How to Watch Oregon Ducks Women’s Basketball vs. Air Force, UC Irvine: Preview, TV Channel

How to watch the Oregon Ducks Women’s Basketball team as it takes on Air Force and UC Irvine. Preview for when the Ducks host Air Force on Tuesday, Dec. 17, at 6 p.m. PT, and UC Irvine at Matthew Knight Arena on Thursday, Dec. 19, at 6 p.m. PT. Both games will be streamed on B1G+.

The Oregon women's basketball team celebrates their victory over California Baptist University at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. / Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

EUGENE- The Oregon Ducks return to Matthew Knight Arena on Tuesday, December 17, to face the Air Force Academy at 6 p.m. PT. They will then host UC Irvine in Eugene for another 6 p.m. tip-off on Thursday, December 19. The Ducks, currently 7-3 on the season, are coming off a home loss to No. 6 USC on December 7.

Oregon guard Peyton Scott goes up for a shot as the Oregon Ducks host the Auburn Tigers Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024 at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Ore. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The matchup against Air Force will be one of their final nonconference games before wrapping up nonconference play against UC Irvine. Oregon will then begin its inaugural Big Ten Conference season on Saturday, Dec. 28, with a road game at Illinois, followed by a trip to Northwestern.

How to Watch

The Oregon Ducks (7-3) will take on Air Force (9-1) on Tuesday, Dec. 17 at 6 p.m. PT. The game will be streamed on B1G+.

Oregon will then host UC Irvine (6-3) on Thursday, Dec. 19 at 6 p.m. PT. The game will also be streamed on B1G+.

Oregon’s Deja Kelly, left, goes up for a shot ahead of Baylor’s Yaya Felder in the 4th quarter at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene. / Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Preview

The Ducks are 7-1 this season at home, with their lone loss coming against No. 7 USC on Dec. 7. Oregon fell to the Trojans 66-53, losing its third game of the season and ending its seven-game home winning streak.

Despite the loss, the Ducks saw strong performances from various athletes. UNC transfer Deja Kelly led the Ducks in scoring with 16 points. Oregon guard Peyton Scott contributed another 14 points for the Ducks. Sophomore guard Ari Long scored 10 points while adding a career-high 5 steals coming off the bench.

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Oregon’s Ari Long, right, forces a turnover against USC’s Avery Howell during the second half at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene. / Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Although the Ducks struggled with three-point shooting, hitting just 15 percent from behind the arc, they managed to outscore USC in three of four quarters. The Ducks also had a stellar defensive performance, forcing a top-10 USC program into 22 turnovers, including a season-high 14 steals.

The Ducks will look to bounce back from their recent loss against USC and gain momentum ahead of beginning conference play against Air Force and UC Irvine. However, the road to redemption is not without its challenges.

Air Force enters Tuesday’s game with a 9-1 record, riding a six-game winning streak. The Falcons are led by a trio of guards averaging double figures in scoring: Milahnie Perry (16.9), Madison Smith (15.6), and Kellie O’Hollaren (10.0). Perry and Smith have each led the team in scoring four different times throughout the season, both recording three separate 20-point performances. Jayda McNabb anchors the Falcons on the boards, averaging 8.5 rebounds per game along with 8.0 points per contest.

Air Force's Emily Conroe (13) holds back Tennessee's Emily Saunders (31) and the ball goes out of bounds during the Tennessee and Air Force NCAA women's basketball game on Sunday, December 1, 2019 at Thompson-Boling Arena Kns Lady Vols Air Force / Saul Young/News Sentinel, Knoxville News Sentinel via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Defensively, the Falcons rank among the best in the Mountain West. Smith leads the conference with 2.8 steals per game. As a team, Air Force tops the Mountain West in steals per game (13.8), turnovers forced per game (24.5), and turnover margin (plus-8.5). Nationally, the Falcons rank ninth in steals and 11th in turnovers forced, making their defense a formidable challenge for any opponent, including the Ducks.

Following their matchup with Air Force, Oregon will face UC Irvine on Thursday. The Anteaters are coming off a dominant 60-48 win over Oregon State in Corvallis, where they took control of the game. UC Irvine dominated offensively, leading by as many as 26 points in the fourth quarter. UC Irvine guard Déja Lee and forward Hunter Hernandez led the Anteaters with 11 points each in a scoring effort that saw contributions from 11 different players.

UC Irvine’s defense has been strong, holding seven of its ten opponents to 60 points or fewer this season.

Mar 23, 2024; Spokane, Washington, USA; UC Irvine Anteaters guard Moulayna Johnson Sidi Baba (1) and center Nevaeh Parkinson (32) react against the Gonzaga Bulldogs during the second half McCarthey Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Ducks have proven several times throughout the season that they are ready for any challenge handed to them, upsetting a top-ranked Baylor squad and keeping up with No. 7 USC despite the loss. Although the Ducks have shown that they can rise to challenges, Oregon’s roster looks slightly different this week as the team is dealing with multiple injuries.

Sofia Bell, Salimatou Kourouma, and Sammie Wagner are all anticipated to miss Oregon’s games against Air Force and UC Irvine due to injury.

Graves provided brief updates on the team’s injury front, indicating that Kourouma is close to making her season debut. Wagner, however, will remain sidelined for a few more weeks, while Bell, who suffered an injury during Saturday’s game against USC, could face a longer recovery period with no clear timeline for her return.

Oregon guard Sofia Bell surveys the court against Santa Clara Nov. 18 at Matthew Knight Arena. / Alec Dietz/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

Freshman guard Katie Fiso is also questionable as she is back home in Seattle after the recent passing of her father.

“She’s taking a little bit of time off to be with her family right now, which I think is important, especially around the holidays,” Graves said. “This is a tough time when you’ve lost a parent.”

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