In their season opener at Matthew Knight arena Monday night, the Oregon women thrashed West Georgia 100-59, the kind of score that gets everyone a free chalupa in the NBA.
The Ducks were flying. They had 24 steals and forced 32 turnovers. Head coach Kelly Graves kept his record perfect in season openers, now 12-0.
As a dress rehearsal for a long season it went flawlessly. "You take a deep breath knowing that you've got this thing started. I think we've got a pretty good basketball team," Graves said.
"To me the highlight is that everyone got in and everyone scored, I'm guessing... Everyone had their chance and got in and did what they did, and we can build off of it. It also gives us some video tape. There are some things that we've got to get better at, and now we can show them."
West Georgia isn't UConn or South Carolina. Those challenges could come later. The Wolves play in the Atlantic Sun Conference, in the midst of a transition to NCAA Division I sports that they'll complete in 2027.
Oregon led 48-13 by halftime. Everyone on the roster scored, paced by Fresno State transfer Mia Jacobs with 16 points and six rebounds in 22 minutes, 7-12 from the floor.
Point guard Katie Fiso dished out 10 assists with three steals, cracking double figures with 10 points. Astera Tuhina chipped in six assists off the bench in just 15 minutes. Neither of the two principal ball handlers had a turnover.
From Perth, Australia, the 6-2 forward Jacobs gives the Ducks some double-double punch under the basket, a dependable scorer to make the offense go. She's a versatile player and a sound defender. Against WGA she hit a pair of threes, finding the touch that made her an 85 percent free throw shooter and 38 percent from three last year at Fresno State.