Oregon women’s basketball (2-0) shaped up well in what became a conditioning session against the University of Montana Grizzlies (1-1).  The Ducks ran out the same starting lineup and structure as their first game — three starting guards and 13 total players — and it paid off. Oregon’s two top scorers, Ehis Etute and Avary Cain, came from the bench, as the Ducks emerged with a 43-point win.

“We can trust that anyone from the bench can score, and help us out in the field and win at the end of the day,” Etute (12 points, 7 rebounds) said.

The Ducks got out to an early lead, playing well off their quick transitions up the court, and slick passing in the key from Katie Fiso (10 points, 5 assists, 3 steals). With the speed of play, Montana struggled to breathe on offense, and had to rush back on defense. The Grizzlies finally got on the board three-and-a-half minutes into the game. 

Fiso and Sofia Bell (10 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists) opened up the court for their teammates and for each other. Fiso dished out to Bell in the corner for Bell’s first 3-pointer, then Bell later passed to Elisa Mevius (10 points, 3 assists), who went under the basket for the layup. Montana went into the media timeout being outscored by Oregon 7-0 (a run which the Ducks achieved in under two minutes).

Oregon continued to drive into the paint as the game continued, an area of the court Montana was not guarding well. Although their first shot didn’t always fall, the Oregon offense took control of the rebounding, ending the game with 37 total.

“On the defensive boards, I thought we got to get a little bit better,” head coach Kelly Graves said. “We should have out rebounded that team by a little bit more than we did.”

At the end of the first quarter, capped off by an Ari Long (5 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists) hook shot for the layup, the Ducks led the Grizzlies 21-10, and shot at or over 50 percent in all shooting categories. Montana shot under 30 percent across the board.

The Ducks opened up the second quarter with a defensive rebound from Long, heaving a pass down the court to Fiso who bounce-passed to Avary Cain (11 points), a scoring opportunity only made possible from the speed that Oregon showed, speed that was starting to get to Montana.

The Ducks doubled the Grizzlies’ point total, extending their lead to 32-16, off of free throws from Amina Muhammad. Graves sent out 11 different players by the end of the second half, all of whom played with the same speed and physicality as the starters.

“Our two biggest strengths are depth and pace of play,” Graves said. “Points coming from the bench, that’s probably not going to be the last time.”

Mia Jacobs (7 points, 6 rebounds) extended the lead to 19 after drilling a wide open 3-pointer, which came after the Ducks confused the Montana defense with their quick passes in the paint, and hit her two free throws. The Grizzlies were frustrated and tired going into the half. They were slow on offense, struggled to track back, and made the Oregon defense’s job easy. 

The Ducks dominated the first half, and at half the score stood at 44-18. The Ducks shot 51.6 percent from the field, 66.7 percent from 3-point range and 100 percent on their free throws. Montana turned the ball over 10 times in the first half, leading to six Oregon points. 

The third quarter saw more of the same from both teams. The Ducks were quick on the transition, and in an effort to combat it, Montana gave up presence on the offensive board to have more numbers on defense. The Ducks did not have to work too hard on offense, and each end of the court told a different story. The Ducks on offense played aggressive, driving into the paint and drawing fouls, while the Grizzlies took their time, hoping to both catch their breath and open up chances. 

With an Astera Tuhina (6 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists) layup just past halfway through the third quarter, the Ducks secured their largest point differential of the game up until that point (30), and led the Grizzlies 55-25. 

The fourth quarter opened with four straight baskets, three by Cain and one by Etute, to push the Oregon lead to 40. 

The rest of the final quarter followed the same script as the first three. Oregon continued to pressure Montana well on defense, had very little issue getting into the paint, and outscored the Grizzlies 26-15 by the end of the quarter — Oregon hit 20-plus points in each quarter. 

“In the third and fourth quarter we’re still fresh and able to go full speed,” Bell said. “I think that’s a huge advantage.”

The only time a jovial Oregon crowd was completely silent on the day followed a Mevius knee injury in the final two and a half minutes of the game. The senior went down in the paint, grabbed at her left knee, and had to be helped off the court by two trainers. 

The Ducks will take on the Grand Canyon University Antelopes on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. at Matthew Knight Arena.