Wednesday, February 12
Eugene, OR
6 p.m.
University of Oregon
17-8,8-6Big Ten
68
vs
67
Washington
14-11,5-8Big Ten
1
2
3
4
F
Washington
16
16
20
15
67
Oregon
15
12
22
19
68
Photo by: Eric Evans/GoDucks.com
Defensive Pressure Keys Comeback To Beat UW
02/12/25 | Women's Basketball
Oregon cranked up its defense to come from behind and beat Washington on Wednesday, clinching a spot in the Big Ten Tournament
EUGENE, Ore. — The last three weeks of the regular season, Oregon women's basketball coach Kelly Graves said, are the Ducks' "March to March."
The UO women took the first step on that march Wednesday evening. The toughness, the defensive intensity and the depth of contributions that have become this Oregon team's identity were on full display. And the "March to March" began with a big win over a storied rival.
Oregon led for only 12 seconds of the fourth quarter Wednesday at Matthew Knight Arena, but it was the 12 seconds that mattered most as the Ducks took the lead on two free throws by Deja Kelly and got a stop at the other end to beat Washington, 68-67. The win clinched a spot for the UO women in the 15-team Big Ten Conference Tournament, in March in Indianapolis.
"Any time you can beat your rival like we just did," Graves said, "that's a good day."
The Ducks (17-8, 8-6 Big Ten) trailed by six with less than 4 minutes to play, 63-57. But they proceeded to force three straight turnovers and turn each into points, tying the game. With UW up 67-65, Kelly made one of two free throws, but she made up for the miss by drawing a charge at the other end, then sank a pair from the free-throw line to give Oregon its first and only lead of the fourth quarter.
"We know there's a lot at stake, there's a lot that we're still playing for, postseason goals that we have," Kelly said. "So for us to come out in the second half the way we did, we just knew that we had to have an energy shift and pick it up on the defensive end. Because ultimately, it just came down to getting stops; we knew we would get some things going on offense, but we just had to sit down and get stops. And that's really what it came down to in the last couple minutes."
Kelly scored 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting to lead the Ducks, and Phillipina Kyei finished with 11 points and five rebounds. Elisa Mevius added 14 points with four assists and three steals — two of them during the sequence of three straight turnovers forced by the Ducks as they turned the 63-57 deficit into a 63-63 tie.
"We talked at halftime about our energy level, and I think when (the coaches) let us go a little bit more and they tell us to just be aggressive, that kind of feeds into the energy," Mevius said. "Getting steals, trapping, we got a five-second call … those things, they all just give us so much energy."
How It Happened: The Ducks started well in three of the game's four quarters, including the first. Mevius scored on a pass from Kyei to open the game, and four possessions later Kyei hit two free throws to cap an 8-4 run by Oregon to start the night. But Washington hit two three-pointers to take the lead, and UW was up 16-15 after one quarter.
The second quarter saw Oregon's lone slow start of the night, as UW scored six straight to open the period and stretch its lead to seven. A bucket in the paint by Sarah Rambus ended that cold stretch for the Ducks, and Sofia Bell followed with a three-pointer. The teams traded baskets late in the period, and Washington took a 32-27 lead into halftime.
"I thought the first half, we were reactionary — they were comfortable the whole half," Graves said. "And I thought we came out in that second half and just picked up the tempo a little bit, made him uncomfortable, turned him over, got back in it."
The UO women were scorching hot out of the break, scoring on five straight possessions to open the third quarter. Kyei scored twice, including a three-point play, and Mevius capped the run to put Oregon up 38-34. But UW turned the tables, getting defensive stops and translating them into scores at the other end the way the Ducks did to open the period, and Washington pushed into a 52-44 lead. Kelly scored late in the period and Mevius followed with a three, and the Ducks were within 52-49 entering the fourth.
A putback by Alexis Whitfield and a three-point play by Mevius got Oregon within 55-54 early in the fourth. The Huskies answered that with an 8-3 run, broken up only by an Ari Long three-pointer for the Ducks, and things felt dire for the home team with UW up 63-57 and less than 4 minutes left.
But coming out of a timeout with 3:31 to play, Oregon cranked up the defensive pressure, with huge dividends. Mevius got a steal and made two free throws at the other end, then forced another turnover that Kelly converted into a layup. A third straight UW turnover turned into another bucket by Kelly, and suddenly it was tied, 63-63.
After a made basket by each side, and then an empty possession for each, UW scored to lead 67-65 with 44 seconds left. Kelly was then fouled and made only one of two from the line, but she drew a charge at the other end. Oregon took back over with 17.8 seconds left, but Graves showed confidence in his defense by telling his team not to run out the clock and play for the last shot but instead take the first available good look — which Kelly got when the lane opened up for a drive with about 15 seconds left.
She was fouled with 12.2 second to play, and made both free throws to give Oregon the lead. At the other end the Ducks forced a tie-up with 3.3 seconds left, and UW's last chance was a baseline jumper on a baseline-out-of-bounds play, which missed to preserve the win for the UO women.
"I'm just really proud of the team — that was a great win," Graves said. "I don't think we played super well, but our kids seem to believe when we're in a close game in the fourth quarter and down the stretch. They believe, and that goes a long way."
