Author Archives | Gus Morris

Yovan strikes out 15 to help Oregon snap six-game losing streak with win over USC

Posted on 29 April 2018.

For a half-hour on Saturday, it appeared that Oregon’s bout with USC may be cut short.

Rain drenched the turf at PK Park, creating a nearly unplayable environment. Balls were slick and tossed around with little certainty of where they’d ended up, and the mound needed maintenance between half innings.

But after a 31-minute delay in the fourth inning, the baseball gods smiled. The clouds parted, the rain subsided and play resumed, although the Trojans probably wished it hadn’t.

Already leading 3-2 before the delay, Oregon scored four more runs in the inning to pull away from the Trojans and eventually seal a 9-2 win to take game two of the series and snap its six-game losing streak.

“When you’ve lost nine of your last ten and six in a row, winning feels really really good,” Oregon head coach George Horton said.

On the one-year anniversary of David Peterson’s 20-strikeout game, Kenyon Yovan did his best Peterson impression. The sophomore recorded the first nine outs of the game via strikeouts en route to a career-high 15 to improve to 4-2 on the season. He also allowed five hits, two runs, and walked none in a career-high eight innings of work.

“I was just trying to get to a two-strike count as quickly as possible,” Yovan said. “I mean 0-2, 1-2, I knew I was going to bury them once I got there.”

Not even the rain could slow him down as he struck out four in the two innings following the delay. The 15 strikeouts are the third-most in program history behind Peterson’s 17 and 20.

“No question who the MVP of the game was,” Horton said.

By the time Yovan reestablished his dominance, Oregon (20-20, 7-13) was comfortably in command. The Trojans (19-20, 7-13) had tied the game at two in the top half of the inning but the Ducks answered in a big way. They entered the delay with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom half of the fourth and got three straight hits to break things open once play resumed.

Spencer Steer began the rally with a two-RBI single, while Gabe Matthews and Jonny DeLuca each followed with RBI singles of their own.

“I was able to stay focused on the at-bat and not get too comfy because we went in the locker room for about ten minutes,” said Steer, who went 1-for-3 with a game-high two RBIs.

Used to fairer weather than what it faced on Saturday, USC struggled against the elements. Oregon scored its first run on a passed ball, then capitalized on three straight walks in the second to make it 2-0. Even after tying the game in the fourth, USC allowed Oregon’s third run to score after Travess landed on third after a dropped third strike and subsequent overthrow by USC’s catcher into right field.

In the sixth, after the rain had stopped, USC reliever Austin Manning hit Steer with a pitch to lead off the inning, and then sent three pitches to the backstop, the last of which allowed Steer to score and gave Oregon an 8-2 lead.

The Ducks added another run in the seventh on an RBI double from Jakob Goldfarb, who went 2-for-2 with an RBI and walked twice. On the day, Oregon coaxed 12 walks from USC pitchers.

The two will meet in the rubber match on Sunday. First pitch is scheduled for 12 pm.

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

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Tyler Shough stayed committed to the Ducks, now he’s battling for key backup quarterback position

Posted on 20 April 2018.

Back in early December, Willie Taggart visited Oregon quarterback commit Tyler Shough at Shough’s home in Chandler, Arizona.

The two, along with Oregon’s quarterbacks coach Marcus Arroyo, discussed everything Oregon, an obvious subject on a visit like this one. But Shough said the meeting had a “weird vibe to it.”

That’s because at the time, rumors were flying about how Taggart was a top candidate for the Florida State head coaching job.

Two days after his visit with Shough, Taggart left.

“It was definitely weird,” Shough said on Tuesday, his first time speaking to the media. “I wasn’t really sure what was going to happen. He was definitely promoting Oregon at the time.”

But once Shough (pronounced “Shuck”) heard that Oregon would retain Mario Cristobal and Arroyo, he upheld his commitment. He is now a Duck and excited to be one. He enrolled at Oregon in January and has been taking classes and practicing with the team since his arrival.

“The speed and the tempo, everything is definitely faster up here,” Shough said. “It’s definitely been a good ride so far. I’ve learned a lot.”

The former 4-star recruit has also impressed coaches in his first several weeks with the Ducks. As spring practices come to a close, Shough and Braxton Burmeister are locked in a competition for the backup quarterback role.

