No. 19 Oregon Keeps Foot on Gas Against USC in Huge 80-48 Win

First Quarter

It was a battle of the bigs early in this one. USC’s leading scorer Jordyn Jenkins took it inside on Nyara Sabally for the game’s first points, and grabbed a putback layer a few possessions later. Sabally quickly got involved with a rebound, a block on Jenkins, a steal and a nice lay-in at the hoop.

Oregon used Sabally’s exceptional quickness along with the small-ball lineup to punish USC on the fast break. Endyia Rogers took it coast-to-coast for her first points against her former team. The very next play, Rogers grabbed the defensive rebound and found Te-Hina Paopao all by herself for three to make it 11-4 after six minutes of play.

Everything was going right for the Ducks, as they strung together 13 unanswered points. The Ducks forced seven turnovers in the first while holding the Trojans to 25% field goal shooting. The Ducks easily led 19-9 after one.

Second Quarter

The domination continued in the second. Sabally converted on a soaring floater while being fouled to kick off the second quarter. She then picked off a pass and took it to the house for two more and the 24-9 lead. When the Ducks offense couldn’t find a good shot, they would work it to Sabally at the top of the key and got out of her way.

The Ducks started running a 2-3 zone, which allowed for USC to knock down a few three-pointers and cut into the deficit. But the offense was coming far too easy to the Ducks, especially in transition.

Oregon forced a shot-clock violation on USC’s final possession of the quarter. The crowd loved the defensive hustle and the 38-21 Ducks lead at half.

Third Quarter

Paopao got the scoring started with her favorite dribble pull-up jumper. A few plays later, she found Sabally running the court again for the easy score.

Sabally was simply having her way with the Trojan defenders, constantly using her speed and ball-handling to take it right to the hole. Sabally called an ISO for her 19th point of the night.

USC couldn’t buy a bucket in the third, shooting a horrendous 3-12 from the field. Jenkins scored eight points in the third, but USC needed more help than Jenkins could provide.

Rogers and Maddie Scherr knocked down three’s after some excellent ball movement around the arch from Oregon. They took a 58-35 lead into the last period.

Fourth Quarter

It was more of the same in the final period. Sabally worked through the contact inside to give her 23 points on the day. Maddie Scherr knocked in a three-ball, giving her eight points to go with her three dimes.

Fan-favorite Phillipina Kyei got an and-one hook shot to complement her five boards. But the Trojans still had some fight, mainly from forward Jordan Sanders scoring five straight for her struggling team.

The Ducks kept scoring all the way until the end, with Ahlise Hurst knocking down two triples in the final minute. Oregon would run out the rest of the time to win 80-48.

Sabally finished with 23 points while only missing three of her 12 shots. Jenkins led the Trojans with 16 points.

Oregon improves to 13-5 and 6-1 in Pac-12 play, winning its seventh straight game, including a forfeiture by UCLA in a game scheduled for Friday. The Ducks host Arizona State (9-7, 1-2 Pac-12) on Tuesday at 2:00 p.m. before a three-game road trip to visit the Arizona schools and in-state rival Oregon State.

You may also like:

Impact and Evaluation: 2022 Oregon DB Commit Khamari Terrell

Join the Community

Follow Graham on Twitter: @GrahamMetzker

Subscribe to our free newsletter to get the latest Oregon Ducks news sent to your inbox

Join the discussion on our forums HERE