Katie Fiso looks to take control in sophomore season

With the Oregon women’s basketball season kicking off Oct. 30, highly-touted 2024 high school recruit Katie Fiso is looking to make her return to the court after dealing with family matters last season that took her away from the team. Reflecting on last season’s events, Fiso has said that they have “given her more motivation going into the season.” “It’s helped me create this drive in me,” Fiso said at media day on Oct. 23. “It’s bigger than basketball, and for me, I do it for my dad.” Fiso is one of nine returning Ducks from last season and is a standout player in the eyes of head coach Kelly Graves. With the new challenges facing the Ducks this season, the physical size of the team being the most pressing, Fiso is going to be tasked with stepping up for the team and leading the offense this season. Graves believes that she has the skills to do so. “I think she looks great,” Graves said after practice on Oct. 15. “You see her; she’s the heart and soul out there.” The sophomore’s intuition on the court is a key area of her game as well. “I love how she’s playing in transition,” Graves said. “She’s got a good sense of when to take it herself or when to create for somebody else.” The Oregon point guard is going to have a larger role than in her freshman year, stemming both from what she has shown in the offseason and because the Ducks are a physically smaller team. Graves is going to be sending out three to four guards instead of the two that he ran last year. Through her 25 games last season, Fiso averaged just under 10 minutes a game, scoring 3. 1 points per game and shooting just under 38% from the field. Against Vanderbilt, in the first round of the NCAA tournament last season, she shot 66% from the field, played 19 minutes, scored eight points and had an assist. Looking at this game, and the development of Fiso, the ceiling is high for both her and the Ducks this season. In practice, the guards are learning to work with each other, what strengths each player has, when to get open and where on the court. “I feel like a lot of our guards are doing a good job of drawing and kicking,” Fiso said, also at media day. With a lineup focused on guards, Oregon is playing a lot faster, but it’s not a huge leap for Fiso, who’s embraced the pace of play. “I feel like that’s my style of play, I love being fast paced. I feel like I create a lot better for my teammates in that aspect of the game,” Fiso said after practice on Oct. 15. Fiso, across her first two games, has dropped 10 points, 7. 5 assists and has shot 45% from the field. What isn’t on the stat sheet is her ability to read the court, make quick passes and she has done a great job of setting her teammates up for strong scoring chances.
https://dailyemerald.com/174657/sports/katie-fiso-looks-to-take-control-in-sophomore-season/