Ducks win defensive battle against the Huskies

It’s not often the Oregon Ducks women’s basketball team turns in a subpar performance at home, but they still managed to pull out the victory.

Both Washington and Oregon played hard on defense. The Ducks were able only to make a few more baskets and won 65-58 over Washington.

The Ducks are now 13-4 overall and 4-2 conference. Washington falls to 9-6 overall, and just 1-4 in Pac-12 play.

The Huskies enjoy playing the halfcourt game, and the Ducks played to their strengths for most of this game. Turnovers and poor shooting kept hampering the Ducks offensive game, but Taya Hanson’s three triples in the second half kept Oregon ahead in crucial parts of the game to stifle Husky runs.

As they face a formidable Cougar team, the Ducks will need to make some adjustments and hit some shots that they are used to making on Sunday.

Final Score: Oregon 65 & Washington 58

Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard/USA TODAY NETWORK

Keys to the Game

Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard/USA TODAY NETWORK

  • Neither team could “throw the ball in the ocean,” as Oregon coach Kelly Graves told the television crew heading into the halftime break and he wasn’t wrong. The Huskies shot 30% and the Ducks 37% from the field.

  • Although tough defense was responsible for the shooting woes, it was not easy to attribute the poor offensive execution. Oregon missed several open shots and preferred contested shots. The Ducks also had five airballs which was unusually high for them.

  • Oregon led 29-21 at halftime. This was largely due to the Ducks dominating the Dawgs’ glass to the tune 23-14.

  • Washington opened the third quarter on an 11-2 run to tie it at 31-31. Both teams traded baskets. However, Taya Hanson scored a few three-pointers to tie the game at 31-31. With one quarter left, the Ducks had a lead of 45-39.

  • Oregon maintained its lead through the fourth quarter but the Huskies didn’t lose any of their momentum. Hanson’s three-pointer with just over a minute left doubled the lead and broke Washington’s back.

It’s in the stats

  • Te-Hina Paopao: 16 ppg, 5 assists and 4 rebounds

  • Taya Hanson: 15 points, 4-4 3-pt FG

  • Grace VanSlooten – 13 points, 7 rebound

  • Oregon: 23-56 FG (41 percent), 12-19 FT

  • Washington: 25-61 FFG (41%)), 2-15 3pt FG

  • Washington was outbombed by the Ducks 41-31. They held the lead for 33 minutes.

What’s next?

AP Photo/Ricardo B. Brazziell

Oregon hopes to sweep Washington schools in a weekend sweep when the Ducks host WSU on Sunday, January 15th at noon. The Cougars just won a win in Corvallis against the Beavers.

The game will be televised by Pac-12 Oregon.

Story originally appeared on Ducks Wire

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