Bev Smith emphasized the positives of another Oregon loss in Berkeley – defense, rebounding and effort.
The Oregon coach praised her young post players, who, while battling injuries, managed to take the court and contribute. The end result remains a 61-52 loss inside Haas Pavilion for the Oregon women’s basketball team as the Ducks (8-7, 2-2 Pacific-10 Conference) prepare for an even tougher challenge Saturday.
Stanford demolished Oregon State 81-45 Thursday, serving notice that they remain a contender for the Pacific-10 Conference Title despite two losses to the Los Angeles schools.
“They’re going to have their ups and downs over the course of the season,” Smith said in a broadcast interview. “I was hoping they’d have their downs this week but it looks like they’re on the way back up.”
Cal forward Ashley Walker had her usual stat line with 25 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal. Her partner in the post, Devanei Hampton struggled with six points on just 3 of 10 shooting.
For Oregon, Ellie Manou played 17 minutes despite dealing with a sore foot and had six points and eight rebounds.
“She’s still not 100 percent,” Smith said. “We got her the ball a couple times and she just wasn’t able to finish.”
Taylor Lilley was one of three Ducks in double figures with 15 points, followed by Micaela Cocks with 13 and Ellyce Ironmonger with 12.
The Ducks shot 36.5 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from three-point range. Lilley made three of Oregon’s five total three-pointers.
Oregon stayed within a board, 35-34, of one of the Pac-10’s top rebounding team in Cal.
Cal (14-2, 5-0) showed why the Golden Bears are ranked No. 9 in the country. They weathered Oregon’s first-half challenge and, with a 13-2 run, moved ahead 36-31 with 11 minutes left. The lone basket for Oregon came courtesy of an 18-footer by forward Victoria Kenyon.
Oregon’s defense suffered without Ironmonger, who picked up her fourth foul early in the second half and went to the bench. Unable to contain Cal’s posts, Smith had to bring Ironmonger back with about nine minutes left, but it was too late.
“They could see them just gaining confidence with her out of the game,” Smith said. “She’s just so strong and she can use her arms to alter shots.”
Oregon played above its experience in pushing California in the first half. The Ducks stayed close and held the lead at halftime, 24-22.
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