After back-to-back losses, the Oregon women will try and get on track against California

Chris Hansen, Register-Guard
·3 min read
Oregon head coach Kelly Graves thinks during a timeout as the Oregon Ducks host the Washington Huskies on Jan. 13 at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene.
Oregon head coach Kelly Graves thinks during a timeout as the Oregon Ducks host the Washington Huskies on Jan. 13 at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene.

Women’s basketball

Oregon (13-6, 4-4 Pac-12) vs. California (10-9, 1-7)

7 p.m., Friday at Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, Calif.

TV: Pac-12 Oregon

Radio: KUGN-FM (98.1), KUGN-AM (590)

About the Ducks

  • Oregon is in a bit of a tail spin after starting the season 10-1. The Ducks have lost two straight games, three of their last four, five of their last eight and weren’t ranked in the Associated Press top 25 this week for the first time all season. Those recent defeats include a pair of eight-point losses against then-No. 10 UCLA and then-No. 15 Arizona. But the last two — an 85-84 overtime loss at home to Washington State and 68-65 at Oregon State last Friday — were head-scratching. Next up is a potential get-right game against a Golden Bears team Oregon has beaten seven straight times.

  • Chance Gray has been a bright spot the last two games as the freshman guard had 18 points against Washington State and a career-high 22 against Oregon State while going a combined 11-for-21 from 3-point range. Her made 3-pointers against the Cougars and Beavers equaled her total from her previous nine games when she went 11-for-45 from deep. Gray has also made her last 22 attempts from the free-throw line.

  • The Ducks have been outplayed in the post their last two games. They were outscored 46-16 in the paint against Oregon State and 46-24 against Washington State. The Ducks’ top two interior threats contributed little offensively in both games as forward Grace VanSlooten went 3-for-21 from the field and center Phillipina Kyei only attempted two shots in the two games combined. Getting those players back on track will be key for the Ducks.

About the Golden Bears

  • California is on a five-game losing streak — four against ranked teams — and has won just once in their last eight games to drop to 11th place in the Pac-12 standings. There have been some blowout losses for the Golden Bears during that stretch, but they have also been surprisingly competitive at times, losing to No. 2 Stanford 60-56 and to No. 24 Colorado 73-66.

  • Guard Jayda Curry was the Pac-12 freshman of the year last season and remains one of the better players in the conference, averaging 14 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.

Statistical comparisons

  • Scoring average: Oregon, 80.0; Cal, 70.2

  • Opp. scoring average: Oregon, 63.0; Cal, 66.6

  • FG percentage: Oregon, 45.1%; Cal, 42.9%

  • Opp. FG percentage: Oregon, 38.2%; Cal, 41.3%

  • 3-point FG percentage: Oregon, 38.2%; Cal, 35.1%

  • 3-point FG per game: Oregon, 8.7; Cal, 6.95

  • FT percentage: Oregon, 70.6%; Cal, 69.1%

  • Rebounds per game: Oregon, 42.9; Cal, 37.4

  • Rebounding margin: Oregon, +8.1 Cal, +2.3

  • Assists per game: Oregon, 17.6; Cal, 14.8

  • Turnovers per game: Oregon, 12.3; Cal, 14.2

  • Turnover margin: Oregon, +1.7; Cal, +0.3

  • Blocks per game: Oregon, 4.2; Cal, 3.5

Follow Chris Hansen on Twitter @chansen_RG or email at chansen@registerguard.com. 

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This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Oregon Ducks women's basketball faces California Golden Bears