Sunday, January 26
Corvallis, OR
1:00 PM
University of Oregon
17-2,7-1Pac-12
66
at
57
Oregon State
16-4,4-4Pac-12
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F
Oregon
15
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66
Oregon St.
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57
Photo by: @EricEvansPhoto
With Heavy Hearts, Ducks Win At OSU
01/26/20 | Women's Basketball
Tragedy cast a pall over No. 4 Oregon's 66-57 win Sunday at No. 7 Oregon State, the Ducks' first win at OSU since 2010.
CORVALLIS — Life goes on even in the face of unspeakable tragedy. Sunday's Civil War still had to be played, despite devastating circumstances.
The unbridled joy of sport was shattered by grief for the UO women's basketball team, less than two hours before tipoff at Oregon State. The Ducks and Beavers played shortly after news broke of the death of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, the father of four daughters and a spirited advocate of women's athletics who attended UO women's basketball and volleyball games earlier this academic year.
Bryant and one of his daughters, Gianna, were killed in a helicopter crash Sunday morning that also claimed the lives of three family members of former Oregon baseball player JJ Altobelli. The tragedy cast a pall over No. 4 Oregon's victory Sunday afternoon, 66-57, the Ducks' first win in Gill Coliseum since 2010.
"It's like losing a family member," UO coach Kelly Graves said. "I know everybody was inspired by Kobe, but it really hit home for our team."
News of the tragedy began to circulate about 75 minutes before the opening tipoff. The Ducks warmed up without senior Sabrina Ionescu, who had developed a close bond with the Bryant family over the last few years.
Ionescu finally took the floor when the Ducks returned from their locker room just before the national anthem. She fought back tears during a moment of silence in Bryant's memory, then went on to score a team-high 19 points in the game, including four free throws in the final minute.
Ionescu and Ruthy Hebard shared a quick hug just before the ball was tipped to begin the game, and Satou Sabally enveloped Ionescu in a longer embrace immediately after the final horn sounded.
"They're friends, so I knew it was really hard on her," Graves said. "To see her go out, and her teammates battle for her, and to play with the spirit and intensity and enthusiasm that Kobe Bryant always played the game with, it was a real testament to championship character."
The rest of Oregon's players told Ionescu prior to the game, "we're doing this for you," Graves passed along, and they followed through. Hebard had 13 points and 14 rebounds — eight on the offensive end as Oregon dominated the glass, 40-31 — and Sabally added 16 points with nine rebounds.
How It Happened: Two days after the Ducks (17-2, 7-1 Pac-12) won the opener of the home-and-home series, the No. 7 Beavers came out looking to even the score Sunday. After Oregon scored the first eight points of the afternoon, Oregon State responded with 10 in a row, and led 16-14 after the first quarter. A jumper by Ionescu put the Ducks up midway through the second, 27-26, but the Beavers put together a 7-0 run. Hebard scored just before the halftime buzzer to cut into OSU's lead, which at that point stood at 37-34.
From there, though, Oregon put the hammer down on defense. It took Oregon State (16-4, 4-4) until 5:46 remained in the third quarter to finally score in the second half, with Mikayla Pivec giving the Beavers their last lead of the day, 39-38. Ionescu scored on the next two possessions, and Oregon never trailed again. Hebard had the final two baskets of the period, and the Ducks took a 52-45 lead into the fourth.
Oregon's dominance on the glass was on display to start the final period. After two offensive rebounds by the Ducks, Sabally completed a three-point play to make it 55-45. On the next trip, Hebard had two more offensive boards, and Taylor Chavez made it 57-45. Again the Beavers had a long drought to open the period, finally scoring with 4:57 left in the game. OSU briefly rallied within 59-50, but Jaz Shelley responded with a three-pointer. OSU scored just 20 points after halftime against withering UO defense.
"That's the end of the floor that won the game for us," Graves said.
Who Stood Out: Oregon's "Big Three" wrapped up a big weekend leading the Ducks to a sweep of OSU. Sabally and Ionescu played all 40 minutes Sunday, and Hebard held her own against the Beavers' towering post players. Chavez contributed some timely buckets for the second night in a row, making both her three-point attempts.
What It Means: Nobody could have imagined that Oregon's first victory in 10 years at Oregon State would be so overshadowed by events elsewhere. That the Ducks dug deep to win on such a heartbreaking day spoke to their character and competitiveness. "I understand it's not easy to celebrate on a day like this," Graves told his team in the locker room. "… You guys showed a lot of character, fight, class."