Freshman quarterback Tyler Shough walks to the field for a spring practice.
(Adam Eberhardt/Emerald)

Shough said the two have become good friends through the competition and have enjoyed battling in practices.

“We make each other better,” Shough said. “He does some things I can’t. I do some things he can’t. So we just learn from each other and just get better overall.”

Being an early-enrollee, Shough is trying to take advantage of all the opportunities he can. Cristobal said he’ll jump into drills voluntarily and hasn’t backed away from any challenges.

“Tyler is really talented. He’s really smart,” Cristobal said. “What stands out about him most in the offseason is that he’s a relentless competitor.”

In addition to learning from Burmeister, Shough is leaning on fellow quarterback Justin Herbert as mentor.

“I’ve definitely been asking him about plays,” Shough said. “You know, ‘What do you think about this coverage?, what do you think about this?, what classes are you taking?’ Stuff like that, because he’s definitely been through it.

“I definitely look up to him.”

Oregon’s lack of quarterback depth last year doomed its season as it went 1-4 in the five games that Herbert didn’t start. Now, with Shough and a more experienced Burmeister, Cristobal feels more confident with the options he’ll have at backup this season.  

“Tyler, him and Braxton, they’re what you want at that position,” Cristobal said. “Competitors that are tough and hard-nosed and that want to get better.”

They’ll get the opportunity to showcase their skills in Oregon’s spring game on Saturday. Cristobal said the two will get even reps in the scrimmage, which will also be Shough’s first experience playing in front a crowd at Autzen Stadium.

“That’s definitely going to a first experience for sure,” Shough said. “I’m definitely excited for it.”

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGustMorris

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Former Duck kicker Aidan Schneider faces steep odds as he chases an NFL kicking job

Posted on 20 April 2018.

Not two months removed from graduating, former Oregon kicker Aidan Schneider has already secured his first job —  he just hopes it’s not the one he’ll have after April 28, the final day of the 2018 NFL Draft.

Schneider wants that to be the last day he’ll have to worry about delivering mattresses, the part-time job he’s held for the last several weeks as he lives at home in Portland and prepares for his first shot at making an NFL roster.

Doing so won’t be easy. Kicking jobs in the NFL are few and far between, and potential first-year players don’t often make a roster their first time.

Schneider understands this, and recognizes that his road to the pros will be harder than most. The former Grant High School soccer standout only started playing football as a junior in high school. He navigated his way from being a walk-on at Oregon to one of the best kickers in program history. Even as he leaves with his name littered throughout the record books, Schneider is a relatively middle-of-the-road NFL prospect.

“I joke with my family that I was a walk-on in college and I’m going to have to be a walk-on in the NFL, too,” Schneider told the Emerald.

At nearly every turn over his four-year career, Schneider performed above expectations. He took over as Oregon’s full-time kicker his freshman year, dethroning Matt Wogan, who came to Oregon as the second-best kicking prospect in the country. Over Schneider’s next four years, he made the most field goals in program history (51) and did so at the best rate in program history (85 percent).

One would think that posting these kinds of numbers would guarantee Schneider a spot on an NFL roster. But the biggest issue with his body of work is what NFL teams covet in a kicker: power. Schneider was almost automatic from within 50 yards, but never attempted an in-game 50-plus yard field goal.

He’s confident he can do it consistently, but not being able to showcase that in college has certainly made his climb to the pros a little steeper.

“It was kind of frustrating not being able to showcase that in college,” he said. “Oregon is not the place for long field goals.”

However, Oregon’s pro day was. Schneider showed off his leg for scouts, routinely landing kicks in the endzone from 60-plus yards away. He talked with several scouts afterward, but hasn’t heard from any of those teams yet.

His one current scheduled workout is with the Seattle Seahawks. Even if nothing pans out this offseason, Schneider said he’d keep trying.

His kicking coach, Gary Zauner, a former NFL special teams coach who now offers his knowledge to aspiring pro kickers, told Schneider that it’s difficult for undrafted players to make teams. Schneider isn’t projected to be drafted and said he’d be thrilled to make a team this offseason, but at the very least, he wants to show teams that he belongs.

“The goal for the first year is to get into camp with someone and just perform well,” Schneider said. “I think how long I stick with will depend on the opportunities I get, because as long as I get an opportunity and get positive feedback, I’m going to keep trying.”

