NCAAW Preview: No. 8 Oregon hits the road for rivalry matchup against No. 15 Oregon State

The No. 8 Oregon Ducks have started 4-0 this season and have two blowout wins over Pac-12 foes (the Colorado Buffaloes and Utah Utes). The Ducks do not appear to have lost a step despite losing three stars (Sabrina Ionescu, Satou Sabally and Ruthy Hebard) to the WNBA. Meanwhile, their Sunday opponent, the No. 15 Oregon State Beavers, started 3-0 before falling to Utah on Tuesday.

The two Oregon schools are slated to square off at 7 p.m. ET.

The Ducks currently own the nation’s longest winning streak at 23 games. Senior Erin Boley, who has been a critical role player throughout her career, has taken on the lead scoring role for Oregon, averaging 16.8 points. Maryland transfer Taylor Mikesell has started her Oregon career with the same consistency she showed in her first two seasons, averaging 12.3 points thus far.

For the Beavers, senior Aleah Goodman has taken the lead role on offense, scoring 17.8 points per game after averaging just 8.8 in her junior season. Meanwhile, freshman guard Sasha Goforth has scored 11 points or more in each of her first four collegiate games and is averaging 15.5 points. And then there’s sophomore Taylor Jones, who has picked up where she left off at the end of her impressive freshman season, contributing points and rebounds at rates of 13 and eight, respectively.

Tennessee Lady Volunteers vs. No. 23 Texas Longhorns

Before our headline matchup, the Tennessee Lady Volunteers (3-1) go on the road to face the No. 23 Texas Longhorns (4-1) at 5 p.m. ET on ESPN as the Big 12/SEC Challenge wraps up this weekend. Both teams suffered a loss in the challenge as Tennessee fell to West Virginia in overtime on Dec. 6 and Texas lost to No. 12 Texas A&M the same day. The two teams faced each other last year in Knoxville, Tenn., with Texas getting the win.

Rae Burrell is the player to watch for Tennessee. Burrell was a role player in her first two years but has taken a massive step forward, averaging 20.5 points through the Lady Vols’ first four games.

Texas, on the other hand, appears to have found a star in junior center Charli Collier. Collier scored 44 points in a win over the North Texas Mean Green on Nov. 29 and has gone over 20 points in four of Texas’ five games this season.

Here’s what to expect from these matchups and how to watch:

Game Information

Tennessee Lady Volunteers (3-1, 0-0 SEC) vs. No. 23 Texas Longhorns (4-1, 0-0 Big 12)

When: Sunday, Dec. 13, at 5 p.m. ET

Where: Frank Erwin Center in Austin, TX

How to watch/listen: ESPN/Radio: Lady Vol Network or Tennessee’s athletics website or Radio: 105.3 FM (Austin) or Texas’ athletics website

What to watch: Rennia Davis has gotten off to a slow start, scoring just 9.8 points per game after averaging 18 points last season. Graduate transfer Keyen Green will be tasked with guarding Collier of Texas. The Longhorns have a total of four scorers averaging double digits which gives them a lot of options on the offensive end.

No. 8 Oregon Ducks (4-0, 2-0 Pac-12) vs. No. 15 Oregon State Beavers (3-1, 1-1 Pac-12)

When: Sunday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. ET

Where: Gill Coliseum in Corvallis, OR

How to watch/listen: Pac-12 Network/Oregon Sports Network or Oregon’s athletics website or TUNEIN (Oregon) or TUNEIN (Oregon State)

What to watch: The Ducks swept the Beavers last season but the cores of those teams have since departed. That said, the Ducks look every bit the part of a national contender. Nyara Sabally and Taylor Jones make for an intriguing matchup in the post. Sabally has missed the last two years due an injury suffered in 2018 but has started strong with 11.3 points and 7.8 rebounds per game.