This past weekend, all eyes were on the state of Oregon and the "Civil War" series. Entering the weekend, Oregon was ranked fourth and Oregon State seventh in the latest AP Poll.
Ultimately, the Ducks would sweep the series. On Friday, the Oregon beat the Beavers 76-64 at Matt Knight Arena in Eugene. While the finale on Sunday also resulted in an Oregon win, as the Ducks defeated Oregon State 66-57 in front of a rowdy crowd at Gill Coliseum in Corvallis.
Prior to Sunday's game, the news about the passing of NBA legend Kobe Bryant broke. In the pregame warmups, the teams joined together at half court.
Concern and prayers for Kobe and his family today for Oregon, and Oregon State. Kobe has spent time with them in the past, friends with Sabrina Ionescu, who has yet to come out of the lockerroom. pic.twitter.com/yG6XZ36ZgD
— Beth Mowins (@bethmowins) January 26, 2020
Senior Sabrina Ionescu developed a strong relationship with Bryant over the years. She wrote "Forever 24" on her sneakers for the game on Sunday. In her post-game interview, Ionescu said that this season is dedicated to him.
The results of these games could have a big impact on the polls, the race for the Pac-12 title and seeding in the NCAA tournament. Below is a quick recap of the weekend's results.
Civil War 2020
Game 1: Oregon 76, Oregon State 64
Despite a slow start, the Ducks found a way to win in a packed Matt Knight Arena. Sabrina Ionescu led all scorers with 29 points while recording nine assists and four rebounds. Oregon's Satou Sabally tallied a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Senior Ruthy Hebard was a presence in the paint — also scoring 17 points and picking up nine boards.
Taylor Jones had a strong performance for the Beavers, scoring 21 points, but ultimately Oregon State fell in the first game of the Civil War series.
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Game 2: Oregon 66, Oregon State 57
Both teams began Sunday's game in Corvallis very emotional over the sudden death of Bryant. The Beavers led at halftime 37-34, but Oregon had a dominant third quarter — outscoring Oregon State 18-8. Although Oregon State attempted to fight back in the fourth quarter, it wasn't enough to get the win.
Oregon State's Mikayla Pivec led all scorers with 20 points. The Ducks had strong performances from Ionescu, as well as Ruthy Hebard and Satou Sabally. Hebard recorded a double-double, tallying 13 points and 14 rebounds.
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Destiny Slocum leads Oregon State in scoring and assists this season. (Oregon State Athletics)
Last meeting before this series
Oregon State won 67-62 at home against the Ducks on Feb. 18, 2019. The Beavers were powered by 20 points and four assists from Destiny Slocum, but also got 22 points from Aleah Goodman and a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds from Mikayla Pivec.
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Sabrina Ionescu had 21 points for Oregon, but just two other Ducks scored in double-digits. Oregon also shot just 22.7 percent from the three-point line.
Oregon owns the all-time series with 61 wins and 41 losses. Between 2011 and 2018, the Beavers won 14 straight meetings.
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The matchup
| Oregon | Oregon State | |
|---|---|---|
| 4/4 | Rankings (AP/Coaches) | 7/7 |
| 105-55 win over Cal | Last Game | 58-61 loss to Stanford |
| Kelly Graves | Head Coach | Scott Rueck |
| 15-2 (5-1 Pac-12) | Record | 16-2 (4-2 Pac-12) |
| 87.6 | Points scored per-game | 74.1 |
| 56.5 | Points allowed per-game | 53.4 |
| Sabrina Ionescu (17.4) | Leading Scorer (ppg) | Destiny Slocum (15.1) |
| Ruthy Hebard (9.3) | Leading Rebounder (rpg) | Mikayla Pivec (9.5) |
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Milestone watch
In Friday night's game, Sabrina Ionescu surpassed Gary Payton for the Pac-12's all-time men's and women's assists record with this pocket pass to Ruthy Hebard, who scored on a floater.
.@sabrina_i20 assists on the first bucket of the game and she has officially passed Gary Payton for the Pac-12 all-time men's and women's assists record with 939! 👏#GoDucks | @Pac12Network pic.twitter.com/3joJxdOkgN
— Oregon Women’s Basketball (@OregonWBB) January 25, 2020
