Head coach Paul Westhead’s assistants kept “spinning him around.” They kept telling him that his players were picking up fouls left and right. “She has four, no, she has four.”
It was that kind of night at Matthew Knight Arena, but the Oregon women’s basketball team persevered and played smart to pull out a 113-86 win over Portland, improving to 2-0 on the season.
Oregon found itself in early foul trouble for the first time in the young season. Sophomore Jillian Alleyne recorded her fourth foul of the game about two minutes into the second half but recovered and played smart enough to keep from picking up her fifth foul. Alleyne recorded her second straight double-double of the season with 26 points and 13 rebounds.
“Last season, I thought she had a terrific rookie year, she had good numbers, but she didn’t take over the team, and say I’m going to get you 25 and 12, come rain, come shine,” Westhead said. “She’s done it now in back-to-back games … She’s going in that direction.”
Oregon had five players score double digits: Alleyne (25), freshman Chrishae Rowe (22), junior Katelyn Loper (23), senior Ariel Thomas (12) and senior Laura Stanulius (10).
The Ducks recovered from a sloppy first half, as they let the visiting Pilots attempt 19 free-throws and 18 three-point field goals. However, the Pilots shot just 6 percent from beyond the arc in the first half. Oregon went into the locker room after a 17-3 run that gave the Ducks a 54-36 advantage.
Thomas fouled out with 16 minutes to go in the game while Loper and Rowe both played with four fouls during the second half.
Oregon forced 20 turnovers in the game, capitalizing for 22 points off turnovers.
After a grim 2012-2013 campaign, the team understands the importance of a win for team morale.
“2-0 is great. Last year, 4-27, was not great,” Alleyne said. “We like to joke around because we’re halfway there. It does feel good. I love to see my teammates smile and laugh. I think it’s the best feeling when you know you got a good win and worked hard.”
The win was especially thrilling for Oregon as the team avenged the 68-49 loss to the Pilots from last season.
Overall, the Ducks shot better in the second half of play, 51 percent to 40 percent which resulted in a 46 percent overall shooting percentage from the field. Oregon often relies on the three ball, and it tallied 10-of-30 shooting from behind the arc on the night. Though they didn’t continue their historic scoring ability, the Ducks’ biggest lead of the night came with 2:10 left in the game as they led by 27.
Westhead’s “system” is coming to life on the court but the squad still has work to do to solidify the team’s ability to score in transition.
“I think our players were tired,” Westhead said. “The real system, when it shows up, the opposition will be tired and our players will be saying ‘more, make it harder, we need more.’ The good news is that they’re tired and didn’t crack.’”
Alleyne stressed after the game that the Ducks will continue to work on rebounding after they allowed 20 offensive rebounds to visiting Pilots.
“We just really need to learn how to box-out and get those rebounds because those should be ours every time,” Alleyne said.
On the horizon: The Ducks host Sacramento State this Sunday at 2 p.m.
Follow Jonathan Hawthorne on Twitter @Jon_Hawthorne