Behind a dominant 25-point, 14-rebound performance from Jillian Alleyne, the Ducks jumped to a quick lead and never look back, beating Washington State, 73-48. The double-double was Alleyne’s 88th of her career, tying Bev Smith for most in Oregon history.
The Ducks got off to a hot start – jumping out to a 13-2 lead in the first three and a half minutes. Not even a quick Cougar timeout could cool down the Ducks as they ended the first quarter leading 19-6. By the time the first half had ended, the Duck’s lead had ballooned to 39-14.
Alleyne was her usual dominant self, posting as many points as the Cougars had at the half (14) without missing a shot (7-7). The Ducks defense was on full display as well tonight as they held Washington State to only 31 percent shooting from the field for the game.
To top it off, Oregon was lights out from the field. They shot 59.5 percent for the game, including 6-10 from three in each half.
An Alleyne double-double, lock down defense, and lights out shooting spelled trouble all night for the Cougars, who played aggressive all game, but could never put a run together.
Offensively, the Ducks were paced by Alleyne (25 points) and Pac-12 freshman of the week Maite Cazorla who had 15 points on 4-7 from downtown, all in the second half. The Ducks did commit 22 turnovers, but when you shoot 20 threes and make 60 percent of them, that’s not going to matter much.
The Cougars were lead by freshman Borislava Hristova, who tallied an impressive 19 points on 7-12 shooting, but was the only Washington State player who scored in double digits.
The Ducks improve to 16-6 (5-6 in the Pac-12), and win for the fifth time in their last six games.
They look for the sweep as they travel to Seattle to take on 24 Washington and elite scorer Kelsey Plum on Sunday.
Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris