University of Oregon
Arizona State
Oregon's Perfect Pac-10 Run Comes To An End
01/15/10 | Women's Basketball
TEMPE, Ariz. - Oregon's perfect mark in the Pac-10 was ended despite a valiant effort on Thursday night, as Arizona State continued its spell over the Ducks with a 73-68 victory at Wells Fargo Arena.
Oregon falls to 12-4 overall and 3-1 in the Pac-10, and has now lost 10 straight to the Sun Devils dating back to Feb. 17, 2005.
Arizona State was led by senior Danielle Orsillo's game-high 17 points and now improves to 10-6 overall and 2-3 in conference play.
Oregon was led by Micaela Cocks as the senior gutted out 36 minutes on the floor in Paul Westhead's uptempo system, but the Ducks shot just 43.8 (28-of-64) percent from the floor and committed a season-high 25 turnovers, which ASU scored 21 points off of.
Cocks and Nia Jackson each scored 15, while senior guard Taylor Lilley added 14 points. Sophomore forward Amanda Johnson added 10 points with a game-high four assists, while sophomore forward Jasmin Holliday scored seven, but brought down a game-high 10 rebounds.
After trailing by as many as 14 in the second half, Oregon began to close the gap by draining late three-pointers and sending ASU to the line.
Kristi Fallin knocked down a three-pointer on the baseline to cut the score to 65-58 with 1:26 to go, but ASU converted their freebies to extend the lead again. Cocks answered with a basket, and ASU's Tenaya Watson missed both of her free-throw shots setting up Johnson's step-back three-pointer that had the Sun Devils ahead just 67-63 with just 37 seconds to play.
Oregon played the final minute without Lilley after she picked up her fifth foul,and Jackson fouled out as well, but not before a coast-to-coast layup had ASU on the brink with a 68-65 lead with 31 seconds to play.
A lay-up from Johnson after two ASU misses from the line had Oregon within 70-68 with 16 seconds to go, but two makes at the line from Kayli Murphy had ASU back up by four. Johnson and Cocks then missed on last-second three-point attempts in the final five seconds.
Murphy finished the game with 11 points on an 11-of-12 performance from the line. Becca Tobin added 12 for the Sun Devils.
Oregon was cold from three-point range on the night shooting just 7-for-20 (33.3 percent) and UO didn't make many trips to the charity line, but failed to capitalize when there knocking down 5-of-10 opportunities.
The Ducks trailed 33-28 - their lowest-scoring half of the season - but had the game tied up at 37-37 with 17:23 remaining after a three-pointer from Lilley.
Over the next six minutes, the Sun Devils executed a 16-2 run, culminating with a 14-point, 53-39 lead that proved to be too much for UO to overcome.
Junior Victoria Kenyon was ejected from the game with 6:01 to play after being charged with a flagrant foul. It was a part of a double-foul call that also sent ASU's Kali Bennett out of the game with her fifth.
Both teams combined to turn the ball over 31 times for a sloppy first half.
The Ducks trailed by as many as eight in the first half, but took their first lead of the game, 22-20, as an ASU miss led to a breakaway for Oregon and ended with Jackson making the dish to Cocks for the lay-in.
Arizona State shot 63.6 percent (14-of-22) from the floor in the first 20 minutes, while Oregon struggled to knock down some open looks shooting 43.3 percent (13-of-30) from the floor.
Cocks led the Ducks with eight points in the first half, while Orsillo countered with eight of her own for the Sun Devils.
NOTES
Lilley's 201 career three-pointers now match former Stanford player Nicole
Powell for 10th all-time in the Pac-10... Oregon has not won in Tempe
since March 2, 2000.
UP
NEXT
Oregon will head
to Arizona for 1 p.m. PST tip against the Wildcats on Saturday at the McKale
Center.
TICKETS
Tickets are
still available for Oregon's next homestand with California (Jan. 21) and
Stanford (Jan. 23) in town. Tickets can be purchased by clicking HERE, calling
1-800-WEB-FOOT, or in person at the Casanova Center ticket office. Tickets can
also be purchased at the McArthur Court ticket window 90 minutes prior to game
time. The doors to Mac Court open 60 minutes prior to tip.
PROMOTIONS
Oregon fans can pick up a "$5 Off" coupon at any Eugene/Springfield area Carl's
Jr., BI-Mart ore Oregon Community Credit Union location to receive $5 off a
reserved ticket for Oregon's game against California on Thursday, Jan. 21.
FORMER DUCK GREATS RETURN TO MAC COURT
Conference women's basketball season played at McArthur Court. Each Pac-10 game
this season will have a pre-game ceremony featuring at least one honorary
captain. In addition, the first 1,000 fans through the doors will receive a 3x7
commemorative ticket highlighting the accomplishments of the honorary
captain(s) for that contest. Missy Croshaw,
who played at the UO from 1991-94, will serve as the honorary captain for the
Oregon-California game on Jan. 21, 2010. Debbie Sporcich will
be Oregon's honorary captain for the Ducks' televised match up with Stanford on
Jan. 23, 2010.
MAC
COURT MEMORIES
The Oregon
Athletics Department wants fans to submit their favorite Mac Court memories
online and at all home basketball games. Duck fans can write-in their favorite
memory of McArthur Court and/or send pictures in to athletics@uoregon.edu (all submissions
become the property of the athletic department and will not be returned).