The odds are against him, but that’s familiar territory for Schneider. He’s just ready for the next chapter of his life and for the opportunities that follow.

“I guess it’s not your typical athlete, chip-on-the-shoulder story, but I’m sure plenty of people thought I couldn’t play D1 football,” Schneider said. “So I’m really in the same spot now.”

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

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Inside Oregon football’s Fortnite addiction

Posted on 16 April 2018.

An addiction is spreading throughout the Oregon football program.

For hours most nights, dozens of players shut themselves away in their rooms, ignoring calls and texts from family, friends and significant others.

Everyone affected says the same: Once introduced, it’s a tough habit to kick.

“Started getting into it around Christmas time,” linebacker Lamar Winston said. “Ever since then, I haven’t stopped.”

Winston is talking about the popular video game “Fortnite,” a third-person shooter sandbox survival game (think of a cartoon version of “The Hunger Games” mixed with “Minecraft”) that has taken the gaming world by storm since its free multiplayer version was released in September 2017. By February 2018, more than 40 million people worldwide had downloaded the game, a number which includes a majority of Oregon’s football team.

For the Ducks, the game has become a weekly, if not daily, ritual. Players log hours online, almost always playing with teammates in four-person squad or two-player duo matches, racking up kills, building forts (hence the game’s name) and sometimes letting days pass by.

“I’d have to say 14 hours,” said defensive lineman Popo Aumavae when asked what his longest session was.

The Ducks admit that they mainly use the game as a way to unwind from long spring days filled with practices, tutoring and classes, but they also insist that there are skills that translate onto the field. Players specifically pointed to the communication aspect of the video game, a necessity for success when trying to outlast up to 98 other competitors or navigate complex college football offenses.

“In ‘Fortnite,’ you have to give exact coordinates as to where targets are or where you want to go, and that’s what I need to let my teammates know,” Winston said. “Especially when a Y-off is coming across to block my other outside linebacker or something, then pre-snap reads and communicating, that kind of stuff.”

Always looking for a leg up in the recruiting world, Oregon’s athletic department even recently entered the “Fortnite” realm. Last month, five-star football recruit Chris Steele tweeted out a photo of himself depicted in a “Fortnite” Oregon-themed edit that the program made for him. The post garnered over 200 retweets and over 1,200 likes on Twitter.

“The best edit I’ve ever had made for me,” Steele told The Oregonian.

Heavy winds and rain put a damper on the Pepsi Invitational

Posted on 07 April 2018.

Oregon’s men’s and women’s track and field teams swept the team competitions at the Pepsi Invitational on Saturday, one of the last meets that Hayward Field will host this season before it undergoes dramatic renovations this summer.

While the results were a promising start to the outdoor season for the Ducks, the weather conditions were the dominant storyline. Winds of 20 to 30 miles per hour enhanced the sharp rain that fell throughout the meet and threw expected yet still challenging hurdles at the athletes competing.

“It definitely added another element to the race, especially since we’ve been running indoors where the weather conditions doesn’t affect us,” distance runner Lilli Burdon said. “So yeah, it definitely affected our racing today.”

Saturday’s weather ran true to forecasts. A high wind warning had been issued for Northwest Oregon, and while the worst was still to come as the meet wrapped up around 6 o’clock, the wind still constantly berated runners during competition. Meet organizers even moved the 100-meter dash from in front of the west grandstands to the east grandstands and moved the women’s pole vault off the infield to under the west grandstands.

“The first three steps I felt like I was tripping,” Vanessa D’Arpino said about her wind-aided (+4.9) 100-meter time of 11.33 seconds.

Other sprinters shared similar experiences.

“[The wind] pushed me closer to the barriers and it’s hard to stay away from them, which I’m not that good at already,” hurdler Braxton Canady said.

The gusts were so strong at points that they ripped off two small sections on the roof of the 99-year old east grandstands, which flapped in the air whenever a strong breeze came through.  

Like the sprinters, distance runners also couldn’t escape the push and pull of the wind.

