Cal guard Layshia Clarendon scored 27 points, Golden Bears center Talia Caldwell added 12, and Cal (19-7, 10-4 Pac-12) topped Oregon 83-71 Thursday night at Matthew Knight Arena. @@http://www.goducks.com/downloads2/446668.htm?ATCLID=205381579&SPSID=4307&SPID=236&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500@@
The Ducks played well for the first half and early stages of the second, taking a 50-44 lead a few minutes into the second half, but were outscored 39-21 in the game’s final 14 minutes.
“We just need to learn how to play a full 40-minute game,” Jasmin Holliday said. “Today we came out strong in the first half and then just kind of died off in the second half.”
The Ducks, (14-12, 6-8 Pac-12) were victimized by a pair of Cal scoring runs in the second period. The Bears went on a 18-3 run to turn a 50-44 deficit into a 62-53 lead midway through the second half and ended the game on a 12-7 spurt.
Trailing 67-57, the Ducks made a final surge. Holliday made a jumper, followed by a pair of free throws by Amanda Johnson. Cal forward Gennifer Brandon scored to give Cal a 69-61 lead, but Johnson followed with a three-pointer for Oregon to cut the Ducks’ deficit to five. However, Oregon wouldn’t get any closer than that.
While disappointed with the loss and second-half meltdown, the Ducks were encouraged by the play of some of the team’s younger players. Underclassmen Ariel Thomas, Liz Brenner, Deanna Weaver, Jordan Loera and Lexi Petersen combined to score 44 points for Oregon and provided a much-needed spark for the Ducks, particularly early in the second half when Oregon used a 15-4 run to take a lead.
“We’re in the second round of the Pac-12,” Holliday said. “They know how to contribute and they know their roles a lot more so they can come in and do good things for us. Liz did really well for us today getting there, beasting with their posts. Lexi did a good job pushing the ball when Nia (Jackson) had to go out. And Deanna hit some key shots for us and was in there boxing out as well.”
But in the latter stages of the second half, neither the Ducks younger players nor their veterans did anything to halt Cal’s momentum. Numerous second-chance opportunities, including several off missed free throws, keyed Cal’s strong second-half effort. The Bears outrebounded Oregon 27-14 in the second half and tallied 10 second-chance points. @@http://www.goducks.com/downloads2/446668.htm?ATCLID=205381579&SPSID=4307&SPID=236&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500@@
“We just lost track of doing the little things right, in the second half especially,” Holliday said. “I think we did a pretty good job in the first half keeping them off the boards. We put a lot of emphasis on that and then in the second half it just slipped away from us and they were crashing the boards and we weren’t pushing them back like we practiced all week.”
Oregon’s inability to secure defensive rebounds also stifled the team’s fast break.
“It gives them a chance to pressure the ball, especially on Nia (Jackson), or the point guard, whoever it is and it gives them a chance to get back too on defense,” Holliday said, “They did kind of slow us down a little and that’s when we couldn’t capitalize or get a score.”
Oregon’s struggles in free-throw situations also plagued the team. The Ducks, who were third in the conference in free-throw percentage before the game, shot only 9-19 from the free throw line, and failed to capitalize on Cal’s 15-24 effort from the stripe. @@http://www.goducks.com/downloads2/446668.htm?ATCLID=205381579&SPSID=4307&SPID=236&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500@@
“If I had to pinpoint where it really broke down it was on free throw shooting,” Westhead said. “In fact, it was a double problem. The ones they missed they got back and we’re a 72 percent free-throw shooting team that didn’t shoot 72 percent. It works to your disadvantage.”
Oregon will play its penultimate home game of the season at 1 p.m. on Saturday when they host No. 4 Stanford.