Kelly Graves brought Deja Kelly to Oregon for this reason.
Oregon women’s basketball defeated rival Washington 68-67 on Wednesday night at Matthew Knight Arena thanks to crucial field and line-up shots from the midrange master.
Kelly told reporters, “We know there’s a lot to play for and a lot at stake.” We simply realized that we needed to have a change in intensity and improve defensively if we were to play like we did in the second half. All we had to do was get stopped.
Graves’ team secured a conference tournament berth in a pivotal game for the Big Ten standings and Oregon’s playoff prospects, as both the team and Washington are on the bubble of the NCAA tournament.
Graves remarked, “I’m just really proud of the team.” That victory was fantastic. We didn’t play a terrific game, in my opinion, but our youngsters seem to believe when we’re playing close in the end. They have faith, which is really important.
Kelly scored a season-high 21 points, Elisa Mevius scored 14, and Phillipina Kyei scored 11 for the Ducks (17-8, 8-6 Big Ten).
Sayvia Sellers scored 21 points, Dalaya Daniels scored 17, and Elle Ladine scored 16 to lead the Huskies (14-11, 5-8).
Mevius was aggressive for Oregon in the early going, making two quick baskets to put the Ducks ahead 6-4, but it was a back-and-forth start.
Late in the quarter, Kelly tied the score at 14–14 with two slick midrange jumpers. Through one, Washington had a 16–15 lead.
The Huskies’ lead grew to 22-15 when Oregon’s offense cooled off at the beginning of the second quarter. At 4:54 of the quarter, however, a basket by Sarah Rambus and a three-pointer by Sofia Bell reduced the lead to 22–20.
The Huskies lead Oregon 32-27 at the half after finishing the game strongly, powered by 11 points from Ladine in the first half. Their edge came from an 18–13 advantage on the boards and effective shooting (52%) in the game.
Kyei made consecutive baskets and a free throw to put the Ducks ahead 34-32 as Oregon came out firing in the second half. Nani Falatea made a layup to stretch it to 36-32.
Graves remarked, “I loved our second half intensity.” We simply picked it up defensively. We were reactionary, in my opinion, and they were at ease the entire first half. In my opinion, we came out in the second half and somewhat accelerated the pace.
As the third quarter went on, Kyei continued to work down low, scoring in double figures on a nice hook in the lane to maintain Oregon ahead four points at the half.
Yet, with 3:03 remaining in the third, Washington would pour it on with corner three-pointers and slicing drives to the basket, making six consecutive shots to grab a commanding lead, 49-42.
Late in the third quarter, Sellers made a three-pointer from the top of the key to put Washington ahead 52-44. Mevius then made a game-winning three to narrow the deficit to 52-49.
Mevius laughed with Kelly and remarked, “I think I had everybody screaming at me to shoot the ball.” I was simply letting it go. It was really important because momentum was shifting, and it gave us hope in the late stretch that we can actually win this game and we need to stick together.
Mevius remained a fixture in Oregon s offense as the fourth quarter got rolling, and her reverse layup plus a foul made it 55-54 with 8:03 to go.
But despite Mevius’ constant playmaking and energy, the Ducks kept turning the ball over, leading to easy baskets in transition for Washington. With 3:31 to go, the Huskies led 63-57.
Oregon clawed back to tie things up with just over two minutes to go, with Kelly nailing a jumper to knot it at 63. And after a Washington basket, she hit another to tie it again at 65 with 1:48 to go.
With the waning moments played at a frantic pace, a layup by Hannah Stines made it 67-65 Huskies with 43.4 seconds remaining.
Kelly would get to the line on the other end, splitting a pair to make it 67-66 with 39.3 seconds left on the clock.
Washington turned the ball over on a charge by Sellers taken by Kelly with 17.8 seconds to go, giving the Ducks a chance to take a late lead.
I knew I had to get my get back after I missed that free throw, Kelly said with a laugh. So I was like, okay, let me make it up on the defensive end. That s where that charge came in.
Kelly drove hard at the basket, earning a foul call before hitting a pair of free throws to give Oregon a 68-67 lead with 12.2 to go.
I was just trying to be aggressive, Kelly said. I knew I was able to get downhill, my shot was falling, and the last couple minutes was takeover time. Ultimately, the last minute was us getting stops and locking in on the defensive end.
Devin Coppinger missed the jumper for Washington at the buzzer, and Oregon celebrated a pivotal win.
That is why we were blessed and celebrated to get Deja here, Graves said. She s ready-made for these kind of games. She can shine. Hits the big free throws, the stop, the ball in her hand late in the game. … Deja is a gamer.
Next game: Oregon (17-8, 8-6 Big Ten) at Minnesota (19-6, 7-6)
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When:
Sunday, Feb. 16
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Time:
12 p.m. PT
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Where:
Williams Arena Minneapolis, Minnesota
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TV:
B1G+
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Radio:
Oregon Sports Network
–Ryan Clarkecovers theOregon Ducksand Big Ten Conference. Listen to theDucks Confidentialpodcast or subscribe to theDucks Roundup newsletter.
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