Confident, capable, healthy Morgan Yaeger lifts Oregon over UCLA
By Ben Dull
LAS VEGAS — Morgan Yaeger’s return to the floor has been far from a certainty, as was her team’s path to Sunday’s Pac-12 Tournament championship game.
The redshirt sophomore guard didn’t blink when the ball found her in Saturday’s semifinal.
“My teammates and coaches—they just believe in me,” Yaeger told High Post Hoops. “They always tell me when I’m open shoot it, and I don’t hesitate.”
She’s been battling the same nagging back injury that kept her out all of last season, but came through when her team needed it most against a battle-tested NCAA Tournament team. Yaeger hit three 3-pointers in 12 minutes off the bench, including one at the buzzer to give the Ducks a four point lead heading into the fourth quarter.
“It got our team going, I think, going into the fourth quarter,” Yaeger said. “It was really exciting.”
Saturday’s game marked the fourth time she’s logged 10-plus minutes since the start of Pac-12 regular season play and the second game of her career with multiple made 3-pointers.
Her progress in re-establishing her place in the team’s rotation has not been linear due to the unpredictable nature of the bulging discs in her back. A flare up earlier this season set her back prior to the start of conference play.
“I was slowly working my way back,” Yaeger said. “But it’s hard because it’s not a ‘Once I’m better, I’m better’ kind of thing. It’s a really day-to-day process of, ‘Okay, it’s not so good today; maybe go a little lighter. It feels good today; go a little bit more.’ I was fully 100 percent back probably the last UCLA game.
“It’s just been a grueling process of trying to get better from that.”
UCLA took that second meeting in the regular season over the Ducks in Eugene as they played without Ruthy Hebard (knee). The Bruins rose to the occasion to challenge them once again Saturday, but Yaeger’s timely contributions stabilized the team in key moments of the game.
She checked in at the 1:35 mark of the first quarter and immediately answered a Japreece Dean 3-pointer with one of her own. She energized the team with the shot to close out the third, then hit her third of the game in response to a score in transition by Dean.
“I think we’re developing a bit of a rivalry with UCLA, especially in this tournament,” Yaeger said. “They’re competitors. They work so hard. Their coach gets them super fired up and they just want to win so bad.
“Each game we play against them our coaches are telling us we have to match their intensity and just compete, and I think we did that today.”
Yaeger hit timely shots Saturday and may have more in store Sunday. More importantly, she has re-established herself in the rotation heading into the NCAA Tournament as freshman guard Taylor Chavez nurses a foot injury.
“We have some confidence in Morgan, and she did it tonight,” Oregon coach Kelly Graves said. “It was really great to see. She didn’t hesitate and she was confident and certainly capable.
“What gets lost is she defends pretty well. She’s good at the other end too. So she’s a dual threat, and we’re going to need her to continue to give us those kind of productive minutes the rest of the season.”
Depth has been a concern for the Ducks all season long. Nyara Sabally was lost before the season began to a knee injury. Even with both Chavez and Yaeger healthy, the Ducks have only had nine bodies, which limits what they are able to do in practice.
“It’s really tough. It’s tough for our team; it’s tough for me,” Yaeger said. “We don’t have a very deep bench so there is a bit of expectation and a bit of pressure on me to get healthy because they need me.
“Injuries—bulging discs—they’re tough. There was a period where one day I’d be feeling absolutely fine. I’d be practicing. I’d be playing. I’d be ready to go. And then the next day for no reason I can barely walk. It’s just a day-to-day process.”
The Ducks are the hunted, no longer seen as a nice story of a program on the rise. They demand the best effort of every opponent. Yaeger and the Ducks know it and are eager to meet that challenge as they gear up for the NCAA Tournament.
“We’re just trying to grow,” Yaeger said. “We’ve got some really amazing players. But I think the great thing about every single player on this team is no matter what they’ve accomplished in the past or what they’re currently doing, we’re always unsatisfied. We always want more.”
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