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Is Oregon going to make March Madness? Plotting the women's path to the postseason

By Sam Fariss

Oregon guard Chance Gray looks to move as the Oregon Ducks host the No. 16 Utah Utes.
Oregon guard Chance Gray looks to move as the Oregon Ducks host the No. 16 Utah Utes. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA
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On a nine-game losing streak, the Ducks are far from the NCAA Tournament. Without March Madness ahead, what does the team look forward to next?

The two postseason tournaments are the main NCAA bracket, comprised of 68 teams, and the NIT Tournament, comprised of an additional 32 teams.

With their current 11-16 record and just four games until the Pac-12 Tournament, the Ducks are well out of reach of the main NCAA Tournament. If Oregon can win out and bring home the conference title, it may be able to earn a spot in the NIT Tournament to cap off its season.

Remaining schedule:

  • At Washington – Feb. 23
  • At Washington State – Feb. 25
  • Vs. Cal – Feb. 29
  • Vs. Stanford – March 2

Oregon is dead last in the Pac-12, the four teams the Ducks still have to face are all ranked ahead of them.

Most notably, the Stanford Cardinal is first in the conference and third nationally. I expect the Cardinal to easily push past the Ducks to complete each team’s regular season.

Cal, Washington, and Washington State are all in the bottom half of the conference with the Ducks. Out of the three, the Cougars and Golden Bears are on top with records of 5-9 in Pac-12 play. The Huskies are just above the Ducks with a 3-11 conference record.

Oregon is 2-12 in conference play, accounting for 75 percent of their losses and just 18 percent of their wins.

Pac-12 Tournament:

Sitting at the bottom of the conference rankings, the Ducks will enter the tournament without a first-round bye. 

They will most likely face the fifth-ranked seed in the first round, No. 5 in the Pac-12 is currently the UCLA Bruins.

If the Ducks can defeat the fifth seed in the opening round, they will go on to play against the fourth seed, who will have had a bye. Currently, No. 4 in the conference is the Colorado Buffaloes.

Current Pac-12 standings:

  1. Stanford Cardinal
  2. Oregon State Beavers
  3. USC Trojans
  4. Colorado Buffaloes
  5. UCLA Bruins
  6. Utah Utes
  7. Arizona Wildcats
  8. Washington State Cougars
  9. California Golden Bears
  10. Washington Huskies
  11. Arizona State Sun Devils
  12. Oregon Ducks

Head coach Kelly Graves must push his team up the conference standings and lead the Ducks to a Pac-12 Tournament title to help them with a chance at the NIT.

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