UO Returns to MKA to Host No. 14 Arizona

EUGENE, Ore. — After seven of its last nine games away from home, Oregon returns to Matthew Knight Arena for its final two regular-season games as the Ducks host No. 14 Arizona Thursday at 7 p.m. PT on Pac-12 Oregon.

The Ducks look to snap their season-long seven-game skid and split the season series with the Wildcats. UA defeated UO 79-71 on Jan. 8 in Tucson. Following Sunday's 68-60 loss at Washington, each of Oregon's last 12 games have been decided by 10 or fewer points.

Oregon is 45-32 all-time against Arizona and has won 11 of the last 15 matchups going back to 2017. The Ducks have won nine of the last 10 meetings in Eugene and are 25-9 all-time at home.

GAME #28
Oregon (14-13, 5-11) vs. No. 14 Arizona (21-6, 11-5)
Thursday, Feb. 23 | 7 p.m. PT | Matthew Knight Arena (Eugene, Ore.)
TV: Pac-12 Oregon
Play-by-play: Ann Schatz | Analyst: Jennifer Mountain
Radio: Oregon Sports Network (KUGN 98.1 FM)
Play-by-play: Terry Jonz | Analyst: Bev Smith
Listen Online | Live Stats

AT A GLANCE
After a four-game road trip, Oregon returns to Matthew Knight Arena for its final two home games of the season. The Ducks host No. 14 Arizona Thursday before the home finale Saturday against Arizona State.

UO hopes to end its season-long seven-game losing streak after dropping both games to the Washington schools last week. The Wildcats mark the Ducks' ninth game against a ranked team this season.

Arizona claimed the season's first matchup in Tucson, 79-71, when both squads were ranked in the nation's top 20. Oregon leads the all-time series 45-32 and has won 11 of the last 15 meetings.

LAST TIME OUT
Oregon suffered a 68-60 defeat at Washington on Sunday, pushing its losing skid to a season-long seven games. Te-Hina Paopao paced all players with a season-high 22 points while draining a career-best six 3-pointers (6-for-9).

Endyia Rogers was the only other Duck to crack double figures, scoring 10 points on 4-of-15 shooting. UO held a 32-27 lead at the half but was outscored 18-6 in the third quarter.

The Huskies owned a 28-8 edge in bench points while scoring 38 points in the paint to Oregon's 24. Phillipina Kyei grabbed 11 or the Ducks' 29 rebounds for her 17th game with 10 or more boards.

SCOUTING ARIZONA
Arizona (21-6, 11-5) enters the final weekend of the regular season on a three-game winning streak, including back-to-back home wins over then-fourth-ranked Utah (82-72) and No. 21 Colorado (61-42). The Wildcats have won five of their last six outings, with three of those wins against ranked teams.

The Cats' roster features four players averaging double-digit points in Shaina Pellington (13.8), Cate Reese (12.8), Esmery Martinez (10.9) and Jade Loville (10.7). The quartet account for 48.2 of UA's 75.7 points per game (63.7 percent). Pellington is third in the conference, connecting on 55.3 percent of her field goal attempts.

The Wildcats offense is third in the Pac-12 in both scoring and scoring margin at plus-12.0. UA's 36.8 rebounds per game is 11th-best in the conference with its rebounding margin of plus-0.9 is 10th. Martinez leads her team in rebounding at 8.8 a game and Reese is second with 6.1 rebounds per contest.

Arizona's defense leads the conference in steals per game at 11.1, as it forces opponents into a league-high 18.8 turnovers a game, resulting in a plus-6.0 turnover margin (first in Pac-12). Helena Pueyo is first in the conference at 63 total steals and second in steals per game with 2.3.

INSIDE THE SERIES
Thursday's matchup will be the 178th all-time meeting between Oregon and Arizona, with the Ducks owning a 45-32 lead dating back to 1981. Oregon is 25-9 against the Wildcats all-time at home, including an 8-2 record at Matthew Knight Arena. Head coach Kelly Graves is 15-6 against UA and 6-1 at home.

