Four Montana players scored in double figures and the Ducks could not overcome a 30.2-percent shooting night Thursday as Oregon fell to the Lady Grizzlies, 60-52.
Montana guard Mandy Morales led all scorers with 14 points, adding in seven assists and four steals. Center Britney Lohman and forward Lauren Beck added 11 points each, and Lohman led the Lady Grizzlies with nine rebounds.
Junior Micaela Cocks, the only Duck to play all 40 minutes, was also the only Duck in double-figure scoring, with 11 points. Junior Lindsey Saffold scored nine points and grabbed seven rebounds, and sophomore Ellyce Ironmonger finished as the game’s top rebounder with 10, supplementing six points.
Montana employed a 2-3 zone on defense, double- and triple-teaming Oregon post players any time they received the ball in the key. The Ducks struggled to adapt, shooting just 18.2 percent for the half and committing 12 turnovers despite grabbing nine more rebounds than the Lady Grizzlies. Montana stretched its lead as far as 18 points before entering the locker room at halftime holding a 32-17 lead.
“They really came out on their front heel and we came out on our back heel,” Cocks said. “It took us a whole half to get focused and disciplined and execute our game plan.”
Oregon came out and played a more disciplined second half, sticking to the game plan of feeding the post players, usually Ironmonger or sophomore Nicole Canepa. The Ducks could not close the gap on the Lady Grizzlies, cutting the lead to six only in the final minute on three-pointers by Cocks and Darriel Gaynor before settling on the final score.
Center Ellie Manou played 11 minutes before leaving with a right knee injury that head coach Bev Smith described as “a small bone bruise.” Guard Taylor Lilley again did not dress, and Smith gave no timetable on her return to the court.
Oregon gets a nine-day reprieve before its next game on Saturday, Dec. 13, against Georgia Tech at the Rose Garden in Portland, the site of the 2008 Papé Jam.
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