The Pac-12 season hasn’t been kind to the Ducks through their first 10 games, and Sunday wasn’t any different. What looked to be a potential comeback-win against their instate rival Oregon State ended up being yet another crushing loss.
Oregon women’s basketball (11-12, 2-8 Pac-12) left the court with a bitter taste in its mouth in the 64-60 defeat. The Ducks had come so close but fell short once again. Despite the loss, there’s still much to take away from what was one of Oregon’s best games of the season.
Two of the Ducks’ biggest problems this season have been ball handling and defense. They’ve had five games this season with 20 or more turnovers – including a season-high 27 against Arizona in January. Their big-three of Chance Gray, Grace VanSlooten and Phillipina Kyei are all top-10 in the conference in turnovers.
On the defensive side of the floor, Oregon entered Sunday’s game allowing an average of 63.9 points per game. They faced a Beavers team that ranks second in the Pac-12 in both field goal percentage and 3-point percentage and is fifth in scoring.
For a team that can hardly take care of the ball and can’t prevent buckets on the other end, Sunday’s matchup seemed bound to be a blowout.
But that wasn’t the case against Oregon State (17-3, 7-3 Pac-12).
The Beavers pulled in front in the first quarter largely in part to three early Ducks’ turnovers. It was a 10-0 Oregon run to end the first half, however, that kept the game close.
The Ducks held Oregon State to 12-of-31 from the field and only 2-of-12 from distance in the half. The group showed hustle and heart. Its run was highlighted by a play where Kyei dove on the floor for an offensive board off a missed free-throw and dished it out to Gray for a made 3.
The crowd inside Matthew Knight Arena was the loudest it had been for a long time.
“Everyone came in and gave their all,” Kyei said of her team. “There wasn’t any weak link today.”
After the early turnovers, Oregon only gave it away two more times the rest of the contest. The five turnovers were well below the season average. The Ducks got Beavers’ star Raegan Beers in foul trouble and allowed Oregon State to only hit six of its 24 3-point attempts.
The matchup against the Beavers was part of a series of strong defensive showings. Against No. 16 Utah and No. 3 Colorado the previous weekend, Oregon held its opponents below 40% shooting and below 30% from range in both games respectively. Even Utah’s Alissa Pili, who is one of the nation’s top players, had a difficult time scoring on the Ducks.
Sunday was also an improvement from the last time the two teams faced each other. Oregon did put on a similar defensive performance in the first half in Corvallis. The Ducks led 23-15 after two quarters. The Beavers shot only 21.8% from the field and 1-of-10 from 3 during that period.
In the second half of that game, though, the Ducks allowed 47 points. Oregon State’s shooting skyrocketed to 60% overall and 50% from behind the arc in the half.
Oregon figured out what made it successful in the first half of the previous matchup and was able to replicate it in Eugene. But by the time the fourth quarter came around, it became clear that the Beavers were the more experienced side.
The Ducks’ defense got more relaxed. Oregon State boosted its field-goal percentage in the quarter and made four of its eight 3s.
“[We] let a couple of people get loose and then that contributed to them scoring most of their points,” Gray said. “Those are the plays that contributed to them winning the game.”
Despite allowing sniper Lily Hansford to hit three shots from 3-point distance, Oregon’s defense still came up with some big stops in the period. Most notably, it forced a turnover with 25 seconds left and a chance to tie. The Ducks just couldn’t convert offensively.
“We just didn’t convert the wide-open 3,” Oregon head coach Kelly Graves said. “That’s been one of our issues all year long. We just weren’t shooting that well from range.”
The Ducks can have a near-perfect game defensively but still lose because of their offense. In the Pac-12, any mistakes made can gift an opponent the win. It’s a harsh reality that the program needs to navigate, but Sunday’s loss showed that the roster is making progress.
“This will encourage us as much as discourage us,” Graves said. “We got to feel encouraged that the next one could be different.”
Oregon seems to be figuring out that its defense is what will keep it in games. Now, it’s just a matter of stringing together a full 40 minutes together on both sides of the floor.