In a matchup of two top-25 teams, Arizona claimed the season's first meeting 79-71 in Tucson back on Jan. 8. It was the Cats' fourth win over the last five games in the series. Prior to that five-game span, the Ducks had won eight straight against Arizona from Feb. 3, 2017 to March 7, 2020.

In the first matchup, UA had five players score in double figures while Oregon saw four. Grace VanSlooten led all players with 18 points on 8-of-13 shooting while guards Te-Hina Paopao and Endyia Rogers each added 17. The Ducks doubled Arizona's points in the paint, 36-18, but the Wildcats outscored UO's bench, 26-3.

OREGON vs. RANKED TEAMS
No. 14 Arizona will mark the ninth top-25 opponent Oregon has faced this season, as seven of the Ducks' 13 losses have come to top-25 squads. Oregon is 1-7 against top-25 teams this season, with the Ducks' defeating No. 17 Arkansas 85-78 to kick off the San Diego Invitational on Dec. 20. It was the 44th ranked victory under ninth-year head coach Kelly Graves.

A season ago, the Ducks collected a pair of top-10 wins, including a 72-59 win against No. 9 UConn and a 68-66 win over No. 7 Arizona. The Ducks have picked up 16 victories over teams in the nation's top 10 in Graves' tenure, with seven coming in the 2019-20 campaign. Under Graves, UO has picked up six wins against top-five teams, with the highest ranked win coming against No. 3 Stanford on Jan. 16, 2020 (87-55).

This season against top-25 foes, the Ducks are averaging 72.4 points per game (2.5 points below season average) while allowing 79.6 points (allow 64.8 for the season). The Ducks are shooting 42.5 percent from the field and 31.6 percent from three against ranked teams. Additionally, Oregon turns the ball over 13.5 times per game (12.3 season average) while its assist-to-turnover ratio drops to 1.07 (1.29 season average).

Three players average double-figure points against ranked teams, led by 18.4 from freshman Grace VanSlooten. VanSlooten is shooting 49.5 percent from the field against top-25 teams and has logged two 20-point efforts, including a career-high 29 against then-No. 3 Ohio State. Senior Endyia Rogers averages 16.8 points a game and Te-Hina Paopao adds 11.8 points per outing.

THE "O" STANDS FOR OFFENSE
Oregon's 105.0 offensive efficiency rating (points per 100 possessions) is the 27th-highest mark in the country and third-best in the Pac-12 behind only Utah (113.4) and Stanford (111.0). The Ducks' 74.9 points per game rank as the 38th-best mark in the country and fourth-highest in the conference.

UO has scored at least 75 points in 14 of 27 outings while reaching the 90-point mark five times. This season, Oregon is 4-1 when reaching the 90-point plateau, surpassing the total number of 90-point efforts during the 2021-22 and 2020-21 seasons (three times each). At Matthew Knight Arena this season, the Ducks are averaging 80.5 points per game while shooting 44.9 percent from the field and 38.8 percent from behind the arc. In total, Oregon gets 29.8 percent of its points from 3-pointers - No. 2 in the Pac-12.

FAB FRESHMAN DUO
Freshmen Chance Gray and Grace VanSlooten have already etched their names into the Oregon record books. Gray is in the top 10 in program history with 46 made 3-pointers (No. 8) and 65 assists (No. 10). VanSlooten is 10th in points by a UO freshman with 373 points.

Gray needs one more 3-pointer to move into a seventh-place tie on Oregon's freshman list and two more assists to move into ninth. VanSlooten is six points shy of Duck legend Bev Smith, whose 379 points as a freshman ranks ninth all-time in program history.

Both Gray (11.0) and VanSlooten (14.3) average double-digits points. The last freshman Duck duo to average 10-plus points was Ruthy Hebard (14.9) and Sabrina Ionescu (14.6) in 2016-17 - the only pair of UO teammates to do so since at least the 2009-10 season.