“It didn’t matter where you were in the pack, it didn’t matter who was leading, like wherever you ran you were gonna feel a headwind down the homestretch and then really feel it at your back down the backstretch,” said Jessica Hull, who took second in the 800 (2:10.6) and fourth in the 1,500 (4:26.31). “So I think it definitely was a factor for everyone.

“No one really got away unscathed there.”

At the very least, the conditions didn’t surprise the Ducks. They do, after all, train in Eugene where this kind of weather is common. They knew the forecast coming into the meet and said they shifted their focus accordingly.

Hull said that at a team meeting ahead of Saturday’s meet, coaches emphasized effort over individual marks.

“Don’t get wrapped up on getting the shiny new PR because it’s not going to happen today,” Hull said. “We’re just going to work through the meet.”

Oregon head coach Robert Johnson expressed pleasure with the overall team effort and even several of individual performances.

“Good stuff in spite of, as you can see, the conditions are challenging,” Johnson said. “But we talked the other day … saying we weren’t going to bitch and complain about the weather and just go out there and compete.”

Oregon did so and with great success, despite the conditions, in front of 3,113 bundled-up fans.

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

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Oregon forward Keith Smith to transfer

Posted on 03 April 2018.

Oregon’s roster took another hit on Tuesday.

Oregon reserve forward Keith Smith announced on Twitter that he will transfer from the university.

“After much thought and consideration from my family, I’ve decided it’s in my best interest to transfer,” Smith’s post read. “I’m very thankful for the lifelong relationships I’ve made during my time at Oregon, I’m forever grateful.”

The announcement comes hours after guard Troy Brown announced that he’s forgoing the remainder of his collegiate eligibility and entering the NBA Draft.

Smith, a sophomore, logged most of his minutes off the bench in his two seasons with the Ducks. the 6-foot-7 former three-star recruit averaged 1.9 points, 1.4 rebounds and 8.9 minutes per game this season and averaged 1.9 points and one rebound in 27 games as a freshman.

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

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Oregon’s historic season comes to a close in Elite Eight with 84-74 loss to Notre Dame

Posted on 27 March 2018.

SPOKANE, Wash. — Oregon head coach Kelly Graves issued a warning twice this weekend that in hindsight proved to be dead on.

After their win Friday over Central Michigan, in which the Ducks allowed 22 offensive rebounds, he talked about the importance of rebounding in the next round against the No. 1-seeded Notre Dame Irish.

“We can’t allow 22 offensive rebounds on Monday night or we’re going to get, you know, blown out,” Graves said. “That’s the bottom line.”

To further drive the point home, he reiterated himself during media availability on Sunday.

“If we do that tomorrow, we lose.”

Graves probably would’ve like for his team to prove him wrong. But on Monday night, his prediction rang true.

Members of the Oregon women’s basketball team watch the clock count down near the end of the game. The Oregon Ducks play Notre Dame in the Elite Eight round of the NCAA tournament at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena in Spokane, Wash. on Monday, March 26, 2018. (Adam Eberhardt/Emerald)

The Irish outrebounded the Ducks 51-29, with 19 of those boards coming on the offensive end leading to a 26-9 advantage in second-chance points for Notre Dame, which ended the Ducks’ historic season in the Elite Eight on Monday night at Spokane Arena, 84-74.

In a decisive third quarter, the Irish (33-3) grabbed 19 rebounds to Oregon’s six, and outscored the Ducks 21-9. Notre Dame entered the quarter trailing 46-40 and left with a 61-55 lead.

“That’s where the game was won,” Graves said.

After a blazing first half where each team seemingly scored at will — the Ducks shot 58 percent from the field and the Irish 48 percent — Notre Dame’s defense locked in. Oregon (33-5) made just three of its 17 shot attempts in the third quarter (17 percent) on top of getting outrebounded by 13.

Over the first three minutes and 28 seconds of the third quarter, the Irish rattled off a 15-4 run that Oregon never recovered from.

“We knew they were going to come out and punch us,” sophomore guard Sabrina Ionescu said. “We just had to be able to punch back, and we didn’t.”

Ionescu, who earlier on Monday became the first member of the Oregon women’s program to make the AP All-American first team, struggled over the final 20 minutes to return to her first half form that yielded 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting. She scored just seven points and made just one of her nine second-half shot attempts.

She finished the last game of her sophomore season with 26 points, five rebounds and four assists.

