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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 29, 1973)
Dhoto by James Link HARTER SHOUTS INSTRUCTIONS, BUT NOTHING WORKED IN 80-60 STINGER Ducks should have left at halftime By PAUL BUKER Of the Emerald CORVALLIS—The sign on the east grandstand summed up Gill Coliseum’s feeling for the man who rode in last year and shot apart Oregon State. DOUG LITTLE UGLY DUCKLING If that wasn’t enough motivation, the noisy student section was. This was it: the long-awaited meeting between Dick Harter’s Kamikaze Kids, 10 5 and the surprise of the Pac-8, and those rangy Beavers, 10-5 and mindful of two embarrasmg losses a season ago. Never mind the fact that OSU was bigger, more experienced, and supposed to be just a little better. The Ducks would dive for loose balls, crash the boards like a swarm of bees, and show the 9,063 at Gill just what freshmen can do. For one thing, they get awfully frustrated. Oregon was never in the game after the first 12 minutes and the horrendous 80-60 loss was a stinger. Whether it will turn the Ducks’ season around, just when it appeared Harter would get out of conference play alive with one of the youngest teams in the nation is another matter. “If you think you’re going to lull us into thinking Oregon State is the whole world,” Harter quietly said underneath Gill Coliseum Saturday afternoon, “you won’t.” “We came out here to win the Pac-8 and eventually take an NCAA title, not just beat them.” Don’t blame a 20-point disaster entirely on the frosh. Although Bruce Coldren was held scoreless, Ron Lee lost his cod and fouled out, and Mark Barwig wasn’t himself, things like that happen. Who would have figured the Beavers to lead by 18 at the half, 49-31, and shoot almost 60 per cent for the game? “To make it very simple,” admitted Harter, “they played very well, and we played poorly. They shot well—and when they didn’t, they dominated in other areas.” Areas like defense. Oregon was hard pressed to shoot 40 per cent. And Harter’s Kamikaze defense never left the runway. Ralph Miller went with a surprise back court combination of usual starter Charley Neal and part-timer Cliff Jones. Jones, a JC transfer, is the man who went out of his head at the Far West Classic and almost pulled the Beavers past Minnesota. Since then he’s acquired the reputation of being one of the conference’s most dangerous streak shooters. There was no streaking against the Ducks. He made almost everything. In the end Jones shot 10 of 13 from the floor and it was his barrage of 12 paints early in the second half that eventually buried the Ducks for good. The first half of this Hughes Sports Network “Game of the Week” is best forgotten. OSU shot to a 10-5 lead, Harter jumped up to call a quick timeout, and the Ducks went out and broke in front 13-12. Press row began to buzz. It was going to go down to the wire. Cliff Jones didn’t help that theory. He drilled an 18-footer. Big Sam Whitehead followed with a bank shot, Neal Jurgenson converted two free throws, and Ron Jones bombed from outside. 20-13 Beavers and the barometer was falling fast. No one got back on defense in the next few minutes, Neal and Cliff Jones did some ballhawking, and OSU burst in front 30-15 with 7:13 to go. Harter’s next move should have been simple: load the squad back on the busses, go back to Eugene, and watch the “Raindrops” dance at halftime. A rally? No way. Miller’s Beavers were totally controlling the pace of the game. “They played fine defense in the second half,” praised Harter. “That’s the first time a team has dictated the tempo against us like that since Kentucky and UCLA.” Then there was the hot-shooting Jones, whom the Ducks turned into Nate Ar chibald Saturday. “We knew Jones was a great shooter,” pronounced the Duck coach. “It didn’t surprise us.” Figure it to be even less of a surprise if Jones starts again Friday when Oregon and OSU tangle at Memorial Coliseum in Portland. That game doesn’t count in the con ference standings. This one did—the Ducks are 2-3, which is fourth place and 2Vi> games behind UCLA. Harter’s program is just about 2M> years behind John Wooden’s. But he can get the Beavers. “That’s the best we’ve seen this team play defense in two years,” acknowledged Dick. “If they play like that, they’re a heck of a ballclub.” The only wrong thing anybody at Cor vallis did was display that sign about Little. You can’t rattle the Cowboy. After a slow start, he pumped in 25 points and was the only thing keeping the Ducks from- losing by much more. “He played as well as he’s ever played for us in the second half,” said Harter, finally smiling. You can bet nobody was* smiling at practice Sunday night. JVs shade TVCC, fall to OSU’s Rooks By MIKE YORKEY Of the Emerald The JV basketball team met the weekend with mixed success, snapping a five game losing skein in the process, but later meeting the same fate as the varsity in Corvallis on Saturday. On Friday night in Mac Court, the JV's who hadn’t won a game in three weeks, sparkled as a team to defeat Treasure Valley Community College, 57-45. The game was highlighted by some stiff defense and team play, two commodities that have been in scarce V_ supply for the JV’s in recent weeks. Jim Haney’s junior Ducks were able to keep Treasure Valley at bay during the game, in looking their best since they started out the season with four quick successive wins before Christmas. Saturday afternoon in Corvallis was another matter. In losing 83-67 in the preliminary game to the Oregon Oregon State debacle, the JV Rooks pulled away from a slender 38-32 halftime lead to defeat the JV Ducks for the second time in the last week. The JV’s put up a respectable fight to the highly-touted OSU JV’s, now sporting an 11-1 win-loss record. The main contribution of the JV Ducks demise was getting back quickly on defense. The JV men from Corvallis -continually beat the Ducklings down the floor, and when they didn’t, the JV d'^fense was too leaky, a sharp contrast to the night before. The Rooks were led by Steve Bakke, a quick guard who scored 26 points, but more importantly, he was a perfect 10 10 from the free throw line. Tim Hen nessey and Craig Hunter of Oregon State contributed 21 and 19 points, respectively, to further the Rook cause. Coach Jim Haney saw fit to empty the bench and play all who suited for the match, in trying to find the right combination against the JV Rooks. Mike Adams continued to improve on his play of late, and led the team in scoring with 16 points. Bob Catchings and Gary McDonald of Oregon also tallied in double figures, scoring 14 and 10 points, respectively. One major reason the JV’s went down to defeat for the second week in a row was because of the free throw situation. The JV Ducks made three of only eight free throws.
