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Ducks Open Pac-12 Tournament Thursday In Las Vegas

by GoDucks.com
Mar 3, 2021

Game Notes: Pac 12 Tournament Quarterfinals

LAS VEGAS - The Oregon women's basketball team will open postseason play this week in Las Vegas at the 2021 Pac-12 Tournament, beginning its quest for a second straight conference tournament title and third in last four years on Thursday in the quarterfinals after receiving a first-round bye as the No. 4 seed in the field.

The No. 19 ranked Ducks will face the winner of Wednesday's opening-round contest between No. 5 seed Oregon State and No. 12 seed California. 

Game Details
Matchup: #4 seed Oregon (13-7, 10-7 Pac-12) vs. #5 seed Oregon State (9-6, 7-6 Pac-12) OR #12 seed California (1-15, 1-12 Pac-12)
Date: Thursday, March 4, 2021
Location: Las Vegas, Nev.
Venue: Michelob ULTRA Arena
Opening Tip: 11:06 a.m. PT

Broadcast Information
TV: Pac-12 Network
PxP: Ann Schatz | Analyst: Tammy Blackburn

Radio: Oregon Sports Network
Eugene: KUGN 590 AM | Portland: KDZR 1640 AM
PXP: Terry Jonz | Analyst: Bev Smith

Ducks In The Pac-12 Tournament
» Defending Pac-12 Tournament champions and two-time conference tournament winners (2018 & 2020).
» 14-17 all-time, including 10-2 since 2017.
» 6-3 all-time in the Pac-12 Tournament quarterfinals.
» 5-1 since the tournament moved to Las Vegas. 
» Fourth straight first-round bye, seventh overall.
» Ducks are the No. 4 seed for the first time ever.
» 0-0 vs. Oregon State, 0-3 vs. California in the tournament.

Numbers to Know
1.33 - Oregon ranks 12th in the nation with a 1.33 assist-to-turnover ratio, and 15th in the NCAA with 12.2 turnovers per game. 
2 - UO has won 2 of the last 3 Pac-12 Tournament titles, dominating Stanford 89-56 in last year's championship game.
4 - Junior Taylor Mikesell enters the Pac-12 Tournament just 4 points away from reaching 1,000 for her collegiate career.
15 - All-Pac-12 selection Nyara Sabally leads the Ducks 15 double-figure scoring games as well as 4 double-doubles.
22 - Redshirt sophomore Sedona Prince led the Ducks with a career-high 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting Sunday vs. OSU.
60.1 - Oregon is allowing just 60.1 PPG this season while holding 12 teams to fewer than 60 points and four to less than 50.

Quick Hits: #21 Erin Boley
» Oregon Career (90 GP, 90 GS): 10.8 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 0.9 APG, .459 FG% (360-785), .431 3PT% (211-490), .849 FT% (45-53).
» Collegiate Career (127 GP, 100 GS): 9.6 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 0.8 APG, .451 FG% (444-984), .424 3PT% (258-609), .863 FT% (69-80).
» 1,215 total career points, 976 as a Duck; 24 points away from becoming the 33rd 1,000-point scorer in Oregon history.
» Currently tied with Maite Cazorla (2015-19) for No. 4 all-time at Oregon with 211 made three-pointers as a Duck.
» .431 3-point shooting percentage as a Duck would currently rank fourth all-time; UO record is .457 (Lexi Bando).
» 10 career 20-point performances and 55 career double-figure scoring games, most on the team.

Paopao, Sabally Named All-Pac-12
The Ducks had two players on the all-Pac-12 team announced on Monday, with Te-Hina Paopao and Nyara Sabally both being selected to the 15-player squad by the league's coaches. Paopao was also one of five players on the Pac-12 all-freshman squad, and one of only two student-athletes to earn both all-Pac-12 and all-freshman. Sabally received Pac-12 all-defensive honorable mention in addition to being named all-Pac-12, and senior Erin Boley received all-conference honorable mention recognition. 

