Oregon women’s basketball coach Kelly Graves keeps saying that he’s really excited for the 2022-23 season. Now we know why.
The Ducks completely dismantled a fairly decent Northwestern team out of the Big Ten 100-57 in the season opener for both teams. Freshman Grace VanSlooten led Oregon with 20 points.
The 6-foot-3 forward surely didn’t look like she was playing her very first college game. VanSlooten was 10-of-16 from the field. Fellow freshman Jennah Isai also wasn’t exactly shy in her debut. She added 15 points and Te-Hina Paopao lit up the stat sheet with 15 points, six rebounds and three assists.
Freshman guard Chance Gray, a five-star and top-10 recruit, scored 14 points in her Duck debut.
Oregon is still adjusting without its power forward Sedona Prince, who injured her elbow and has decided to move on to a professional career. That means players such as 6-foot-8 Phillipina Kyei will see more playing time and so far, so good for the sophomore center. She added eight points and eight boards.
The Ducks shot 36-of-68 (53 percent) from the field and held the Wildcats to just 36 percent on 22-of-61 shooting. Caleigh Walsh led Northwestern with 15 points.