Once again, the Ducks had a chance to knock off a top-25 team in the closing minutes.
Against No. 23 Arizona State, the Ducks trailed 61-57 with 1:36 remaining but couldn’t close the gap in the waning minutes, falling to the Sun Devils 68-63 for a weekend split.
ASU, which snapped a four-game losing streak with the win, now has sole possession of fifth place in the Pac-12 standings. With the loss, the Ducks (15-9, 5-7 Pac-12) are tied with Cal for sixth place.
Maite Cazorla had 14 of her 17 points before halftime, Sabrina Ionescu scored 16 points, including a perfect 4-of-4 from 3-point range, and Morgan Yaeger tallied a career-high 11 points in the loss.
“They just wanted it a little bit more,” head coach Kelly Graves said in his postgame radio appearance on Oregon IMG. “I didn’t do a very good job late in the game. We looked disorganized. … Those guys played — down the stretch — like they wanted it more.
“They made shots. They played like a championship team like they are. We let a really good opportunity slip.”
ASU led 39-32 at halftime, but Oregon started the second half on a 5-0 run. Ionescu had 10 of the Ducks’ 19 third-quarter points to cut the ASU lead to 52-51 after three quarters.
After Yaeger hit a bucket for a 55-54 Oregon lead, the Ducks went scoreless for 5:50, allowing the Sun Devils to jump out to a 61-55 lead with 3:45 left. Ruthy Hebard, who tallied seven points and 10 boards for the Ducks, recorded a layup with 1:36 left to cut the ASU lead to 61-57. ASU promptly responded with a 3-pointer from Sabrina Haines, who had 14 points.
Yaeger responded with a 3-pointer of her own with 29 seconds left, but ASU made its final four free throws to keep the Ducks at bay.
Graves said Yaeger’s performance was a bright spot in the loss.
“We played her more tonight because they do such a great job blowing screens up,” Graves said. “She’s one of our few players that can actually beat someone off the dribble. We’re not built that way. … Morgan had a chance. She stepped up and made the most of it.”
The Ducks forced 11 ASU turnovers and committed 15. ASU, which shot 43.6 percent from the field, won the rebounding battle, 35-29.
“They were way too comfortable on the night,” Graves said. “Give them credit. Those guys shot the ball better than they had been shooting it.”
Oregon now returns home to host the Los Angeles schools next weekend. The Ducks host UCLA on Friday and USC on Sunday.
“Disappointing loss,” Graves said. “Three of the last four games we had chances in all of them but didn’t close it. Again, I have to somehow push the right button and get us into something where we can score.”
Follow Jonathan Hawthorne on Twitter @Jon_Hawthorne