After winning each of its first two games by double digits, the Oregon women’s basketball team will face its stiffest test of the early season Sunday against No. 12 Baylor at Matthew Knight Arena.
Oregon got to 2-0 with Wednesday’s home win against Nevada.
The Ducks (2-0), led by North Carolina transfer guard Deja Kelly and eight other newcomers, have a completely new team and will be challenged by Colorado transfer Aaronette Vonleh and the No. 12 Bears (1-0) at 7 p.m.
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The Oregon women’s basketball team held off a furious Baylor rally to beat the No. 12 team in the country, 76-74, Sunday night at Matthew Knight Arena. Deja Kelly led the Ducks with 20 points, while Alexis Whitfield added 16 and Nani Falatea added 12. Elisa Mevius scored the go-ahead layup with 22 seconds left and the Ducks forced a 3-point miss to secure the win.
Siena transfer and Duck guard Elisa Mevius maneuvered around the Baylor defense and used a screen from Phillipina Kyei to hit the go-ahead layup with 22 seconds left for the Ducks. Oregon leads 76-74.
Baylor took its first lead of the second half on an Aaronette Vonleh layup with 1:28 to play, but Deja Kelly responded with a layup on the next possession. With 39.8 seconds left, the Ducks and Bears are tied at 74-74.
The Ducks’ nightmare fourth quarter continued when Baylor’s Jada Walker tied the game with 2:03 left with a pair of free throws. Oregon led by as many as 16 in the fourth quarter.
The Bears continue their torrid comeback. Baylor is outscoring Oregon 19-6 in the fourth quarter through five minutes and have cut the Ducks’ lead to one. Jada Walker has 22 points and the Bears are now shooting 42.1% from the field.
The Baylor Bears have cut the Oregon lead to single digits with 7:54 left in the game, starting the final frame on a 10-4 run. Jada Walker and Darianna Littlepage-Buggs lead the Bears with 17 points each.
The Oregon women’s basketball team leads No. 12 Baylor, 62-48, with 10 minutes to play.
Three Duck players are in double figures in Alexis Whitfield (16 points), Deja Kelly (14 points) and reserve guard Nani Falatea (10 points). Oregon is shooting over 50% from the field and is 5 for 11 on 3-pointers. Baylor, meanwhile, is shooting just 35.4% from the field and has made just two 3s.
With 4:30 left in the third quarter, the Oregon women’s basketball team leads No. 12 Baylor, 45-37. Deja Kelly is up to 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists while Alexis Whitfield still has 12 points on seven shot attempts. Baylor is shooting just 31.8% from the field and 2 for 12 from 3-point land.
The Bears briefly took the lead early in the second, but Oregon ended the half on an 11-0 run to take the lead into halftime against No. 12 Baylor.
Alexis Whitfield leads the Ducks with 12 points on 5-for-5 shooting from the field, while Deja Kelly has added seven points on 2-for-8 shooting with seven rebounds.
The Ducks led 13-4 with 5:34 left to play in the first frame, but made just one shot in the final four and a half minutes while Baylor trimmed the lead to one.
Deja Kelly and Peyton Scott lead the Ducks with four points apiece.
The Oregon women kept Baylor off the scoreboard for the first three minutes of the game to take a 6-2 lead at the first media timeout with 6:23 left in the first quarter. Amina Muhammad, Peyton Scott and Deja Kelly have all scored for the Ducks.
With minutes to tip against No. 12 Baylor, Oregon and the Bears announced their starters.
Oregon: G – Sofia Bell, G – Peyton Scott, G – Deja Kelly, F – Alexis Whitfield, F – Amina Muhammad
Baylor: G – Jada Walker, G – Sarah Andrews, F – Darianna Littlepage-Buggs, F – Aaronette Vonleh, F – Bella Fontleroy
Hosting a food drive for Lane County through her foundation pregame, Oregon legend Sabrina Ionescu signed autographs pregame and will sit courtside during the Ducks’ matchup against the No. 12 Baylor Bears.
Oregon women’s basketball vs. Baylor will be broadcast nationally on Big Ten Network. Ann Schatz and Elise Woodward will call the game courtside from Matthew Knight Arena. Streaming options for the game include Sling and FUBO, which offers a free trial to new subscribers.
Record: 2-0
Next five games:
Buy Oregon women’s basketball tickets this season via StubHub
Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football, volleyball, women’s basketball and baseball for The Register-Guard. You may reach him at adietz@registerguard.com and you can follow him on X @AlecDietz.
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