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QuickTake:
Behind 22 points from Katie Fiso, 13 points from a bloodied Mia Jacobs and an all-out defensive effort, the Oregon Ducks beat Virginia Tech 70-60 and will be dancing again on Sunday.
AUSTIN — After the game, one could have thought this was just a normal day for Mia Jacobs.
That, of course, wasn’t true.
Jacobs’ knee brace was off, but she was still battling through the injury that’s hampered her most of the year. And the bandage covering the Oregon forward’s chin was well concealed, but 30 minutes earlier Jacobs had been pouring blood onto the floor here at the Moody Center in Austin.
No. 8 Oregon was up by 20 at the time and well on its way to a 70-60 first-round win over No. 9 Virginia Tech when Jacobs dove for a loose ball and had her face smashed into the hardwood.
“I grew up on bloody, gory movies,” Oregon coach Kelly Graves said, “and it was bloody and gory.”
Not bloody and gory enough to keep Jacobs out of the game, though.
Oregon was still up double-digits when Jacobs subbed back in after four minutes and later drained a fourth-quarter three. The game was already in hand by then. Then again, this wasn’t just any game for Jacobs.
In her fourth year of college, it was her first NCAA Tournament appearance — and Jacobs wasn’t about to give up any minutes she didn’t have to.
“I wanted to go back in,” Jacobs said. “You obviously never know if it’s going to be your last game. I didn’t want it to end.”
Balanced scoring
Because of Jacobs and a balanced Oregon attack, the Ducks have at least two more days to enjoy their March Madness run. Jacobs had 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting in the win, hitting Oregon’s first three of the game and setting the standard for an Oregon team that used a breakneck pace in the first half to quickly pull away from the Hokies.
Ari Long and Amina Muhammad each finished with 7 points, and Sarah Rambus had 8 — more than enough scoring to take a little pressure off Katie Fiso and Ehis Etute, Oregon’s two stars who scored 224 of Oregon’s 418 points in UO’s previous six contests.
“It was so nice,” Etute said. “It’s always such a good game when everyone else steps up and it’s not just two players. I think that’s when we’re at our best.
“I felt like for me it was maybe time to drag my own way, too.”
Etute did just fine, finishing with 11 points and 11 rebounds. So did Fiso, who led all scorers with 23 points, using an array of drives and mid-range shots to finish an efficient 9-of-12 from the floor.
More impressive was Oregon’s all-out defensive effort. The Ducks not only limited Virginia Tech to 32% shooting, they also hounded the Hokies’ leading scorer, Carleigh Wenzel, into a 2-of-12 performance. In the third quarter alone, Oregon held Virginia Tech without a basket for a five-minute stretch that turned a 5-point lead into a 23-point advantage.
“I thought defensively we were on point,” Graves said. “They have a couple of great scorers. I know (Carys Baker) got loose there in the second half. But the job we did on Wenzel and (Makenzie Nelson), I thought was outstanding. And that won the day, our defense.”
The win set up what will be Oregon’s toughest test of the season. The region’s top seed, Texas, played right after Oregon and, in front of its home crowd, thumped No. 16 Missouri State 87-45. The Longhorns went 31-3 this year, won the SEC Tournament championship game by 17 points over South Carolina and are one of the biggest teams in the tournament, with eight players 6-foot-1 or taller — including a pair of 6-foot-6 post players.
For comparison’s sake, Etute, Oregon’s center, is 6 feet tall.
The Ducks will have their hands full — as evidenced by the crew of Oregon assistants who sat on press row to scout the Longhorns after Oregon’s win.
But before the Ducks take the floor on Sunday, Jacobs has to do one last thing she hasn’t done before.
Get stitches.
By the time the game ended, Jacobs said the adrenaline had worn off and her chin was starting to hurt. She was nervous — an emotion she didn’t show while helping extend Oregon’s season by at least one more game.
“That’s called effort and intensity,” Etute said of her teammate.
“She came out with confidence, which is what we needed,” added Fiso. “When she was on the floor, I knew she was going to get back up, no matter what.
“That’s the motto of our team. It’s our grittiness to get up no matter what.”
