For the Oregon women’s basketball team, it was the same story, but a different game. Turnovers and lack of an inside game again doomed the Ducks, this time in a 68-44 loss to the Arizona Wildcats on Saturday in Tucson.
“Our perimeter defense wasn’t that good,” Oregon coach Bev Smith said in her radio interview after the game. “Arizona got into the paint with penetration, and their bench was huge. They also got a lot of points off of our turnovers. I think it just spiraled today, and no matter who we put in, it had the same lethargic feeling.”
The 24-point loss was the third in a row for Oregon (8-14 overall, 4-7 Pacific-10 Conference), and five of the last six. It’s also the fifth straight Pac-10 loss, after the team started conference play with a record of 4-2.
“I don’t know where our team’s mental state is right now,” Smith said. “It’s a little fragile and that’s disturbing because that’s what we can usually hang our hat on at the end of the day.”
Oregon had come into the weekend hoping to earn at least a split with Arizona State and Arizona, having already beaten the Wildcats 68-55 on Jan. 8 in Eugene. But Arizona (9-13, 2-9) came out and pounded the ball inside, outscoring the Ducks in the paint by 20 points.
The Wildcats were led by senior Amina Njonkou’s 16 points and nine rebounds, but she was only one of five Arizona players in double figures. Ify Ibekwe, the Pac-10’s second leading scorer at 15.5 a game, had 12 points and seven rebounds.
Freshman Jasmin Holliday had a career-high 15 points for the Ducks, and junior Micaela Cocks added 12 points and three rebounds.
The Ducks started off the game slow, falling behind 12-3 after the first seven minutes. The team cut the lead to three at 14-11 with 10 minutes to go on a three-pointer from Cocks, but back-to-back three-pointers from Ashley Frazier pushed the lead to 11 points, and the Arizona went into the break up by 13.
Arizona forced Oregon into 12 turnovers in the first half, much in part because Ibekwe had four steals.
“It’s amazing what being active can do for you – being active and knowing what spots you’re
supposed to be on the floor,” Arizona coach Niya Butts said to the media after the game. “When you do what you’re supposed to do, good things happen.”
The second half didn’t get much better for the Ducks. An 8-0 run by Arizona pushed the double-digit halftime lead to 20 points with 14:03 left in the game, and Oregon never got the deficit beneath 20 the rest of the way.
“Today we definitely came out flat,” Holliday said. “I’m not sure what’s going on with us lately. We’ve just really got to figure it out before next weekend.”
The loss might have left players and coaches searching for an answer, but in the absence of junior Taylor Lilley, who sat out after sustaining a severe concussion in Thursday night’s game against Arizona State, Smith was proud of the way Cocks played.
“That young woman can play 39 minutes and keep getting after it and diving for loose balls because she’s invested in the game of basketball,” Smith said. “She’s put in the time and energy, and she doesn’t give up. This young team has to take note of that from her and Taylor.”
Smith is challenging her team to shake of their funk and move on.
“When you’re down and you have to compete, that’s when you’ll find out who you really are and what you’re about.”
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Plagued by turnovers, Ducks drop third straight
Daily Emerald
February 8, 2009
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