The Duke Blue Devils bench reacts to a three-pointer by Ashlon Jackson (3) during the second half against the Oregon Ducks at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils won 59-53. Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

Duke women avoid upset vs. Oregon despite star player's absence

By Clark Dalton | Last updated Mar 23, 2025 3:19 PM ET

The Duke Blue Devils received an unexpected injury update before their matchup against the Oregon Ducks in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday.

Joe L. Hughes II of the Gaston Gazette reported Duke forward Toby Fournier wasn't playing because of an illness. Through her first 33 games this season, the 6-foot-2 freshman led the team in scoring (13.4 PPG). She was also voted 2024-25 ACC Rookie of the Year.

The No. 2-seed Blue Devils clearly missed Fournier in the first half against the No. 10 seed Ducks. At halftime, Oregon led 28-23.

10-seed Oregon is looking to pull off the upset against 2-seed Duke

ESPN pic.twitter.com/khPK4Govql
— espnW (@espnW) March 23, 2025

However, Duke junior guard Ashlon Jackson found her groove in the second half.

She started the third quarter on an individual 8-0 run and would finish the quarter with 14 points. In doing so, she tied for the second-most third-quarter points in a game in program history, via Duke women's basketball stats.

8-0 @Ashlon3Jackson run out of the locker room

31-28 Duke | 7:00 3Q | ESPN pic.twitter.com/qLWwnRbQAa
— Duke Women’s Basketball (@DukeWBB) March 23, 2025

Then, late in the fourth quarter, Jackson delivered again. With the Blue Devils leading the Ducks, 55-51, they kicked it to Jackson in the corner, and she nailed a three-pointer with 1:33 left.

ASHLON JACKSON. NIGHT NIGHT. pic.twitter.com/LXCwvmRcfC
— Duke Women’s Basketball (@DukeWBB) March 23, 2025

Jackson's big shot helped ice a 59-53 win for the Blue Devils. She finished with 20 points on 7-of-17 shooting and four rebounds.

The Blue Devils will face No. 3-seed North Carolina or No. 6-seed West Virginia in the Sweet 16 in Birmingham, Alabama. The Mountaineers and the Tar Heels play on Monday at 7 p.m. ET.

Sunday's win is huge for fifth-year Duke head coach Kara Lawson, who has now guided the Blue Devils to two straight Sweet 16 appearances. It shows she is turning the program into a national-title contender and can still find ways to win big games without her best players.

Clark Dalton

Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.

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