It was Oregon’s Jan. 17 victory over California that catapulted the Ducks back into the hunt for an NCAA Tournament berth. Since the win, Oregon has gone 9-2 in conference play.
This week, the Ducks (20-7, 9-7 Pac-12) are heading into the final weekend of the regular season hoping to bolster their résumé for postseason play. Their weekend in the Bay Area begins tonight (7 p.m., No TV) in Berkeley.
“We want to keep the momentum going,” Graves said. “Got to clean up our transition defense a little bit and continue to rebound like we have. … I think we’re playing well right now, just got to take that on the road one last weekend.”
The Ducks are coming off a split against the Los Angeles schools, with a loss to UCLA and a win over USC on senior day.
“It was the most incredible feeling after senior night getting the win,” Oregon guard Lexi Petersen. “Especially because it was an important win for us. We really needed it.”
Cal’s offense features one of the most productive freshmen in the country in forward Kristine Anigwe, who has been named Pac-12 freshman of the week seven times this season. She averages 20.3 points a game and 9.0 rebounds.
“She’s everybody’s focus when they play Cal, and she’s still putting up numbers,” Graves said of Anigwe. “That’s a testament to her greatness and obviously how they’re playing her.”
Earlier this season, Oregon beat Cal 69-59 in Eugene for the Ducks’ first Pac-12 win of the season. Cal had a 24-point fourth quarter, but its comeback effort fell short. Cal got into a hole in the second quarter with a season-low four points on offense. Anigwe had 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Courtney Range, who averages 13.9 points a game, had 15.
Cal owns wins over Top 25 teams UCLA and Louisville despite a 12-15, 3-13 Pac-12 record.
“They have nothing to lose at this point,” Petersen said. “They’re a really good team and so athletic. We just have to buckle down on defense and not them take advantage of some of their height mismatch.
Petersen and the Ducks understand the importance of a strong showing this weekend.
“To go down there and get a couple wins would be great for our position in the NCAA Tournament and just for our confidence,” Petersen said.
Mikayla Cowling averages 11.7 points a game for Cal, which has no seniors on its roster. A win Friday would give Oregon its first sweep of Cal since 2004-2005. Oregon and Cal are the top two teams in the conference in assists per game.
“They have great talent,” Graves said. “Sometimes it’s not just clicking like it can, but they have the potential to turn it at any moment. They truly do have blue-chip basketball players. We can’t let them get going at all.”
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