO women took the opening game of this week's Civil War doubleheader.
"When those three are really dialed in, there's no three better in the country, as a trio," UO coach Kelly Graves said. "They set the tone for us."
How It Happened: The Ducks (16-2, 6-1 Pac-12) started slow, missing six straight shots in the game's opening minute to fall behind 10-2. Ionescu steadied the ship with a baseline jumper, and two possessions later Taylor Chavez hit her first of three three-pointers on the night. A basket by Hebard and two free throws by Sabally tied it 14-14, and the Ducks took the lead for good at 18-16 on another short jumper by Ionescu. She made her first buzzer-beating three of the night o end the quarter with Oregon up 25-18.
The Ducks pushed their lead to double digits for the first time on another three by Chavez that made it 32-22 early in the second quarter. Following a free throw for the Beavers, the Ducks rattled off 10 points in a row, on two buckets by Ionescu and threes from Chavez and Erin Boley. Oregon State rallied within 42-29, but a three-point play by Sabally made it 45-29 at halftime.
Graves said Oregon's use of a zone defense in the second quarter "got us going at both ends. We were forcing some turnovers, they got a little flustered and we build that lead."
The third quarter saw Oregon threaten to turn it into a blowout. A 6-0 run capped by a Hebard basket put the Ducks up 20 for the first time, at 51-31. Oregon State rallied back within 53-43 — the last basket coming off the very first turnover of the night by the UO women, late in the third quarter — by Jaz Shelley hit a three for a 59-43 lead, and Ionescu hit her second buzzer-beater of the night to make it 62-46 with 10 minutes to play.
Another three by Ionescu and two second-chance points from Hebard gave Oregon a 67-46 lead early in the fourth quarter. At that point, the Ducks' clean play on offense began to fail them, as the UO women committed six turnovers in the period. Oregon State went on a 9-0 run to get within 67-57, and a basket by Aleah Goodman with 3:34 left made it 69-62. The Ducks needed an answer, and Sabally provided it, beating the shot clock with a three-pointer that got the lead back to double digits. Oregon State scored just once more and missed its last seven shots as Oregon hung on to win.
"It wasn't good enough," Ionescu said of Oregon's play in the fourth quarter. "We needed to keep our foot on the gas and keep going and keep building, and we didn't. But we're definitely going to learn from that and take that into the game Sunday."
Who Stood Out: Ionescu scored her 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting, including 3-of-4 three-pointers. She also dished out nine assists, and grabbed four rebounds. Sabally had a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Hebard had 17 points to go with nine rebounds.
Prior to the game, Graves had challenged Hebard and the rest of the Ducks to hold their own on the boards with the bigger Beavers, and the rebounding margin ended in a draw, 33-33. "I think I could do better," Hebard said. "I'm definitely excited for Sunday, to do a little better."
What It Means: There are no two bigger basketball games in the country this week than the Civil War series between two top-10 teams each hosting games at soldout arenas, and the Ducks were happy to take round one.
"I'm really proud of the team tonight," Graves said, "I thought we played really hard — really hard."
In her postgame interview, Ionescu said her focus already was on Sunday's game, and her last chance to finally get a win at Gill Coliseum.
"That's going to be big for us," she said. "We're not really happy splitting wins with them. We're going to have to take that next step, and be an elite team on the road."
Notable: WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert was in attendance along with personnel from several WNBA team, including head coach Nicki Collen of the Atlanta Dream, where Maite Cazorla played her rookie season. Governor Kate Brown and Congressman Peter DeFazio also attended, and NFL Hall of Famer Dan Fouts sat behind the UO bench. … Sabally's double-double was her third of the season, and the seventh of her career. … Ionescu didn't attempt a free throw for the first time in conference play this year, but for the sixth time overall this season. … The Ducks improved to 11-0 at home this season and still have yet to allow an opponent to score more than 65 points. The sellout was the first of the year for Oregon, but it was the seventh straight crowd of more than 10,000 for a UO home game.
"They pumped us up and motivated us throughout that entire game," Ionescu said. "Without them in the fourth quarter, things could have gone a little different. They stayed with it and stayed with us."
Up Next: The two teams meet again in Corvallis on Sunday (1 p.m., ESPN2).
Sabrina Ionescu had buzzer-beating three-pointers to end the first and third quarters on her way to 23 points, and Satou Sabally beat the shot clock with another three late in the game as the Ducks quelled an OSU rally and held on to win after leading at one point by 21 points. Sabally and Ruthy Hebard each scored 17 points as the UO women took the opening game of this week's Civil War doubleheader.
