Oregon women’s basketball traveled to New Jersey to play Rutgers, and came away with a 74-53 last night. The Ducks needed to start well and not succumb to mid-game lulls and they did exactly that against the Scarlet Knights.
Oregon opened the game by hitting the long ball, and the first quarter was the most competitive of the game. The Ducks hit several 3s in the quarter, including Ehis Etute firing off a buzzer-beater for the first 3-point bucket of her career.
In the mid-second quarter, Oregon went on a 16-0 run, and Rutgers could not keep pace.
Oregon was up by 19 at the half. What they now needed to do was not come in cold out of the break – the Ducks needed to keep the intensity up and not let Rutgers back in the game.
The sides traded baskets before Oregon went on an 11-0 run to establish a 27-point lead and take full command of the game.
With a 24-point lead midway in the fourth quarter, Kelly Graves gave the bench some playing time and his starters a rest. The final score was Oregon 74, Rutgers 53,
Here are your game highlights:
The Rutgers scorers were led by Lauryn Swann with 13 points. The Scarlet Knights shot 36.2%, including an even 30% on the long ball.
Oregon shot 44.6% (33% on 3s), and really took it to Rutgers on the glass, pulling down 45 boards to 30 for the Knights. Oregon was moving the ball well and making their plays, and had 18 assists to just 8 for Rutgers.
Oregon scorers were led by Ehis Etude with 17 points. Ari Long scored her first career double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Katie Fiso scored 12 points and was the assists leader with 7. Mia Jacobs rounded out our top scorers with 10 points.
The Ducks complete their road trip on Saturday, when they face #16 Maryland in a game that could define this season. Get a top-20 win on the road and not only are you sitting on 17 wins (and a more manageable path to 20 wins), but they would have the kind of marquee win that the tournament committee likes to see at the end of the season.
