As Oregon (20-9, 9-7 Big Ten) surged into a 14-point lead Wednesday, it looked as if the Ducks would make it a nightlong celebration of their improved play and soon-to-be three-game winning streak.
With some inspired play in the early minutes of their 94-90 overtime loss to Nebraska (19-9, 10-7 Big Ten), Oregon played suffocating defense. It shut down the Cornhuskers’ best player, holding Alex Markowski to just 11 points on 4-12 shooting at the game’s midpoint.
Markowski would finish with an astounding 35 to lead all scorers while also adding 15 rebounds.
Even with some slippage in the final minutes before halftime leaving both teams separated by just a point, the Ducks could feel good about their effort knowing that continued strong play would likely result in a victory.
What happened next in Lincoln left a sentiment of a different sort. A fourth-quarter collapse might have qualified as the Ducks’ most deflating loss of the year.
What started so well for Oregon couldn’t have ended any worse. After playing a strong half and shooting a remarkable 57% and forcing six turnovers in a 28-point third quarter, Oregon fell apart down the stretch.
The Ducks were up by eight when Kelly wildly missed a driving layup, with Nebraska hitting a 3-pointer down the other end of the court — the string of plays perfectly encapsulating the possible collapse at hand.
With under a minute to go, both teams traded 3-pointers to send the game to overtime where Nani Falatea missed a game-tying shot from deep with 16 seconds remaining in overtime.
Deja Kelly tallied 22 points, and Phillipina Kyei and Falatea recorded 16 and 20-point performances, respectively, for the Ducks, who led by 10 with 10 minutes remaining.
There wasn’t much else to praise after a loss that will certainly hurt the Ducks’ NCAA tournament chances. A night that seemed destined for a resounding win ended in disaster for Oregon.
Fouls, sloppy play and missed free throws were all culprits for the Ducks, who shot 66% from the line and turned the ball over 12 times.
Led by Markowski, Nebraska stormed back into the game and tied the contest on her 3-pointer with 28 seconds remaining. Oregon called timeout and drew up a clean look, but Peyton Scott’s 3-pointer was off the mark, and sent the game to overtime.
Still fighting, Oregon got some luck on a jump ball going their way with 28 seconds remaining before Falatea’s game-tying shot was off the mark. Nebraska won the ensuing free-throw battle leaving Oregon to examine what went wrong.
Nebraska shot 15-29 from 3-point range and showcased impressive shot-making all night, a skill that proved to be the difference. The Cornhuskers also grabbed 49 rebounds to just 32 of Oregon and grabbed 18 offensive boards.
The Ducks will return home, taking on Rutgers (10-16, 2-13 Big Ten) on Sunday’s senior day.