Up Next: The Ducks remain on the road to play Thursday at Utah (7 p.m., Pac-12 Network).
The unbridled joy of sport was shattered by grief for the UO women's basketball team, less than two hours before tipoff at Oregon State. The Ducks and Beavers played shortly after news broke of the death of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, the father of four daughters and a spirited advocate of women's athletics who attended UO women's basketball and volleyball games earlier this academic year.
Bryant and one of his daughters, Gianna, were killed in a helicopter crash Sunday morning that also claimed the lives of three family members of former Oregon baseball player JJ Altobelli. The tragedy cast a pall over No. 4 Oregon's victory Sunday afternoon, 66-57, the Ducks' first win in Gill Coliseum since 2010.
"It's like losing a family member," UO coach Kelly Graves said. "I know everybody was inspired by Kobe, but it really hit home for our team."
News of the tragedy began to circulate about 75 minutes before the opening tipoff. The Ducks warmed up without senior Sabrina Ionescu, who had developed a close bond with the Bryant family over the last few years.
Ionescu finally took the floor when the Ducks returned from their locker room just before the national anthem. She fought back tears during a moment of silence in Bryant's memory, then went on to score a team-high 19 points in the game, including four free throws in the final minute.
Ionescu and Ruthy Hebard shared a quick hug just before the ball was tipped to begin the game, and Satou Sabally enveloped Ionescu in a longer embrace immediately after the final horn sounded.
"They're friends, so I knew it was really hard on her," Graves said. "To see her go out, and her teammates battle for her, and to play with the spirit and intensity and enthusiasm that Kobe Bryant always played the game with, it was a real testament to championship character."
"This season's for him." @sabrina_i20 on the loss of her friend Kobe Bryant: pic.twitter.com/L7S1fyDpEJ
— ESPN (@espn) January 26, 2020
The rest of Oregon's players told Ionescu prior to the game, "we're doing this for you," Graves passed along, and they followed through. Hebard had 13 points and 14 rebounds — eight on the offensive end as Oregon dominated the glass, 40-31 — and Sabally added 16 points with nine rebounds.
How It Happened: Two days after the Ducks (17-2, 7-1 Pac-12) won the opener of the home-and-home series, the No. 7 Beavers came out looking to even the score Sunday. After Oregon scored the first eight points of the afternoon, Oregon State responded with 10 in a row, and led 16-14 after the first quarter. A jumper by Ionescu put the Ducks up midway through the second, 27-26, but the Beavers put together a 7-0 run. Hebard scored just before the halftime buzzer to cut into OSU's lead, which at that point stood at 37-34.
From there, though, Oregon put the hammer down on defense. It took Oregon State (16-4, 4-4) until 5:46 remained in the third quarter to finally score in the second half, with Mikayla Pivec giving the Beavers their last lead of the day, 39-38. Ionescu scored on the next two possessions, and Oregon never trailed again. Hebard had the final two baskets of the period, and the Ducks took a 52-45 lead into the fourth.
Oregon's dominance on the glass was on display to start the final period. After two offensive rebounds by the Ducks, Sabally completed a three-point play to make it 55-45. On the next trip, Hebard had two more offensive boards, and Taylor Chavez made it 57-45. Again the Beavers had a long drought to open the period, finally scoring with 4:57 left in the game. OSU briefly rallied within 59-50, but Jaz Shelley responded with a three-pointer. OSU scored just 20 points after halftime against withering UO defense.
"That's the end of the floor that won the game for us," Graves said.
Who Stood Out: Oregon's "Big Three" wrapped up a big weekend leading the Ducks to a sweep of OSU. Sabally and Ionescu played all 40 minutes Sunday, and Hebard held her own against the Beavers' towering post players. Chavez contributed some timely buckets for the second night in a row, making both her three-point attempts.
What It Means: Nobody could have imagined that Oregon's first victory in 10 years at Oregon State would be so overshadowed by events elsewhere. That the Ducks dug deep to win on such a heartbreaking day spoke to their character and competitiveness. "I understand it's not easy to celebrate on a day like this," Graves told his team in the locker room. "… You guys showed a lot of character, fight, class."
Up Next: The Ducks remain on the road to play Thursday at Utah (7 p.m., Pac-12 Network).
Team Stats
Oregon
OSU
FG%
.387
.404
3FG%
.263
.368
FT%
.929
.727
RB
40
31
TO
9
11
STL
6
2
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
19
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
16
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ 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
