Oregon knocks off Vanderbilt in overtime, advances to Round of 32

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Deja Kelly scored 20 points, and No. 10 seed Oregon recovered in overtime after losing a 19-point lead in the second half to beat No. 7 Vanderbilt 77-73 on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Kelly – who had previously played at Duke’s arena three times as a North Carolina Tar Heel – shot 6 for 16 from the floor and added eight rebounds, three steals and three assists for the Ducks (20-11). Nani Falatea added 17 points and Peyton Scott scored 13 in Oregon’s first March Madness victory since 2021.

Mikayla Blakes, the SEC freshman of the year, finished with 26 points for Vanderbilt (22-11). Khamil Pierre chipped in 17 points for the Commodores, while Jordyn Oliver had 10.

Oregon led by 11 points at halftime and then used a 12-4 to open the third quarter to take a 48-29 lead. Vanderbilt clawed back as Oliver had eight points in the fourth quarter as the Commodores outscored the Ducks 24-12 before Leilani Kapinus made her first field goal of the game on a layup in traffic with four seconds remaining to tie the game at 67.

In overtime, Blakes and Pierre were off the floor in the final minute, both having fouled out. Free throws by the Ducks from Kelly, Scott and Amina Muhammad sealed the win.

Takeaways

Oregon: Ducks’ coach Kelly Graves seems to thrive as an underdog in March. He now has 10 wins when Oregon is a double-digit seed in the NCAA Tournament, the most of any active Division I coach.

Vanderbilt: Still searching for their first March Madness win since 2013, the Commodores made just two 3-pointers against Oregon’s stifling defense, tying a season-low.

Up next

Oregon will play the winner of No. 15 Lehigh vs. No. 2 Duke on Sunday.