Kelly Graves Reacts To Oregon's NCAA Tournament Win Over Virginia Tech

The No. 8-seeded Oregon Ducks knocked off the No. 9-seeded Virginia Tech Hokies in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament by a final score of 70-60. Oregon coach Kelly Graves spoke to the media following the win.

Kelly Graves Opening Statement

Oregon Ducks Kelly Graves NCAA Tournament Women's College Basketball Virginia Tech Hokies March Madness Katie Fiso Texas — Oregon head coach Kelly Graves watches his team as the Oregon Ducks host the Penn State Nittany Lions on Jan. 24, 2026, at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Oregon. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"Well, first of all, I just want to congratulate Megan and her team, Virginia Tech on a well played game and a great season. I really grew to appreciate their team a lot in the last few days of preparation. They are a really good team. They’re well coached. I thought they played their hearts out tonight. But I’m happy for us that we’re moving on."

"These two (guard Katie Fiso and forward Mia Jacobs) were obviously a huge part of it. I just thought we played a pretty well-rounded game both ends of the floor. And I know they got loose a little bit in the second half and fast break points, but I thought really we did a great job for most of the game in that area which was our No. 1 key. Just excited to be going on."

On Finishing Games

"The more games you have like that, you learn from them. We always talk about we either win or we learn. I just thought our intensity level was really good from start to finish. We didn’t have the ups and downs. Even though I know they outscored us in a couple of quarters. I just thought we were pretty consistent tonight."

"Took care of the ball relatively well. I don’t think we turned them over a whole lot. So it just wasn’t one of those games where, like you said, we’ve had some ups and downs. Maybe it’s some maturity, you know. We can hold onto it. I was really pleased. It was a good effort."

"I thought our coaches did a great job. My staff is amazing. They had our team prepared and they really locked in for the last few days on this. We probably watched more film on Virginia Tech than we’ve watched on anybody. We spent a lot of time really focusing on this game."

On Bench Production

"I thought our bench, particularly in the first half was really strong for us. It’s been that way for most of the year but we get different ones and tonight it was the inside play. We really felt we had an advantage inside. A lot of the things we did after timeouts were geared towards getting it inside and I thought out kids executed so well tonight on ATO’s."

"I’m just really proud of them. They did what we wanted to do. I thought defensively we were on point. They have a couple great scorers…The job we did I thought was outstanding. That won the day. Our defense."

On Potentially Playing Texas in Round 2

"I’ve watched some games but not intently. They’re a one seed for a reason. They’re going to be very good. They have some weaknesses and anytime you play somebody, you try to exploit this best you can. But I haven’t really thought that far ahead. I do know this. We better be able to defend on Sunday or we’re in big trouble."