So Close For The Lady Ducks, Lose To Stanford 63-61

[30Duck]

 

[30Duck]

from goducks.com

[Charles Fischer]

OREGON ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2021

EUGENE, Ore. — Oregon rallied back from a double-digit deficit and led in the final two minutes Monday against No. 6 Stanford, but the Cardinal scored the final five points of the game to beat the No. 13 Ducks in Matthew Knight Arena, 63-61.

The Ducks took a 56-51 lead with 3:40 to play on a three-pointer by Jaz Shelley, one of six for Oregon in the second half. A free throw by Taylor Mikesell put the Ducks up 61-58 with 1:46 left, but Stanford senior Kiana Williams tied it with a three-pointer and freshman post Cameron Brink hit go-ahead free throws with 28 seconds left. Oregon had two chances to win it out of timeouts in the remaining moments but couldn't convert.

"We played hard enough and well enough to win the game, and we didn't," UO coach Kelly Graves said. "So I know we're disappointed. But at the same time, I'm proud of the team for the fight we showed. We played hard for four quarters; it just didn't go our way."

"Sedona (Prince) set a great screen, I got a good look — definitely gotta knock that down," Mikesell said of her miss with 19 seconds left. "It felt great. Next time."

Who Stood Out: Paopao had an outstanding overall game with 11 points on 3-of-5 three-point shooting, nine rebounds and four assists. She scored 11 of her points in the first half, about the only consistent producer on offense while Oregon was falling into that 33-18 hole.  Mikesell led the Ducks with 13 points and Sabally added 12 points with seven rebounds. Shelley hit two three-pointers, her first game with multiple made threes since New Year's Day.

What It Means: On one hand, the Ducks seem to be taking their lumps recently, having lost five of their last nine games. On the other hand, two of those losses were to the No. 6 Cardinal, two were to No. 10 Arizona and the other was to No. 8 UCLA.

"We're right there," Graves said. "Stanford is a legitimate championship game contender. They really are. We're used to playing that type of team. So when we get to the NCAA Tournament, we'll have seen everything, and played against the best."

Notable: Freshman guard Maddie Scherr played three minutes after missing the previous two games while in COVID-19 protocols. … Junior guard Taylor Chavez also was on hand after also missing two games due to the protocols, but she was on the bench in street clothes.

--During halftime of the ESPN telecast Monday night, the NCAA Tournament selection committee released its first top-16 ranking of the season. Oregon was No. 11 overall, which would translate into a No. 3 seed in an NCAA Tournament region. Stanford was No. 3 overall, Arizona was No. 8 and UCLA was No. 9.

Up Next: The Ducks play at UCLA on Friday (5 p.m., Pac-12 Network).

[30Duck]

Last night I felt terrible, and I knew that sleep was a long way off, and then I thought about how Paopao was feeling. In my mind she was getting ready to hit Jaz with a pass, and then Jaz was going to nail the 3 to win the game! Instead, Paopao slipped on the floor. The losses always sting, feel much worse for much longer than does the joy for a win. The Stanford players all went , "whew" and slept fine last night. 

[30Duck]

 

[Mallard]

Kelly and crew need to do a lot of work with Nyara's ball handling, passing and court presence skills.  She leads the team in turnovers and fouls.  Last night 7 turnovers, 5 fouls, several out of positions on defense, and rebounds.

She scores a lot of points.......... and gives up a lot of points.

 

[30Duck]

22 minutes ago, Mallard said:

Kelly and crew need to do a lot of work with Nyara's ball handling, passing and court presence skills

That definitely needs to be a point of emphasis. Her game definitely ended up on the - side in all the area's you mentioned, and with that the Ducks still almost won. Nyara has to become a + on the court. This is part of the "Identity" problem. This year's team is better playing full court, and bogs down  when it attempts to set up half court plays. But, Nyara & Sedona are too good of players to not learn how to incorporate them in to the offense. The effect of lack of practice and games is obvious here. 

[Aix11]

Kelly and crew need to do a lot of work with Nyara's ball handling, passing and court presence skills.  She leads the team in turnovers and fouls.  Last night 7 turnovers, 5 fouls, several out of positions on defense, and rebounds.

Nyara did not have an effective night against Stanford and she knows it. She will improve soon enough; she has had a solid season so far and is a match-up problem for other teams.  Functionally, she is a freshman. 

Kudos to the team for coming back from 15 points down! We missed Taylor's D and O; I believe that her D would have limited Kiana William's 20 point night. I look forward to seeing her start again. 

Since you mentioned one of our "bigs", I also look forward to seeing Sedona play better in the post position and improve her FG%. She had a poor game against Stanford and I am sure that she wants to make up for it. 

Recall that Sabrina's freshman year was not all roses. This team is getting there. Coach Grave's decision to keep inserting the freshman will pay major dividends. 

 

 

[30Duck]

16 hours ago, Aix11 said:

Kudos to the team for coming back from 15 points down! We missed Taylor's D and O; I believe that her D would have limited Kiana William's 20 point night. I look forward to seeing her start again. 

I can't agree with this enough! Taylor was exactly what was missing in the game , especially in the final seconds. 

[Mallard]

Everyone is correct that we have a young team that will improve with experience.   When that will be we have to wait and see.   I think in our hopes we all want that to be as soon as possible.  We all hope they  will "come together" this season for the end of the season , the PAC-12 Tournament, and the NCAA's 

My posts are not to get down on any particular players, but to point out if they will get better results when ever, there are more things that need improvement than the playing time and shooting that always seems to be mentioned.   The shooting improved for the Stanford game and they still lost.  The "bigs" overall play is an area of improvement needed for the total package to be in place.

From above:  I also look forward to seeing Sedona play better in the post position and improve her FG%.  With the short minutes she plays, I wonder how much her leg has really healed.  I wonder if she will actually have a effective career ?   Us old time Blazer fans remember Bill Walton........after the injury.  Sedona really doesn't bang in there too much.  She sort of floats around the floor.  Her fall-away turnarounds look pretty, but they need to be hit at a really high percentage to be effective.  Compared to a regular banging lay-in close to the basket, the fall-away removes the chance of getting fouled and getting foul shots, getting an opponent in foul trouble, moving the opponents team fouls to bonus shots, or getting the rebound. It's an all or nothing proposition, make the shot or give up the ball.  

Is it more enjoyable when we really do not know if they will win or not???????

[Charles Fischer]

 

20 minutes ago, Mallard said:

My posts are not to get down on any particular players,

Noting player and coaching performance is just fine, so long as we don't get personal (Rule No. 26 here) and you were not at all.    In fact discussing the performance....both good and bad, is what a forum is for!

An ancillary benefit is how people like you point out items that I did not notice or do not have the knowledge to be aware of.  These are great observations, and now when these players do them correctly in the future--we have a greater appreciation of their skills, their work at improving and the coaching that enabled them to progress.

So...please Mallard and all--keep informing us!

My thanks.