Nia Jackson's 24 points led the Oregon Ducks to a 81-72 win over Oregon State in their Matthew Knight Arena debut Saturday afternoon. A Pac-10 conference women's record 12,320 spectators were treated to a hard fought opening round of the 2011 Civil War series.
In what is sure to be a future trivia question and historical footnote the first point was scored before the center jump. An administrative technical was called against the home team when the game officials determined that the 30-second shot clock indicator light had been mis-programmed to illuminate in conjunction with the end of period indicator light framing the backboard. While not a technical violation in the men's rule book - thus no opening free throws last week when the men opened the building - it is listed as a game administration violation for the women.
Sage Indendi gave the visitors a quick 1-0 lead with the free throw.
It was Jasmin Holliday who hit the first "real" basket - a jumper from inside the free throw line and shortly thereafter Victoria Kenyon nailed the first trey from the top of the key as the Ducks raced out to an early lead over their rivals.
With a capacity house in full voice, Oregon pressured the Beavers into several early turnovers and missed shots, building a 29-20 lead halfway through the opening frame.
But just as it appeared Oregon was poised to run Oregon State out of the gym, a string of missed shots opened the door for the Beavers to claw their way back into the contest. Idendi's three point bucket gave Oregon State a 38-37 lead with 3:30 to go before the break.
A free throw extended the Beaver lead to two points before Oregon's Jackson took matters into hand. Her jumper brought the Ducks back even, then with the shot clock winding down on Oregon's next possession, Jackson let fly from the top of the key for a back-breaking three.
Holliday came up with a steal at the defensive end and Jackson was fouled on the break, hitting both attempts to give the Ducks a 44-39 halftime break.
"That was a key moment in the game . a key shift in momentum," said Oregon State head coach Scott Rueck. "We had momentum. We had been making great plays to get back in (the game) . that five point swing was key and it carried over to the second half."
The Ducks opened the second half with a pair of three pointers and held the Beavers at bay the rest of the game.
Oregon State claimed a 10 rebound (40-30) advantage off the glass and their half court offense kept them within shouting distance but the Beavers were only able to close the deficit to four points on one occasion.
But Jackson and guard Kristi Fallin - who hit for 17 points on 5-for-6 from behind the arc - wouldn't allow the Beavers get any closer.
"Just gotta let it fly," said Fallin of her hot hand. "I spent a lot of extra time in the gym this week to get used to it. I think that's just what I am going to have to do every day because it is new and there is a lot more space up there so you get distracted easily looking through the backboards or anything like that. It just felt good tonight."
The Ducks shot 44.4% on 28-63 from the floor while the Beavers hit for 24-57 for 42.1%. It was from behind the three-point stripe where the Ducks fashioned a significant advantage, shooting 13-30 compared to Oregon State's 5-22 effort.
"I couldn't be more proud of them being able to close out Mac Court with a win and now come and open up Matt Knight Arena with a win. One was forever, never to change, this one is an ongoing process but first win is always the best one to get. And hopefully more to come."
The Ducks get to spend their next two games getting comfortable in their new home. Fourth ranked Stanford visits for a 6:00 pm tip on Thursday, then Oregon will host California at 12:30 on Saturday.
