DENVER - University of Denver senior forward Kaetlyn Murdoch (Temple, Texas) moved into sixth on DU's all-time scoring list with 21 points to lead the Pioneers in an 89-65 win over Oregon at Magness Arena on Sunday. The win improved the Pioneers to 7-3 on the season and drops the Ducks to 7-2.

"I am really, really proud of this team," said head coach Erik Johnson. "We took lessons from the Colorado game, came in here and played well on offense, on defense and we rebounded. We did a great job right from the get-go."

 

 

 

Sophomore guard Quincey Noonan (Broomfield, Colo.) added 16 points, freshman guard Morgan Van Riper-Rose (Eden Prairie, Minn.) had a career-high 15 points and redshirt-junior guard Morgan Shell (Marble Falls, Texas) added 13 points as Denver recorded its highest point total of the season. Murdoch finished the night shooting 88.9 percent from the field on 8-of-9 shooting, while also finishing with five rebounds, two assists and three steals.

Junior guard Emiko Smith (Los Angeles, Calif.) had nine of Denver 24 assists as the Pioneers held Oregon to a season-low 65 points. Sophomore forward Maiya Michel (Loma Linda, Calif.) led the Crimson and Gold with eight rebounds.

Denver took the lead early in the first half and continued to build on it, separating from Oregon in part due to Murdoch's 16 first-half points that included back-to-back buckets around the 15 minute mark to give Denver an 11-6 lead. Van Riper-Rose added back-to-back three pointers midway through the half that sparked a 34-11 run for the Crimson and Gold to finish the half.

Denver led by as many as 29 with 1:51 to play, shooting 58.1 percent (18-of-31) in the first half. The Pioneers held Oregon to just 20 percent (6-of-30) shooting from the floor as Denver had a 48-21 advantage at intermission.

The Pioneers maintained their handle during the second half, never allowing Oregon to get back into contention. Van Riper-Rose drained two threes early in the half, adding to the three she had prior to halftime and Denver led by as many as 32 with 12:09 to play. Van Riper-Rose finished the night shooting a perfect 5-of-5 from long distance.

Noonan got in on the action as well with two second-half three-pointers of her own as Denver shot 15-of-29 (51.7 percent) in the half, including 5-of-8 (62.5 percent) from beyond the three-point arc. The Pioneer defense continued to smother Oregon in the second half, holding the Ducks to 44.4 percent (16-of-36) shooting from the field.

The Pioneers finished the contest 33-of-60 (55.0 percent) from the floor and 15-of-23 (65.2 percent) from the free-throw line. Oregon shot 33.3 percent (22-of-66) from the field and 94.4 percent (17-of-18) from the charity stripe. Denver was 8-of-17 (47.1 percent) on its three-point attempts compared to the Ducks' 4-of-16 (25.0 percent).

Denver's 48 first-half points were the most points it has scored in one half all season. Oregon's 21 points prior to intermission were its fewest in one half thus far.

Nia Jackson led Oregon with 13 points. Deanna Weaver and Danielle Love added seven rebounds each for the Ducks.

Denver hosts the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Wednesday at 7 p.m. MT. Fans can follow the action via Pioneer Vision, CoverItLive and Live Stats, both available through DenverPioneers.com.

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