The Ducks got as close as two in the fourth quarter but never retook the lead that they surrendered with 6:27 left in the third.

“You saw a team that was still trying to climb the mountain, trying to get to where we’ve never been before,” Graves said. “And you saw a team that knew how to get there, and they wanted it.”

Oregon Ducks head coach Kelly Graves leaves the floor after the end of the game. The Oregon Ducks play Notre Dame in the Elite Eight round of the NCAA tournament at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena in Spokane, Wash. on Monday, March 26, 2018. (Adam Eberhardt/Emerald)

Ruthy Hebard, who earned an All-American honorable mention earlier Monday, scored 12 points in the first half but was held without a bucket until there was 5:48 left in the fourth quarter. She finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds but only accounted for five points and one board in the second half.

As a team, the usually-dangerous Ducks were held in check from deep by a team that on average allowed opponents to shoot almost 35 percent from 3-point range. Notre Dame used its length and athleticism to pressure the Ducks on the perimeter, forcing miss after miss.

The Ducks, who average a national-best 40.4 percent from three, made just four of their 15 attempts.  

“They knew our personnel well,” Ionescu said. “That’s what they did. They played us to our weaknesses.”

At the postgame dais, a somber Ionescu reflected on what had been the greatest season in program history. She, like Graves, recognized the significance that the 33 wins, Pac-12 regular season and tournament titles and No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament had on the program. She expressed optimism among regret that Oregon came up short of the Final Four, a goal that it deemed completely within reach.

“I’ll definitely remember this game,” she said. “It was a great run. I mean, it’s going to hurt. We had a great year. I’m happy our freshmen were able to come in and contribute and see what it’s like to play for an Elite Eight. I’m happy we were able to do that last year.”

Ionescu will be back next year, along with a majority of Oregon’s roster. She vowed to do better next season.

“We’re going to come back, we’re going to learn from this,” Ionescu said. “We’re going to come back better and hunting this Final Four next year.”

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

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Elite Eight notebook: ND head coach Muffet McGraw lauds Ionescu and Hebard, international Ducks embrace Big Dance

Posted on 25 March 2018.

SPOKANE, Wash. — Oregon advanced to its second Elite Eight in program history after defeating No. 11-seeded Central Michigan 83-69 on Saturday. Now, the Ducks (33-4) turn their attention toward No. 1-seeded Notre Dame (32-3), which advanced to the Elite Eight with a 90-84 win over No. 4-seeded Texas A&M.

Oregon and Notre Dame play on Monday (6 p.m. PT, ESPN) for a spot in the Final Four.

Although the practices were closed, both teams participated in media availabilities on Sunday. Here are notes from those availabilities.

Muffet with high praise for Ionescu, Hebard

In her 36 years at the helm of the Irish, Muffet McGraw has coached her fair share of standout players. During her tenure, she’s coached 2015 espnW National Player of the Year Jewell Loyd, four-time All-American Skylar Diggins, and 2001 Naismith Player of the Year Ruth Riley, among a plethora of others.

It’s safe to say that McGraw recognizes talent when she sees it, and on Sunday she had high praise for two Oregon’s two stars: Sabrina Ionescu and Ruthy Hebard.

“Sabrina is just a phenomenal player, just phenomenal,” McGraw said. “So difficult to guard. I’ve never seen a player, especially so young, already got the record for triple-doubles, but the assists is what’s so impressive to me.

“I’ve had some pretty good point guards, some good guards, but to look at the number of assists she has, really it’s a challenge to figure out how to defend them.”

This season, as a sophomore, Ionescu set the NCAA record for triple-doubles with ten. Hebard, also a sophomore, owns an NCAA record of her own: over a stretch this season, she made 33 consecutive field goals. The previous record was 30.

“To have that kind of record, I think that’s really phenomenal. She’s probably shattered the record,” McGraw said. “You know she’s going to score when she gets the ball. The question is, can you stop her from getting it. That’s going to be the challenge.”

Big Dance a continent away

The NCAA Tournament is often lauded as one of the greatest events in all of sports. Not so much, though, outside of the U.S.

Neither Maite Cazorla nor Satou Sabally, who grew up in Spain and Germany, respectively, watched the NCAA Tournament growing up. Now, each is part are of a deep run into March, which has caused some late nights for their families back home.

