On Monday night, there was a top-five showdown between the No.3 Oregon Ducks and the No.4 Connecticut Huskies. Oregon dominated Connecticut from start to finish in a 74-56 victory.
Ruthy Hebard led the Ducks with 22 points on 10 out of 14 shots. Hebard also added a team-high 12 rebounds. Satou Sabally added 17 points and 10 rebounds. Oregon’s star point guard Sabrina Ionescu scored 10 points, grabbed nine rebounds and dished out nine assists.
Crystal Dangerfield led the Huskies in scoring with 19 points, every time Dangerfield would try to bring the Huskies back in , Oregon would answer with crucial baskets of their own. Anna Makurat added 13 points off the bench for Connecticut. Here are some takeaways from the game.
Oregon Defense Locked In
Oregon’s defense was very active from the start of the game; the ducks played a little bit of man and zone defense. The Ducks held Connteccut to just 39.3% shooting from the field. Connecticut had a hard time getting the ball inside and was forced into taking a lot of three-point shots. The Huskies shot 26 three’s and made 10 of them. The Huskies had only two scorers in double figures.
Connecticut Outscored In The Paint
Oregon outscored Connecticut 44-14 in the paint. The Ducks did a great job moving the ball around and getting into the lane to create easy layups. Oregon shot 47% from the field, but only 30% from three.
Megan Walker And Christyn Williams Struggled
Megan Walker could not find her shot in this game; Walker shot 3-16 from the field, scoring only eight points. She did add seven rebounds. Oregon’s tough defense made it hard on Walker to score, but she did miss a lot of shots she usually makes.
Christyn Williams scored only five points on two of nine shooting from the field. She also missed some shots she usually makes. When your top two leading scorers struggle, it will be hard for you to win games.
Bench Scoring
Uconn did beat Oregon in bench scoring 13-0, Makurat scored 13, and Aubrey Griffin three points. Oregon had zero points from the bench, but all five starters scored in double figures. Boley (13), Hebard (22), Sabally (17), Moore (12), and Ionescu (10).
