Sabrina Ionescu owns a piece of Oregon women’s basketball history just seven games into her collegiate career.
The freshman from Walnut Creek, California, scored 11 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and dished out 11 assists, joining Stefani Kasperski (1986-90) and Bev Smith (1978-82) as the only Ducks in program historu with triple-doubles.
Her efforts helped lead the Ducks past San Jose State 91-62 in their final game of the Rainbow Wahine Showdown in Honolulu, Hawaii.
With the win, Oregon — which outrebounded the Spartans 62-31 — improves to 6-1. Lexi Bando led the team with 19 points while Oti Gildon scored a career-high 16 points. Mallory McGwire added 11 more points on 5-of-6 shooting.
After the game, Ionescu said coaches didn’t make a big deal of the accomplishment.
“He [head coach Kelly Graves] just whispered in my ear. He didn’t really say anything,” Ionescu said.
Ionescu said she didn’t feel the triple-double coming. She said the young team gained confidence from the trip, going 2-1 in three consecutive games in Hawaii.
“It doesn’t feel any different, to be honest,” Ionescu said. “Wings made shots. I give it up to my teammates who helped me achieve that.”
The Ducks outscored SJSU 48-27 after halftime to run away with the win. Bando added 12 of her points after intermission. She helped limit the Spartans to 25.7 percent from the field after halftime while the Ducks shot 45.2 percent.
Oregon stretched its halftime lead from 43-35 to a 58-37 lead on a 15-2 run during the third quarter.
Gildon, a sophomore, also scored a career-high nine rebounds in the win.
“Oti came in and did really well,” Ionescu said. “I think everyone adjusted to the game they were giving us. We used that to our advantage.”
Associate head coach Mark Campbell, who played at Hawaii as a collegiate, said Ionescu’s competitive spirit helped her pull down 12 rebounds.
“It was fun to watch,” Campbell said. “She has a very high competitive spirit and an ability to impact the game in so many different areas. Obviously she’s a natural scorer blessed with great vision.”
After three games in three days, the Ducks return home for consecutive games at Matthew Knight Arena, starting with an exhibition game against Vanguard on Dec. 9.
“Really proud of the group to be sitting at 6-1 at this stage,” Campbell said. “We’ll regroup this week and get ready for Vanguard and Portland.”
Follow Jonathan Hawthorne on Twitter @Jon_Hawthorne