“My family usually stays up and watch the game,” Cazorla said. “It’s usually 2 a.m. there.”

“Yeah, my mom, my grandma, my grandpa, they are all watching the games at night,” Sabally said.

While she admitted she didn’t know much about college basketball before arriving at Oregon this season, Sabally took an added interest in the 2017 NCAA Tournament.

“Last year I started watching college basketball,” she said with a laugh. “I bought the ESPN pass for it, just for March Madness.”

Westbeld’s ankle

Kathryn Westbeld was an unlikely hero in Notre Dame’s win over Texas A&M. She was questionable for Saturdays and sported a walking boot throughout the week after spraining her ankle in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against Cal State Northridge. She ended up playing 32 minutes against the Aggies on essentially one leg but hit a midrange jumper late in the fourth quarter that ultimately sealed the victory for the Irish.

Westbeld should play against Oregon on Monday but said she’s still dealing with discomfort in her ankle.

“I mean, it feels a little bit better each day,” she said on Sunday. “The swelling goes down. Bruising kind of turns color. It’s kind of interesting to see what it looks like the next day.”

The 6-2 senior forward is averaging 7.4 points and 5.4 rebounds this season.

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

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Elite Eight Preview: Oregon confident ahead of first-ever matchup with Notre Dame

Posted on 25 March 2018.

SPOKANE, Wash. — The Ducks need just one more win to make it to the Final Four for the first time in program history.

To get there, they’ll need to win the Spokane regional final on Monday night, completing another program first in the process: playing perennial national powerhouse Notre Dame. Monday’s matchup (6 p.m. PT, ESPN) between the No. 1-seeded Irish and No. 2-seeded Ducks will be the first time the two programs have faced each other.

It won’t, however, be the first time that Oregon head coach Kelly Graves has faced the Irish.

“My first NCAA Tournament as a coach was against [Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw], her team, down in Baton Rouge, back in 1997,” Graves said. “We later played when I was at Gonzaga back in 2010, in the 10-11 season… That year they went to the championship game, we went to the Elite Eight.”

Notre Dame’s success that Graves’ detailed is par for the course for the Irish. They’ve appeared in seven of the last eight Elite Eights and went to five straight Final Fours from 2011 to 2015. The last time they missed the NCAA Tournament was in 1995.

On the other end of the spectrum, Oregon is playing in only its second Elite Eight in program history.

Notre Dame (32-3) rallied from a 13-point deficit to knock off No. 4-seeded Texas A&M 90-84 on Saturday to reach its ninth Elite Eight in program history. Junior guard Marina Mabrey scored 25 points and knocked down a career-high seven 3-pointers while fellow junior guard Arike Ogunbowale scored 27 points to help the Irish hold off the Aggies.

Oregon not only has to worry about Mabrey and Ogunbowale, both first-team All-ACC selections, but also 6-4 forward and second-team All-ACC player Jessica Shepard (15.5 points and 8.1 rebounds per game). The trio leads a high-powered Irish offense that averages 85.7 points per game, the third-most in the country.

Graves said that on top of limiting those three, the Ducks need to emphasize rebounding and transition defense if they want a chance at beating the Irish.

“We gave up 22 offensive rebounds yesterday,” Graves said. “If we do that tomorrow, we lose.”

While Notre Dame performed well enough this season to win 30 games and earn a No. 1 seed, its success has been rather incredible considering the pieces its missing. The Irish currently have four players out recovering from torn ACLs, including All-American forward Brianna Turner.

Only two Irish reserves played on Saturday, with each totaling eight minutes of game-time. Graves said that Oregon will try to exploit that on Monday but credited Notre Dame for its success amid such an injury-filled season.

“They’ve handled that so well all year long,” Graves said. “I mean, that’s a true testament to some awesome players and a phenomenal coach.”

Oregon’s work is cut out for them with Notre Dame. The Irish spent the entire season in the top six of the AP Poll and played one of the toughest schedules in the country. But the Ducks didn’t reach the Elite Eight on luck alone. They’re looking forward to the matchup with the Irish and feel confident heading into Monday.

“I think once that game starts, it’s anybody’s game,” sophomore guard Sabrina Ionescu said. “I think we’re just as talented as they are. So I’m excited to see how we match up with their players. I’m excited to see how we grow.

