EUGENE, Ore. – Oregon sent the final Civil War played at McArthur Court off on the right note, defeating Oregon State 82-62 on Saturday evening in front of a season-high crowd of 4,065.

The Ducks are now 14-8 and an even 5-5 in the Pac-10 Conference, resting at sixth in the league standings.

The Beavers, losers of 10 straight, fall to 9-12 on the year and are tied for ninth in the conference standings with Washington State sharing identical league records of 1-9.

Turnovers were the story of Saturday’s game as Oregon forced a season-high 29 turnovers and scored 35 points off those Beavers’ miscues.

Taylor Lilley led Oregon with 23 points on a 9-of-15 shooting night. As a team, the Ducks shot 50.0 percent from the floor.

Fellow senior Micaela Cocks, playing in her final Civil War as well, scored 18 points on a 7-of-11 effort.

Sophomore Nia Jackson spurred the offense with a quick first step scoring 14 points and recording game highs in assists (5) and steals (4). The Seattle native left the game late in the second half after banging heads with an Oregon State player. She received stitches to her lip and will be evaluated on a day-to-day basis.

Oregon State freshman Haiden Palmer scored 25 for the Beavers, and recorded a double-double adding 11 rebounds. Kirsten Tilleman also had a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, while junior sharp-shooter Talisa Rhea scored the majority of her 14 points from the free-throw line (10-of-13).

The Ducks were outrebounded 49-28 (an Oregon season low), including surrendering 23 offensive boards to Oregon State. But Oregon outscored OSU 40-26 in the paint and the Ducks’ bench bested the Beavers’ reserves 19-11.

Oregon also had a season-high 10 blocks and held OSU without a three-pointer, marking the first time this year the Ducks have prevented an opponent from knocking down a basket from behind the arc.

Sophomore Jasmin Holliday added nine points and a career-high four blocks, while sophomore Amanda Johnson added a team-leading seven rebounds.

Oregon took what was 17-point halftime advantage and built that lead to 24 points, 58-34, by the 15:56 mark of the second half, as Cocks and Johnson combined to score Oregon’s first 11 points of the half.

Oregon went into halftime with a healthy 47-30 advantage as the Ducks scored 16 points off OSU’s 15 turnovers. The Ducks outscored Oregon State 12-4 over the final two minutes of the first half.

The Ducks were led by Lilley’s 19 points, knocking down three first-half three-pointers, and shooting a perfect  10-for-10 from  floor overall.

Jackson got the offense going scoring 11 points and dishing four assists.

Palmer led OSU with 11 at the break.

Oregon jumped out to 8-0 lead as Oregon State turned the ball over three times and went 0-for-4 from the floor until Julie Futch converted the Beavers first basket at the 16:07 mark.

The Ducks led by as many as 11, 23-12 after a three-point play conversion from Jackson, but the Beavers went on a 8-0 run to close within 23-20. Holliday had an answer for that run, grabbing an offensive rebound, and converting the put back despite being fouled and knocking down the free throw.

Lilley then drained the first three-pointer of the game, and first attempt for Oregon, to give the Ducks a 29-20 advantage with 4:56 remaining in the half.

The 8-0 run was completed when Johnson’s no-look pass to Holliday on the fast break led to a layup and score.

NOTES
Oregon has now swept the Beavers for the second time in three years…Lilley’s first field goal miss did not come until the 14:36 mark of the second half…Lilley now has 80 three-pointers on the season and is just one shy of tying Jamie Craighead’s record (81) set in 2001…Lilley and fellow senior Micaela Cocks were presented game balls prior to the game for both eclipsing the 1,000-point threshold for their respective careers…Oregon’s 20-point win was its largest margin of victory over the Beavers since an 82-58 win on Jan. 8, 2005…Oregon’s 20-point win was also its largest of the Pac-10 season.

UP NEXT
Oregon has two more games at Mac Court before returning to the road. The Ducks host Arizona at 7 p.m., Thursday before Arizona State comes to town for a 2 p.m. start on Saturday. The game with the Sun Devils will also serve as

TICKETS
Tickets are still available for the Arizona and Arizona State games and can be purchased by clicking HERE, calling 1-800-WEB-FOOT, or in person at the Casanova Center ticket office. Tickets can also be purchased at the McArthur Court ticket window 90 minutes prior to game time. The doors to Mac Court open 60 minutes prior to tip.

PROMOTIONS
For the fourth consecutive season, the Oregon women’s basketball team is proud to partner with the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association for its Pink Zone initiative, to be held Saturday, Feb. 13 vs. Arizona State.
Duck fans are encouraged to wear pink to the game for a Mac Court “Pink Out.” Oregon is partnering with the Willamette Valley Cancer Research Center, which will be on-site to collect donations on gameday.
A raffle will also be held with various signed products (T-Shirts, game balls, etc.) from the Oregon women’s basketball team up for grabs. Proceeds from the raffle will also be donated toward the cause.

FORMER DUCK GREATS RETURN TO MAC COURT
ARIZONA  – Feb. 11, 2010
Oregon will be honored to bring back the first ever full-time coach of the UO women’s basketball program when Elwin Heiny returns to Mac Court to serve as the honorary captain for the Oregon-Arizona game. During his 17 seasons, Heiny accumulated 310 wins, the most of any Oregon women’s basketball coach in program history, and put together 13 winning seasons, seven postseason appearances, three trips to the NCAA tournament, two Northwest Women’s Basketball League championships, two Northern Pacific Athletic Conference championships and one National Women’s Invitational Tournament title.
A three-time NWBL Coach of the Year, Heiny instructed two-time Kodak All-American Bev Smith, as well as the program’s first Pac-10 Player of the Year, Lauri Landerholm, when she took the honor in 1987.

ARIZONA STATE – Feb. 13, 2010
One of the most prolific players in Oregon history will return to Eugene to serve as the honorary captain for the UO-Arizona State game as Stefanie Kasperski will make her return to Mac Court. A member of the Oregon Athletic Hall of Fame, Kasperski remains one of the most prolific players in Oregon women’s basketball history, ranking third all-time in both scoring (1,956 points) and rebounding (996). During her four-year career with the Ducks, Kasperski was a three-time Pac-10 First Team selection and a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American. Kasperski helped lead the Ducks to the second round of the NCAA Tournament as a freshman in 1987, and went on to lead the Ducks to a National Women’s Invitational Tournament championship in 1989 after averaging 20.3 points and 9.5 rebounds per game as a junior. Saturday, Feb. 13 will also serve as two other important dates with alumni weekend and the UO’s third annual support of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Pink Zone initiative.