SAN JOSE, Calif. — The worst three-point shooting team in the Pacific-10 Conference couldn’t miss Friday night.
California, which shot a conference-low 29 percent from beyond the three-point line this year, burned Oregon with a season-high 11 three-pointers en route to an 82-57 victory on the opening night of the Pac-10 Tournament at HP Pavilion.
The Golden Bears capitalized on the Ducks’ zone defense, connecting on 11 of 16 three-point attempts, including 5 of 5 from junior forward Kiki Williams.
“I thought we came out shooting the ball very well,” California head coach Caren Horstmeyer said. “And that led to confidence for us.”
Oregon (14-15) remained within striking distance until the 9-minute mark of the second half when Chelsea Wagner’s three-pointer from the right corner cut the California lead to 59-49. The Golden Bears (12-16) closed the game on a 23-8 run, which saw the Ducks go more than eight minutes without a field goal.
Oregon received limited production from its leading scorer and
rebounder Andrea Bills, who spent most of the game on the bench in foul trouble. The junior center played six minutes in the first half after picking up two early fouls. Bills finished with four points and one rebound in 15 minutes.
Bills was the focal point of the Ducks’ offense in the regular season finale against California, scoring a career-high 22 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in a 77-62 Oregon win. Friday, however, her aggressiveness was limited by foul trouble and an ankle injury she had been nursing all week.
Oregon head coach Bev Smith said Bills played as hard as she could based on the circumstances.
“I would like to compliment (Bills) too,” Smith said. “This young lady didn’t practice all week. I thought she gave us what she could with what she had. She’s a real warrior.”
California came out fired up from the opening tip and never let up. The Golden Bears routinely out-hustled the Ducks to loose balls and outrebounded Oregon, 40-29. After the game, California players said there was plenty of emotion built up from last Saturday’s loss to Oregon.
“I think last Saturday had a lot to do with (us being fired up),” Williams said. “We know we should have and could have won that game.”
Oregon, on the other hand, came out flat. The Ducks fell behind early and couldn’t shoot themselves back into the game. Oregon shot 2 of 13 from three-point range and had more turnovers (16) than assists (10).
Eleanor Haring was a bright sport for Oregon, tying a career-high with 18 points. The freshman forward also grabbed a team-high seven rebounds and dished out a career-best four assists.
“The loss is pretty disappointing,” Haring said. “They just got an early lead and we had to play catch-up all night.”
All-Pac-10 guard Nihan Anaz recorded her first career double-double for California, scoring 14 points and dishing out 10 assists. Renee Wright finished with 16 points and Williams added 15.