“I wish the game was today.”

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

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Oregon advances to Elite Eight for second time in as many years after 83-69 win over Central Michigan

Posted on 24 March 2018.

SPOKANE, Wash. — Two years, two trips to the Elite Eight.

This is a trend that Oregon could get used to.

For the second time in as many years, the Ducks are Elite Eight bound. They dispatched No. 11-seeded Central Michigan 83-69 Saturday at Spokane Arena

Paced by Ruthy Hebard’s double-double (23 points, 14 rebounds) and Sabrina Ionescu’s near triple-double (16 points, nine rebounds, 10 assists), Oregon used contributions from up and down its roster to jump on Central Michigan (30-5) early. The Chippewas put up a fight with a furious third-quarter run but failed to make up the ground they had lost in a first half that Oregon dominated.

In the end, Oregon (33-4) was just better.

“I think when you lose a basketball game, and you did everything that you could possibly do,” Central Michigan head coach Sue Guevara said, “sometimes you just lose to a better team.”

Oregon Ducks forward Oti Gildon (32) defends a Central Michigan player. The Oregon Ducks play the Central Michigan Chippewas in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA tournament at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena in Spokane, Wash. on Saturday, March 24, 2018. (Adam Eberhardt/Emerald)

Oregon ultimately decided the game in the first half and third quarter. The Ducks held a 40-25 lead at the break that could have been more had Presley Hudson not hit a wild 3-pointer just before the halftime buzzer.

The Chippewas shot just 29.7 percent from the field before springing alive in the third quarter, where Hudson almost single-handedly got them back in the game. She had a hand in their first 10 points of the quarter, scoring eight and assisting on the other. With 4 minutes, 36 seconds left in the third quarter, Central Michigan had Oregon’s double-digit lead down to nine.

“Second half we got a little lax,” Oregon head coach Kelly Graves said. “They started hitting some threes.

“[We] kind of let them off the hook a little bit when we had a chance to really kind of separate from them for good.”

For as well as the Chippewas played in the third quarter, Oregon remained composed and closed the quarter with a decisive 11-2 run that extended its lead to 18. The Chippewas gave Oregon their best shot in the third and Oregon still extended its halftime lead by 3.

“We just couldn’t get over that hump,” Guevara said, though it certainly wasn’t for a lack of trying.

After Oregon limited Central Michigan’s two top scorers, Hudson and Tinara Moore, to just seven point combined in the first half, the two accounted for 31 of the Chippewas’ 44 second-half points. Hudson scored 12 of her 15 points in the second half while Tinara Moore had 19 of her 23, and eight of her 14 rebounds, over the final 20 minutes.

Oregon Ducks guard Maite Cazorla (5) high fives fans after the end of the game. The Oregon Ducks play the Central Michigan Chippewas in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA tournament at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena in Spokane, Wash. on Saturday, March 24, 2018. (Adam Eberhardt/Emerald)

But while that duo thrived in the second half, the Chippewas’ depth, or lack thereof, finally cost them. Each of Central Michigan’s starters logged over 31 minutes of play while only three reserves entered the game, with the most prolific performance coming from Kyra Bussell who scored two points in nine minutes.

Oregon didn’t use its bench much either, but the Ducks got all they needed out of junior Oti Gildon. She proved integral Oregon’s run at the end of the third quarter as she scored six of Oregon’s last 11 points and grabbed four rebounds, including two crucial offensive boards, over the final 3:37 of the quarter.

She finished the game with 10 points, seven rebounds and two blocks, and exited the game late in the fourth to the loudest ovation of the day from a local crowd that had seen her win two state titles in high school just up the road at Gonzaga Prep.

“It’s always nice to hear familiar voices in the crowd yelling and cheering you on,” Gildon said. “I knew I needed to step up for the team.”

Now the No. 2-seeded Ducks prepare for No. 1-seeded Notre Dame, which defeated No. 4-seeded Texas A&M 90-84 just prior to Oregon’s game. The Ducks have a day to scout and practice before facing the Irish on Monday at 6 p.m. for another shot at program history.

Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris

The post Oregon advances to Elite Eight for second time in as many years after 83-69 win over Central Michigan appeared first on Emerald Media.

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