It may have been the team’s lowest scoring effort all season, but Oregon women’s basketball’s 57-44 road win over the Arizona State Sun Devils was the team’s biggest victory yet.
On Friday night in Tempe, the Ducks (26-4, 15-2 Pac-12) guaranteed themselves at least a share of the Pac-12 title, the program’s first since the 1999-2000 season. The team’s 26 wins also mark a new program best.
Arizona State controlled the first quarter, jumping out to a 14-8 lead. Despite an electrifying performance from beyond the arc against UCLA, the Ducks were ice cold from deep and struggled to run their offense cohesively.
From the second quarter on, the Ducks would outscore the Sun Devils. A strong 16-point effort in the second period was capped off by a deep 3-pointer from Satou Sabally, and Oregon headed into the break down just 25-24.
The third quarter was where the Ducks break the game open, going on a 20-8 tear. While she didn’t score, Oti Gildon gave her team three rebounds and a steal in her limited floor time in the third period. After a layup from Maite Cazorla, Oregon headed into the fourth quarter up 44-33.
The Sun Devils tried to close the gap but every time they inched closer, the Ducks scored again. They managed to hold Arizona State to just one point in the final three minutes of the game to close the win out.
The Ducks lost the battle on the boards. However, they only gave the ball away eight times — one of their lowest numbers of the season.
With the conference title on the line, the Ducks will travel to Tuscon to conclude their regular season against the Arizona Wildcats on Sunday.
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