Just as it seemed that Oregon was headed to yet another disappointing loss in a season full of them, Kaela Chapdelaine stepped up and put the Ducks on her back, carrying them to a 66-55 win over UCLA Saturday in front of 2,515 at McArthur Court.
The Ducks’ lone senior scored 17 of her career-high 25 points in the last 13 minutes, including nine in a 4 1/2-minute stretch that saw Oregon go from four behind to nine ahead.
Chapdelaine also made all six of her three-point attempts and added six rebounds and six assists.
“Being loose and having fun” was the key, Chapdelaine said. “I only have two games left here, including this one, and I’m just trying to make the most of my time.”
The last time Oregon and UCLA played, the two teams were 4-3 in the Pacific-10 Conference, battling for fourth place. Since that game, which UCLA won 63-59 on the strength of a 14-point second-half comeback, the Ducks had lost eight of nine, including Thursday to USC.
“The weekend in L.A. was a tough one,” Chapdelaine said. “We came really close on the road… so this weekend we wanted to prove we can win these games.”
Both teams came out of the gate slowly in this one, combining for six points in the first four minutes of the game. The Ducks didn’t hit a field goal until a Chapdelaine three-pointer with 15:32 left in the first half, and finished the half shooting only 29.4 percent from the floor.
Despite the poor shooting, Oregon led at halftime, 30-23, thanks in large part to eight offensive rebounds that led to nine second-chance points.
Ellie Manou and Nicole Canepa did most of the work on the glass. Manou finished with 12 points and eight rebounds, while Canepa had seven points and 10 rebounds.
“You can see their growth,” Oregon coach Bev Smith said. “You can see their defensive toughness finally coming through, their defensive boarding finally coming through. Great game by those two.”
UCLA made a run to open the second half, outscoring the Ducks 13-2 to open a 36-32 lead, its largest of the game.
“We knew they would go on a run, but we didn’t panic,” Smith said. “We knew that if we looked after the ball, moved the ball… we would be able to get some scores. We just had to get defensive intensity.”
Chapdelaine broke the Bruin run with a three-pointer, sparking a 10-0 Oregon run that would effectively put the game out of reach. UCLA would never get closer than five points the rest of the way.
Lindsey Pluimer led the Bruins with 15 points.
UCLA tried a full-court press with about seven minutes left in an effort to get back in the game, but the Ducks were able to break it easily.
“We were waiting for it,” Smith said. “We’ve worked on that. Both our posts and our guards were very aggressive against it.”
Oregon finished with only 13 turnovers, its third-lowest total of the season, compared with the season-high 29 they had at Pauley Pavilion.
The Ducks overcame a poor shooting night from Taylor Lilley, their leading scorer this season. The sophomore shot 4-for-17 overall, 3-for-13 on three-pointers, but hit a three-pointer that capped the 10-0 run that gave the Ducks a 47-39 lead. Lilley finished the game with 11 points and five rebounds.
“We were not going to let this one get away from us,” Lilley said. “We were able to stay poised… and made plays when we needed to.”
Oregon is 12-16 overall, 6-11 in the Pacific-10 Conference. UCLA is 14-13, 9-7 in the Pac-10.
With just next Saturday’s Civil War left in the regular season, the Ducks are trying to build some momentum heading into the Pac-10 Tournament.
“We’ve still got work to do,” Chapdelaine said. “We’re looking ahead to the Beavers next Saturday and it’s all in preparation for the tournament. We’re gaining momentum, feeling good about the way we’re playing and going into the postseason feeling good about ourselves.”
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