Former Lobo Kelly Graves has his Oregon team in the women’s Elite Eight — and he has an admirer in UConn coach Geno Auriemma
Ex-Lobo’s squad to face UConn
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — Oregon’s young players say they feel excited and loose. They play that way, too.
Sabrina Ionescu scored 21 points, fellow freshman Ruthy Hebard had 16 and the 10th-seeded Ducks continued their improbable run through the NCAA Tournament with a 77-63 victory over Maryland on Saturday.
Oregon (23-13) put five players in double figures on its way to the first regional final in program history. It will play No. 1 seed UConn in the next round Monday.
“We’re just excited about everything,” Ionescu said. “None of our kids have experienced anything like this. So, I think we’re just excited to advance and be able play another day and see where that takes us.”
Brionna Jones and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough each had 16 points for thirdseeded Maryland, which finishes the season at 32-3.
The Terps, who average more than 90 points a game to lead the nation, were held to their lowest point total this season. They turned the ball over 21 times, leading to 18 Oregon points.
“I just think it was just one of those days,” said guard Destiny Slocum, who finished with nine points and five turnovers. “We kind of lost our game, and I think, even though this was a low-scoring game, we were trying our best, doing anything we could do. I don’t think there’s really an answer for it.”
Oregon coach Kelly Graves, who played men’s basketball at the University of New Mexico from 1985-87, said before the game that his young team that starts three freshmen may not know it’s not supposed to be winning. The Ducks became the second No. 10 seed to advance to a regional final, joining the 1991 Lamar team.
“They just continue to show great poise,” Graves said.
Maite Cazorla scored 15 points for Oregon, which will next face powerhouse UConn. The Huskies (350) won their 110th straight game Saturday, topping UCLA 86-71, but UConn coach Geno Auriemma does not expect the Ducks to simply bow down.
“They don’t know enough to be either intimidated or pressured or anything you’d associate with a team doing this for the first time,” Auriemma said of the Ducks. “They are having fun and enjoying the moment as they should. It’s really neat to see. … I said when Kelly Graves was hired that it won’t be long before they’re in the Final Four. I hope it’s not this early, but it won’t be long.”
Bridgeport Region
No. 1 CONNECTICUT 86, No. 4 UCLA 71: In Bridgeport, Saniya Chong scored 16 points and came up with big plays on both ends of the court as the Huskies beat UCLA.
Napheesa Collier had 27 points and 14 rebounds for UConn, which shot 55.6 percent (30-for-54) from the field.
The Bruins jumped out a 9-2 lead over UConn before the Huskies scored 17 of the next 19 points. The sevenpoint deficit matched the Huskies’ largest this season, but UConn quickly recovered to lead by nine points after one quarter and 17 at the half.
“We like to say that to play with us it’s a marathon not a sprint,” said Gabby Williams, who had 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists. “They came out hard, aggressive, there was 37 minutes left to play.”
The victory tied Auriemma with Pat Summitt for most NCAA Tournament victories with 112.
Jordin Canada had 20 points and 11 assists for UCLA (25-9).
Stockton Region
No. 1 SOUTH CAROLINA 100, No. 12 QUINNIPIAC 58: In Stockton, Calif., Kaela Davis, A’ja Wilson and South Carolina overpowered tournament surprise Quinnipiac from the opening tip, scoring the first 16 points and advancing to the regional final.
Davis scored 28 points with five 3-pointers, Wilson added 24 and South Carolina’s athleticism and smothering, swarming defense was just too much for Quinnipiac on the Sweet 16 stage. The Bobcats started out 0-for10 and took more than seven minutes to score as they struggled to get shots off, let alone establish their typically prolific perimeter game.
South Carolina (30-4) won its eighth in a row, putting coach Dawn Staley’s team in the Elite Eight for the second time in three years.
The Bobcats (29-7) had won 12 straight games, beating fifth-seeded Marquette and No. 4 Miami for the first two NCAA Tournament wins in school history.
No. 3 FLORIDA STATE 66, No. 2 OREGON STATE 53: In Stockton, Ivey Slaughter helped Florida State discover its best defense, and the Seminoles erased a daunting deficit and ran into the regional final with a win over Oregon State.
Slick-handed Slaughter had a career-high nine steals to go with 11 points and eight rebounds. Florida State (28-6), which will face South Carolina on Monday for a Final Four berth, had 16 steals overall.
Sydney Wiese, the Beavers’ leading scorer, wound up with just nine points on 3-for-14 shooting and missed all 10 of her 3-point tries in her final collegiate game. Oregon State (31-5) missed a return trip to the Final Four.
Florida State trailed by 17 late in the first quarter and 10 midway through the second, but got to within 35-30 at halftime before opening the third with a 16-2 burst to go ahead 46-37.