Oregon Uses Late Rally to Defeat Rival Washington 68-61 in Seattle

The Ducks were clinical when they needed to be on their way to their ninth straight win against the Huskies.

Author:
Graham Metzker
Publish date:
Jan 22, 2022

Pregame

The Ducks have kept the same starting lineup for the past five games. Sedona Prince came off the bench, and Nyara Sabally was good to go after her early departure against UConn on Monday.

First Quarter

Oregon was finding success early on from behind the three-point line. Endyia Rogers hit a three first, then Sydney Parrish hit another a few possessions later to kickstart a 7-0 Ducks run. Washington was getting strong interior play from 6'9" center Nancy Mulkey, but another Rogers three-ball kept Oregon ahead at 13-10 after six minutes played.

Rogers added a bucket inside and two free throws to end the first quarter. Oregon led Washington 19-15 after one, with Rogers recording 10 points in 10 minutes, knocking down all three of her field goals, including two threes.

Second Quarter

Oregon had a tough time shooting the ball to start the second quarter, and Washington made sure to take advantage. Starters Missy Peterson and Lauren Schwartz combined for UW’s first 10 points of the period to tie the game at 25.

After a Washington timeout, Peterson found Schwartz from downtown to give the Huskies a 28-25 lead with four minutes left in the half. The Ducks looked like the struggling team they were a month ago halfway through the second quarter with the Huskies.

Then, Oregon woke up. In the final three minutes of the first half, the Ducks dominated and scored nine consecutive points. Rogers got the Ducks started with another midrange jumper, and it was Te-Hina Paopao who knocked down a three-pointer to grab the lead back. Rogers connected on a jumper to get her 15th point and to end the half with the Ducks in front 34-30.

Third Quarter

Oregon got some strong buckets down low to start the third. Sabally got the scoring started with a nice floater after Paopao lost her defender down low for the assist. Sabally scored another, then back-up big Phillipina Kyei scored inside to give Oregon the 40-35 lead.

The Ducks offense couldn’t keep the pressure on however, as they missed seven straight field goals in the middle of the third quarter. Ahlise Hurst’s fastbreak three-pointer extinguished the shooting woes and broke the tie at 46-43.

The third period ended as it started: Nyara Sabally balling. Oregon’s star forward scored five straight - bringing her own tally on the night to 17 points (11 in the third) and the Oregon lead to 51-47 after three.

Fourth Quarter

Washington started the fourth period on a 6-1 run, as Schwartz found her 12th point of the game to snag a one-point lead at 53-52. Oregon again responded well to the Huskies' resurgence, with Rogers hitting jumpers (one for three) on both sides of a timeout to boost Oregon back ahead 57-53.

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Schwartz hit another three-ball to bring the deficit down to one, then the offenses went cold and neither team scored for nearly three minutes. But a huge Sabally steal and dime for a Chanaya Pinto layup gave the Ducks some breathing room at 59-56. Pinto hit another layup before the Oregon stars came in to close up shop.

Rogers drained a jumper to give the Ducks a 63-57 cushion with less than a minute remaining, then Sabally grabbed another steal and took it herself this time for the dagger bucket on the fastbreak. Sabally finished with 20 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 steals, which ties a career high.

On a night where the red-hot Paopao struggled to shoot from the field, Rogers stepped in and finished with 23 points, while Schwartz put in a strong effort for the Huskies with 18 points.

The Ducks' defensive effort in the fourth quarter proved to be clutch on their way to their ninth straight win over Washington, as they collected seven steals in the final quarter, with Pinto nabbing four and Sabally logging three of her own.

Oregon's short road trip to the Evergreen State ends with the Ducks winning their fourth straight game — their best win streak of the season. They will aim to keep stacking W's as they head back home to face Utah on Jan. 26 at 11 a.m. at Matthew Knight Arena.

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