Oregon Women’s Basketball: Ruthy Hebard, Ducks Handle Eastern Washington

The Oregon Ducks Women’s Basketball team used the game to gain bench experience to beat Eastern Washington, 80-41.

The tenth-ranked Oregon Ducks were the better team on Tuesday night at Matthew Knight Arena. The Defense was clear from the start. Oregon pushed in a key stretch to hold Eastern Washington to 1 for 15 shooting for more than half of the first quarter. The Ducks jumped out to a 23-8 lead. It was not Sabrina Ionescu who took center stage, but Ruthy Hebard.

Hebard continued her solid play from last week. She was a perfect 8 for 8 from the floor and 7 for 7 from the free throw line. She was 6 for 6 from both in the first half before Kelly Graves turned to the bench for a good part of the second half. Ionescu had 8 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists. Hebard finished with 22 points in the game.

Oregon shot 58 percent and held Eastern Washington to just 30 percent shooting. The Ducks were also able to get the advantage on the glass outrebounding the Eagles 42-22. Both teams had 23 turnovers, but Oregon was better at managing the turnover battle with the first quarter being the worst. After last week, it was clear that some fatigue had set in, which should subside in the coming weeks. It will also help that the Ducks have a solid stretch of home games.

Next: Three Ducks Accept Invites To Senior Bowl

The Oregon Ducks take part in the Phil Knight Invitational at Matthew Knight Arena on Saturday. Connecticut faces Michigan State at Noon followed by Oregon and Oklahoma at 2:30 pm PT.