What looked like a struggle for both teams, turned out to be a
confidence booster for one and just the same old news for the other.
The Oregon women’s basketball team got the good news as it cruised by
Washington State, 69-50 on Saturday at McArthur Court in front of
3,702 fans.
The Ducks moved to 5-2 in the Pacific-10 Conference and 12-4 overall
and completed a sweep of their Northwest rivals for the first time
since the 1999-2000 season.
At the same time, Oregon extended its winning streak to three games
while the Cougars’ losing stretch extended to 10-straight. Washington
State (4-13, 0-8) has yet to find a Pac-10 victory this season.
“This was a really important weekend for us and we’re proud of our
team and how we performed in both games,” Oregon head coach Bev
Smith
said.
Cathrine Kraayeveld had little trouble finding the basket from long
range as she hit 4 of 5 from beyond the arc for Oregon. The senior
forward shot 4 of 10 from the field and earned her second double-
double in as many games and fifth of the season with 16 points and 11
rebounds – both game-highs.
Oregon guard Kaela Chapdelaine started in place of Chelsea Wagner,
whose season ended when the anterior cruciate ligament in her left
knee tore during Thursday’s game against Washington.
Play from both teams was sloppy in the first half.
Washington State’s Kate Benz, the Pac-10’s leading rebounder, hauled
in five of her team’s 20 boards in the first half while Oregon
brought down only 16.
“It was a sub-par performance in the first half,” said Smith,
whose
team shot 40 percent (24 of 60) for the game. “I think we were
looking to press a little bit but in the second half we worked better
together.”
A three-pointer by Chapdelaine – her only field goal of the game – at
3:32 in the first half gave the Ducks a 21-18 advantage that they did
not relinquish for the remainder of the contest.
The Cougars cut the gap to five-points before halftime, 28-23, but
never got any closer. Oregon created separation with an 11-2 run to
start the second half.
Washington State won the rebounding battle in the first half but
Oregon managed to win the war, 45-39.
Senior center Andrea Bills picked up six of her eight boards and all
12 points in the second half for the Ducks.
“I felt like they were really hacking and playing aggressive,”
Bills
said. “I had to battle through that and it finally showed in the
second half.”
With 2:28 remaining, the Ducks accomplished a 27 points lead, 67-40,
after stringing together a 15-2 scoring streak.
“We’re a second half team but we can’t do that anymore,”
Kraayeveld
said. “We can’t say we’re a second half team and not play the first
half.”
Corrie Mizusawa returned to Oregon’s starting lineup and dished out a
game-high seven assists from the point. Freshman Gabrielle Richards
recorded a career-best four blocks.
Benz, a sophomore, tallied 11 points and 10 rebounds for Washington
State. Teammate Adriane Ferguson scored a team-high 13 points. As a
team, the Cougars shot 29 percent in each half.
The Ducks scored 22 points off of turnovers compared to the Cougars’
four. Each team finished with 14 turnovers.
