Oregon had two choices when Washington State pushed its lead to 16 on Friday night: find a response or let an early November game slip away. The Ducks found one. Now comes a different question: can they bring that same urgency to the road?

The Oregon women open a three-game, three-state trip at Grand Canyon on Monday night in Phoenix. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. Pacific on CBS Sports Network. Oregon is 2-0, but its 64-57 win over Washington State gave coach Kelly Graves more to study than a spotless record would suggest.

The comeback was real. So was the hole.

The Ducks trailed the Cougars by 14 at halftime before outscoring them 42-21 in the second half. Katie Fiso finished with 19 points and seven rebounds. Freshman Brooklynn Haywood supplied 14 points off the bench, nine after halftime. Avary Cain scored all 11 of her points in the second half, and her third 3-pointer gave Oregon the lead for good with a little more than five minutes left.

That is a useful sign for a team learning what it can trust under pressure. Oregon did not need one player to rescue the night. Fiso steadied the offense, Haywood gave it a lift from the bench, and Cain changed the game from outside.

The caution is just as clear. A 16-point deficit is harder to erase away from Matthew Knight Arena. Oregon shot 60 percent from 3 in the second half against Washington State while holding the Cougars to 1-for-14 from deep. Those swings showed what the Ducks can do, but they are a steep formula to rely on every night. A cleaner start in Phoenix would say as much about this team as Friday’s comeback did.

What Grand Canyon brings

The Antelopes opened their season with a 77-55 home win over Jackson State. Sophomore Nyadieng Yiech posted 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Chloe Mann scored 16 and hit three of four 3-point attempts. Oregon’s first road assignment, then, is not simply about carrying over its second-half shooting. The Ducks have to handle Yiech around the glass and keep Mann from finding comfortable looks on the perimeter.

That makes Oregon’s season opener worth remembering, too. In an 87-54 win over Hawai‘i, the Ducks forced 23 turnovers, collected 18 steals and won the rebounding battle 50-35. Ehis Etute pulled down 12 offensive rebounds. If that defensive activity and work on the boards travel, Oregon can control the game without asking for another dramatic rally.

There is some history here. Oregon has won all three previous meetings with Grand Canyon, including an 84-66 victory in Eugene last season. Fiso had 20 points and 10 assists in that game. The Ducks’ last visit to Phoenix was closer: a 64-56 win in the 2023-24 season. Past results do not score Monday’s points, but they show the Antelopes have made Oregon work on their home floor before.

Oregon has opened 2-0 for 12 straight seasons. A win Monday would extend that run to 3-0 for a 12th straight year. The more revealing measure may come before the final buzzer: whether the Ducks can set the terms early, defend without needing a halftime reset and turn Friday’s resilience into a steadier road performance.

Game details: Oregon at Grand Canyon, Monday, Nov. 9, 7 p.m. Pacific, Global Credit Union Arena in Phoenix. TV: CBS Sports Network.

File photo: The Oregon Duck at a 2017 basketball game. Photo by Quintin Soloviev / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0; image resized from the original.

Reporting: University of Oregon game preview and notes.