LAS VEGAS — “And another one from Erin Boley.”
That’s what the crowd heard from the announcer over the booming cheers as the Oregon junior sunk her fourth 3-point shot of the game with four minutes to go in the third quarter.
The Hodgenville, Kentucky native contributed 18 points in Oregon’s 88-70 victory over Arizona in Saturday’s conference tournament semifinal game.
In Friday’s game against No. 8 seed Utah, the Ducks were in trouble in the first quarter. Thanks to Boley, Saturday’s matchup was not a repeat. Boley took the court and dominated from the tip, putting the first points on the board with a 3-point shot straight out of the gates.
“It was a good start to the game, and I tried to get into a rhythm with the rest of the team,” Boley said.
She didn’t stop there as she continued to sink shots from beyond the arc. In the first four minutes of the game Boley shot 4-4 from the field and 2-2 from the 3-point line. She finished the first quarter leading the team with 12 of Oregon’s 23 points.
“Seeing Erin come out with that fire inspired me to want to do better offensively and get in the paint and dish,” Sabrina Ionescu said. “We’re a hard team to beat when Erin is shooting the way she is right now.”
The first quarter set the tone for the remainder of the game as the Ducks made easy work of the Wildcats, maintaining a solid lead and securing the victory.
The forward wasn’t just a threat from the 3-point line — she was driving to the basket and grabbing boards. Boley finished with five rebounds and three assists.
Boley finished the game shooting 4-8 from the 3-point line and surpassed 1,000 career points. The junior’s achievement puts Oregon’s entire starting five at 1,000-plus career points.
Oregon’s 3-point shooting made the difference in Saturday’s victory. The Ducks shot 57.1% from the 3-point line and made 15 total threes, breaking the tournament record for most in a single game.
“It is really important for us to be shooting well as a big part of our offense,” Boley said. “I think it showed over the past two games.”
After scoring 88 points against the best defensive team in the Pac-12, Oregon heads into the conference championship game against No. 3 seed Stanford on Sunday. The Ducks are out for Cardinal blood after losing to Stanford in the conference championships last season.
“If we play our basketball game, we’re the best team,” head coach Kelly Graves said. “I don’t mind saying that. We just are. We proved it over a two-month grind in Pac-12, and now we have three days. We have two of them down, now we have one more.”
