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Message: [QUOTE="Plebe, post: 3468844, member: 6927"] Some impressions from both games: [B]The first semifinal[/B] was certainly the higher-quality game -- in fact, it was by far the highest level of play I've seen in any of the conference tournaments thus far. Arizona may have actually played the best game I've seen from them, despite what was ultimately a decisive loss. It was a game of runs, and Arizona rode their own stretches of hot shooting to cut the lead to 1 late in 1Q and then to 6 early in 3Q. AZ is an outstanding defensive team -- statistically the best in the Pac-12 -- but they still gave up more than 30 points over their average because Oregon's ball movement was incredible and they shot so dang well. Both teams combined for 25 of 52 3-pointers -- incredible efficiency at that volume. Also, what an amazing display by McDonald -- she was virtually unstoppable at times. Minyon Moore is considered a great perimeter defender, but she simply could not guard Aari. (Side note: I'm not sure if Moore had her minutes limited due to the defense or because she wasn't really a shooting threat.) Back to McDonald: 34 points on 14-25 FG and 4-9 FG3 is just an incredible stat line, not to mention her 5 assists. Arizona also got great contributions from McBryde and Thomas (their improved shooting is really remarkable) as well as the freshman Pueyo. Reese had her moments as well. One issue with Arizona is that they lack depth, and once Reese picked up her 4th foul that was pretty much all she wrote. But if they can stay out of foul trouble and play anything like they did today, they will be a very tough out for anyone in the tournament. Ionescu was noticeably tired at a few points in the game, and I got the impression that Graves felt like he had to rest her, even though the team did struggle without her. She still finished with 31 points (11-16 FG and 6-9 FG3), 9 rebounds, 7 assists. Boley was great, especially early on, and Hebard was her usual steady self, but it was a subpar performance from Sabally imho. Oregon will need more from both Sabally and Moore once they get to the Elite 8 and beyond. But if Oregon can shoot like they did today, good luck to anyone trying to beat them. [B]On to the second game:[/B] Yes, it was ugly, especially in the first half. But that's mainly because UCLA makes its living forcing teams into that type of game with their intense defense and rebounding. They're not gonna win a beauty contest; they just get after you and they make every little thing hard to execute. UCLA has struggled with shooting this season, and that was certainly the case today, and they weren't able to take advantage of their offensive rebounding or Stanford's turnovers. We've grown accustomed to fantastic games by Kiana Williams and Lexie Hull, and they certainly delivered tonight. Lexie is imho the unsung hero of this Stanford team and deserves far more recognition. She had 28 points on 11 of 19 FG (3-7 FG3), 9 rebounds, 5 steals ... but 7 turnovers (mostly in the first half). How many times has Stanford turned the tables in the Pac-12 tournament on a team that had decisively beaten them in the regular season? I remember last year Oregon gave Stanford an epic beat-down in Maples, but then Stanford got revenge in the Pac-12 final (though it should be noted Oregon was by then without Chavez and with Ruthy limited). This is the matchup I certainly wanted to see in the final, and I can't wait. What an achievement it would be for either team -- for Oregon, to avenge last year's Pac-12 finals loss and beat Stanford 3 times in a season, something no one has ever done, or for Stanford to repeat last year's feat and take down the favored Ducks in a championship game. Another piece of history at stake: Oregon is trying to become the first Pac-12 team other than Stanford to win the conference tournament twice. Stanford has won it 13 out of 18 times, but hasn't won 2 in a row since 2012-2013. One last thought: The crowd energy from the Ducks fans was amazing. I give them a 9 (not a 10 because hey, there were still some empty seats). Even in the second semifinal, the audience looked to be about two-thirds yellow and green. Stanford had a respectable contingent as well, and certainly made themselves heard. [/QUOTE]

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