No. 10 Oregon recovers after losing big lead, tops No. 7 Vanderbilt in OT in women’s NCAA Tournament
No. 10 Oregon recovers after losing big lead, tops No. 7 Vanderbilt in OT in women’s NCAA Tournament
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Deja Kelly scored 20 points, and No. 10 seed Oregon recovered in overtime after losing a 19-point lead in the second half to beat No. 7 Vanderbilt 77-73 on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Kelly – who had previously played at Duke’s arena three times as a North Carolina Tar Heel – shot 6 for 16 from the floor and added eight rebounds, three steals and three assists for the Ducks (20-11). Nani Falatea added 17 points and Peyton Scott scored 13 in Oregon’s first March Madness victory since 2021.
“That was a hell of a game,” Oregon coach Kelly Graves said. “I’m just really proud of our team. Before the game, I talked about our grit and our toughness. I think that’s the one defining characteristic we’ve had all year, and we showed that late in the game with the defensive stops.”
Mikayla Blakes, the SEC freshman of the year, finished with 26 points for Vanderbilt (22-11). Khamil Pierre chipped in 17 points for the Commodores, while Jordyn Oliver had 10.
Oregon led by 11 points at halftime and then used a 12-4 to open the third quarter to take a 48-29 lead. Vanderbilt clawed back, with Oliver getting eight points in the fourth quarter as the Commodores outscored the Ducks 24-12 before Leilani Kapinus made her first field goal of the game on a layup in traffic with four seconds remaining to tie the game at 67.
“It’s March, so I think that’s what these games are about. There’s lots of ups and downs,” Kelly said. “I’m really proud of our fight, even when things weren’t going our way.”
In overtime, Blakes and Pierre were off the floor in the final minute, both having fouled out. Free throws by the Ducks from Kelly, Scott and Amina Muhammad sealed the win.
“For whatever reason this, this team likes to fight out of a hole, and we dug ourselves a pretty big one,” Vanderbilt coach Shea Ralph said. “Then we showed up like the team that I truly believe we are for most of the second half. Unfortunately, we ran out of time.”
Takeaways
Oregon: Graves seems to thrive as an underdog in March. He now has 10 wins when Oregon is a double-digit seed in the NCAA Tournament, the most of any active Division I coach.
Vanderbilt: Still searching for their first March Madness win since 2013, the Commodores made just two 3-pointers against Oregon’s stifling defense, tying a season-low.
Key Stat
Oregon is now 7-1 this season in games decided by four points or less.
“We’ve been in a lot of these kind of games that can go either way,” Graves said. “We just seemed to make the right plays.”
Up next
Oregon will play the winner of No. 15 Lehigh vs. No. 2 Duke on Sunday.
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By MITCHELL NORTHAM
Associated Press