Up Next: The Ducks play at Minnesota on Sunday (noon, B1G+).
The UO women took the first step on that march Wednesday evening. The toughness, the defensive intensity and the depth of contributions that have become this Oregon team's identity were on full display. And the "March to March" began with a big win over a storied rival.
Oregon led for only 12 seconds of the fourth quarter Wednesday at Matthew Knight Arena, but it was the 12 seconds that mattered most as the Ducks took the lead on two free throws by Deja Kelly and got a stop at the other end to beat Washington, 68-67. The win clinched a spot for the UO women in the 15-team Big Ten Conference Tournament, in March in Indianapolis.
"Any time you can beat your rival like we just did," Graves said, "that's a good day."
The Ducks (17-8, 8-6 Big Ten) trailed by six with less than 4 minutes to play, 63-57. But they proceeded to force three straight turnovers and turn each into points, tying the game. With UW up 67-65, Kelly made one of two free throws, but she made up for the miss by drawing a charge at the other end, then sank a pair from the free-throw line to give Oregon its first and only lead of the fourth quarter.
"We know there's a lot at stake, there's a lot that we're still playing for, postseason goals that we have," Kelly said. "So for us to come out in the second half the way we did, we just knew that we had to have an energy shift and pick it up on the defensive end. Because ultimately, it just came down to getting stops; we knew we would get some things going on offense, but we just had to sit down and get stops. And that's really what it came down to in the last couple minutes."
Kelly scored 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting to lead the Ducks, and Phillipina Kyei finished with 11 points and five rebounds. Elisa Mevius added 14 points with four assists and three steals — two of them during the sequence of three straight turnovers forced by the Ducks as they turned the 63-57 deficit into a 63-63 tie.
"We talked at halftime about our energy level, and I think when (the coaches) let us go a little bit more and they tell us to just be aggressive, that kind of feeds into the energy," Mevius said. "Getting steals, trapping, we got a five-second call … those things, they all just give us so much energy."
How It Happened: The Ducks started well in three of the game's four quarters, including the first. Mevius scored on a pass from Kyei to open the game, and four possessions later Kyei hit two free throws to cap an 8-4 run by Oregon to start the night. But Washington hit two three-pointers to take the lead, and UW was up 16-15 after one quarter.
The second quarter saw Oregon's lone slow start of the night, as UW scored six straight to open the period and stretch its lead to seven. A bucket in the paint by Sarah Rambus ended that cold stretch for the Ducks, and Sofia Bell followed with a three-pointer. The teams traded baskets late in the period, and Washington took a 32-27 lead into halftime.
"I thought the first half, we were reactionary — they were comfortable the whole half," Graves said. "And I thought we came out in that second half and just picked up the tempo a little bit, made him uncomfortable, turned him over, got back in it."
The UO women were scorching hot out of the break, scoring on five straight possessions to open the third quarter. Kyei scored twice, including a three-point play, and Mevius capped the run to put Oregon up 38-34. But UW turned the tables, getting defensive stops and translating them into scores at the other end the way the Ducks did to open the period, and Washington pushed into a 52-44 lead. Kelly scored late in the period and Mevius followed with a three, and the Ducks were within 52-49 entering the fourth.
A putback by Alexis Whitfield and a three-point play by Mevius got Oregon within 55-54 early in the fourth. The Huskies answered that with an 8-3 run, broken up only by an Ari Long three-pointer for the Ducks, and things felt dire for the home team with UW up 63-57 and less than 4 minutes left.
But coming out of a timeout with 3:31 to play, Oregon cranked up the defensive pressure, with huge dividends. Mevius got a steal and made two free throws at the other end, then forced another turnover that Kelly converted into a layup. A third straight UW turnover turned into another bucket by Kelly, and suddenly it was tied, 63-63.
After a made basket by each side, and then an empty possession for each, UW scored to lead 67-65 with 44 seconds left. Kelly was then fouled and made only one of two from the line, but she drew a charge at the other end. Oregon took back over with 17.8 seconds left, but Graves showed confidence in his defense by telling his team not to run out the clock and play for the last shot but instead take the first available good look — which Kelly got when the lane opened up for a drive with about 15 seconds left.
She was fouled with 12.2 second to play, and made both free throws to give Oregon the lead. At the other end the Ducks forced a tie-up with 3.3 seconds left, and UW's last chance was a baseline jumper on a baseline-out-of-bounds play, which missed to preserve the win for the UO women.
"I'm just really proud of the team — that was a great win," Graves said. "I don't think we played super well, but our kids seem to believe when we're in a close game in the fourth quarter and down the stretch. They believe, and that goes a long way."
Up Next: The Ducks play at Minnesota on Sunday (noon, B1G+).
Team Stats
UW
Oregon
FG%
.537
.417
3FG%
.385
.214
FT%
1.000
.833
RB
31
31
TO
15
9
STL
5
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
4
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballKelly Graves | Selection Sunday
Monday, March 17
Deja Kelly, Peyton Scott & Phillipina Kyei | Selection Sunday
Monday, March 17
Peyton Scott & Ari Long: "A good, competitive basketball game."
Thursday, February 27
Kelly Graves: "We've played really well."
Thursday, February 27