"When those three are really dialed in, there's no three better in the country, as a trio," UO coach Kelly Graves said. "They set the tone for us."
How It Happened: The Ducks (16-2, 6-1 Pac-12) started slow, missing six straight shots in the game's opening minute to fall behind 10-2. Ionescu steadied the ship with a baseline jumper, and two possessions later Taylor Chavez hit her first of three three-pointers on the night. A basket by Hebard and two free throws by Sabally tied it 14-14, and the Ducks took the lead for good at 18-16 on another short jumper by Ionescu. She made her first buzzer-beating three of the night o end the quarter with Oregon up 25-18.
The Ducks pushed their lead to double digits for the first time on another three by Chavez that made it 32-22 early in the second quarter. Following a free throw for the Beavers, the Ducks rattled off 10 points in a row, on two buckets by Ionescu and threes from Chavez and Erin Boley. Oregon State rallied within 42-29, but a three-point play by Sabally made it 45-29 at halftime.
Graves said Oregon's use of a zone defense in the second quarter "got us going at both ends. We were forcing some turnovers, they got a little flustered and we build that lead."
The third quarter saw Oregon threaten to turn it into a blowout. A 6-0 run capped by a Hebard basket put the Ducks up 20 for the first time, at 51-31. Oregon State rallied back within 53-43 — the last basket coming off the very first turnover of the night by the UO women, late in the third quarter — by Jaz Shelley hit a three for a 59-43 lead, and Ionescu hit her second buzzer-beater of the night to make it 62-46 with 10 minutes to play.
Another three by Ionescu and two second-chance points from Hebard gave Oregon a 67-46 lead early in the fourth quarter. At that point, the Ducks' clean play on offense began to fail them, as the UO women committed six turnovers in the period. Oregon State went on a 9-0 run to get within 67-57, and a basket by Aleah Goodman with 3:34 left made it 69-62. The Ducks needed an answer, and Sabally provided it, beating the shot clock with a three-pointer that got the lead back to double digits. Oregon State scored just once more and missed its last seven shots as Oregon hung on to win.
"It wasn't good enough," Ionescu said of Oregon's play in the fourth quarter. "We needed to keep our foot on the gas and keep going and keep building, and we didn't. But we're definitely going to learn from that and take that into the game Sunday."
Who Stood Out: Ionescu scored her 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting, including 3-of-4 three-pointers. She also dished out nine assists, and grabbed four rebounds. Sabally had a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Hebard had 17 points to go with nine rebounds.
Prior to the game, Graves had challenged Hebard and the rest of the Ducks to hold their own on the boards with the bigger Beavers, and the rebounding margin ended in a draw, 33-33. "I think I could do better," Hebard said. "I'm definitely excited for Sunday, to do a little better."
What It Means: There are no two bigger basketball games in the country this week than the Civil War series between two top-10 teams each hosting games at soldout arenas, and the Ducks were happy to take round one.
"I'm really proud of the team tonight," Graves said, "I thought we played really hard — really hard."
In her postgame interview, Ionescu said her focus already was on Sunday's game, and her last chance to finally get a win at Gill Coliseum.
"That's going to be big for us," she said. "We're not really happy splitting wins with them. We're going to have to take that next step, and be an elite team on the road."
Notable: WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert was in attendance along with personnel from several WNBA team, including head coach Nicki Collen of the Atlanta Dream, where Maite Cazorla played her rookie season. Governor Kate Brown and Congressman Peter DeFazio also attended, and NFL Hall of Famer Dan Fouts sat behind the UO bench. … Sabally's double-double was her third of the season, and the seventh of her career. … Ionescu didn't attempt a free throw for the first time in conference play this year, but for the sixth time overall this season. … The Ducks improved to 11-0 at home this season and still have yet to allow an opponent to score more than 65 points. The sellout was the first of the year for Oregon, but it was the seventh straight crowd of more than 10,000 for a UO home game.
"They pumped us up and motivated us throughout that entire game," Ionescu said. "Without them in the fourth quarter, things could have gone a little different. They stayed with it and stayed with us."
Up Next: The two teams meet again in Corvallis on Sunday (1 p.m., ESPN2).
Team Stats
OSU
Oregon
FG%
.491
.444
3FG%
.273
.429
FT%
.444
.846
RB
33
33
TO
13
7
STL
3
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
23
FGM
10
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
17
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
10
Pts
17
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ 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