Senior Day Caps Regular Season
The Ducks closed the 2020-21 regular season on Sunday at Matthew Knight Arena, celebrating the careers of seniors Erin Boley and Lydia Giomi following an 88-77 loss to Oregon State. The Ducks, who won the first round of the rivalry series in December, played without freshman Te-Hina Paopao, who had 22 points in that victory. Oregon trailed by just three at halftime, but OSU was 7-of-9 from three-point range in the second half to maintain control. Paopao missed the game with an injury, and Kelly Graves said Tuesday it is looking likely that the Ducks will be without their all-Pac-12 point guard for the rest of the season. "Any time you're without a good player, it hurts," Graves said following Sunday's game. The Ducks may have an opportunity to immediately avenge the rivalry loss in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament on Thursday, with a rematch with Oregon State on tap if the Beavers can get past California in the opening round on Wednesday. 

Sabally Well Worth The Wait
It's been a long two-plus years for Nyara Sabally - who lost the opportunity to play with her sister Satou Sabally after suffering knee injuries in each of her first two seasons as a Duck - but the 6-foot-5 forward was well worth the wait. Sabally was named an all-Pac-12 selection by the league's coaches on Monday, solidifying her standing as one of the top 15 players in the conference in her first healthy season since arriving in Eugene. The redshirt sophomore enters the Pac-12 Tournament having scored in double figures in six straight games and 13 of her last 14 after posting her team-leading fourth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds on Sunday vs. Oregon State. 

This season, Nyara Sabally...
» Is one of only two players in the Pac-12 (Mya Hollingshed, CU) to lead their team in PPG (12.4), RPG (7.3), FGs (95) and blocks (22).
» Ranks No. 2 in the Pac-12 in field-goal percentage (53.4%), No. 5 in rebounds per game and No. 8 in blocked shots.
» Leads UO with 15 double-figure scoring games and four double-doubles.
» Tied for the seventh-best individual shooting performance in UO single-game history on Dec. 4 vs. Colorado (9-of-9 FG).
» Is showing her shooting range at 6-foot-5, going 7-of-12 (.583) so far from three-point range (3-of-3 at USC on Feb. 21).

Prince's Return Provides Boost
After missing the last two seasons - first due to a knee injury and then NCAA transfer rules - and then dealing with an ankle injury that forced her to miss five games this season, redshirt sophomore Sedona Prince appears to finally be back at full strength for the Ducks. The 6-foot-7 center returned to the starting lineup on Jan. 22-24 for the first time since Dec. 4, leading the Ducks to a weekend and season sweep of the Washington schools. Prince scored in double figures in four straight games from Jan. 22 to Feb. 8, including 16 points and seven rebounds on Jan. 24 vs. UW. Prince also blocked five shots vs. the Huskies, the most by a Duck since March 2018 and second-most ever by an Oregon player inside Matthew Knight Arena. Prince (9.7 PPG, 3.8 RPG, .539 FG%) has been terrific off the bench for the Ducks in the last two games of the regular season, scoring 11 points on 5-o-7 shooting on Feb. 21 at USC before going off for a career-high 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting on Sunday vs. Oregon State. It was the first career 20-point game for Prince, who became the fifth different Duck this season to surpass 20 points in a game.

 

Depth On Full Display
Despite having to replace four starters - including three top-10 WNBA Draft picks - Kelly Graves boasts one of the deepest teams in the country this season. Oregon has had 11 different players combine for 69 total double-figure scoring performances through 20 games, and seven different Ducks have led or tied for the team lead in scoring at least once. At least 10 different players have scored in nine of 20 games, including seven straight to open the season, and Nyara Sabally (12.4), Erin Boley (10.6) and Te-Hina Paopao (10.2) are all averaging double figures with six more Ducks averaging at least 4.0 PPG. Oregon has had 10 different starting-lineup combinations in 20 games, and the Ducks have racked up a whopping 534 bench points (26.7 per game). Oregon's depth becomes even more important with Paopao's status in question as postseason play begins. 

Simple Plays
Oregon has done a tremendous job of sharing and being smart with the basketball since Kelly Graves arrived, leading the NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio each of the last two seasons. The new-look Ducks kept this trend going in the 2020-21 opener vs. Seattle with 22 total assists and a season-low three turnovers, and Oregon dished out a season-high 26 assists on  42 field goals against just five turnovers in the Jan. 10 win at California. UO enters the Pac-12 Tournament ranked No. 2 in the Pac-12 and No. 12 in the nation with a 1.33 team assist-to-turnover ratio, and 15th in the NCAA with just 12.2 turnovers per game. Freshman point guard Te-Hina Paopao ranks second in the Pac-12 and third among NCAA freshmen with a solid 2.40 assist-to-turnover ratio.  

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