WOMEN S BASKETBALL FEATURE
Selden answers point guard question for Ducks
By ( am Sivesind
Imerald Sports Reporter
A true point nu.ml is some
limn’ the women's li.isketlwll
team .it Oregon lias not liail (or
some time
I reshman Vanessa Selden
has stepped in this year and
provided tile I)uc ks with a le
gilimale point guard And sin1
lias done it w illi sty le
Selden leads the team in
steals with in l._ games She
is se< ond ill assists with .18 lie
hind senior |ai ipue Semenitlk's
Vi Besides starting every game
lor the I tin ks the Ireshman
guard from Ant inch. t al has
averaged tl minutes in non
c niifereiu e games and 111 min
illes a game III I’.M ifn 111 ( on
ferenr e ai lion
"We fell that she yyas one of
the Best point guards we i mild
get i o.n h I Iw in I leiny said
"She w.is evailly what we fell
we needed ill a team and we
were fortunate to gel her
U itli .1 father in the Navy*.
Selden is well traveled Selden
was horn in Storm i o and lived
there lor three years She was
in Japan tor seven years where
she was introduced to Basket
hall She has also lived ill S ir
gima and New Jersey
I leiny i an thank Seidell's
mom for the abilities this high
si liool rer.ord breaker pus
sesses
"In Japan, mv mom made me
play basketball." Selden said
"I didn't want to play basket
ball "
Smart move mom Selden
has a list of accolades from
high si liool that would make
any mom proud
Selden was named hast Hay
I’laver of the Year bv the hast
Hay I’rep Writers AsscMi.ition
her senior year at Anlioc h High
Sc liool Selden broke the t a I i
forma state single season re
i ord for steals yy ith 2fi2 and fill
Ished set ond on the all time
list 11>741 liehiud only the liar
lent ('.hibelrotters' Jai kie W lute
The wonder guard ayeraged
22 points a game her junior
year to lead the Diablo Valley
Villein (ollleiente llersenioi
VC.If Seidell .i\ eraged !') ‘I
points .1 game It I steals ,mil
I t assists She was .in .ill
league pe k e.li ll ul lief lour
ve.irs .it Ant mi h
So win did Selden nut want
In | > 1.1 \ basket ha 11 yy.iy Ii.m k III
the foiirlh grade'
1 limi t know I didn't think
alrout basketball \f\ mum drug
me lii |ii ,ii I ll i Seidell said
"She tinik iiiv h.ind .ind she
imule me nn lii practii e I
dlilll I like it II III 11 like .1 week
Inter
Playing h.iskelh.ill in lapaii
was ,i little diih‘rent for Selden
hei .ruse there were no HlrI
tennis
I played with the gins must
ul m\ lile until I got to Anti
in h ( .lilt he< nu.se tliev didn't
linve n gills team Seidell
said "III l.ip.in they |iist had
guys tennis mi I played with
them 11.lying with the gu\s is
different, mure aggressive
Selden hns two brothers ns
well n younger one that is 10
and nn older brother lh.it is 21
Selden said she played n lot of
hnskethnll w ith her older broth
er w Iiii h added to fret ( ourt e\
pericni e
And where does dnd lit into
nil of this'
"My dnd never snw me play
hnskethnll in high si hool until
mv senior venr " Selden said
"lie retired Inst year (from the
Navy) and lie was with me foi
every game my senior year
lleiny lists Selden's strengths
ns her ability to handle the hall
her ability to pass and quit k
hands on defense lleiny added
that Selden is a very i omplete
player and was impressed rsith
the f.ii t that she did have to lie
converted to a point guard like
so many players are
"I think she's potentially the
liesl point guard we've ever
had here ' lleiny said "She
definitely possesses skills like
we've never had before in a
play ei
Alison Kohertson the former
h.iskelh.ill great for Oregon as
Alison Lang and now assistant
conch played a lug role ill re
( tinting Selden
She is smart as a point
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Hu.ml wIm h we badlv m i d
nl Robertson said |.H(|iiu
ii.iiI been playing point guard
fm us .mil ilid .1 really good
|llll
Robertson ii.ul mostly praise
Im (Iregnn's lirst true point
Hu.ml m Ihree \ears
I lei 11.111 h.inilliiiH - kills are
|Usl ii-in.li k.ililr Robertson
s.ml They an* even more re
m.iik.ilile bee .nisi- she s ,i liesli
in.in
I hat s real I\ llartl lor fresh
man to lie able to have that
inui h i ontrol and smarts t su
alls It takes someone a i oiiple
of years to net up to that level
ami she's already then*
Ret ruitiDH Seidell was a great
move Im Oregon basketball
but attording to Seidell it was
not a haul dot ision to i boose
( hi'Hon as her i ollege
On my recruiting trip I
liked the people the si liool
and unlike other si holds they
stressed more on at udemu s
Seidell said Academies was
the first thing then basketball
whereas other st bools it was
basketball and then si liool
Thai's important to me and im
parents and I thought I d gel a
Hoi id odut at ion
l lie 5 foot 7 point guard,
who has guided Oregon to an
li -t overall record so far this
season misses her family hat k
home in ( aliforma but the Sel
den show must go on
Selden does have her weak
nesses lint as a freshman
weaknesses are expected
lleiny sees her scoring ability
and shooting as a weakness
Selden is shooting a poor .ifm
percent from the field and hfi7
from the free throw line
"Shooting often starts with
your footwork and it means
you've got to go m strong with
the shot. " lleinv said "Some
limes she puts it lip a little
lai kadaisit al and doesn't si ore
I think once she gets set and
goes up strong she could be
t ome a real threat
Semen iuk filled the point
guard role for the I links last
year, but that was not her until
rul position The senior guard
and forward still helps out on
running the Hour while Selden
gets more comfortable at the
i ol lege lev el
"On the floor a lot of times
JS_
Photo b* k.ilr (oust
Freshman Vanessa Selden has given the women's basketball
team it's first true /mint guard in years.
jacquie will still determine a
lot of the things that happen."
Heiny s.iul "Hut in terms of
running the offense Vanessa is
dearly the one that has to get
people under < ontrol She's the
quarterbai k
lor tfie immediate future.
Selden wants to improve her
nw n pla\
"I like competition and I
want to be good I've gut .1
ways In go and I m working to
lie really good. I've got tout
years to improve nnsell " Sel
den said
I arthei down the road Sel
den hopes to make it to the
\( \A finals so she 1 an he on
television She also has a
dream of playing in the Olvm
pics either in 1992 or 199<>
Robertson sees Selden's ca
reer at Oregon as an exciting
one
I hope I’m here in four
years to see her in her senior
year," Robertson said. "She'll
he exciting to watt h She's a
t rovvd pleaser She's a little hit
him \ w ith some ol the things
that she does
And those who w ill he enter
tamed In Selden's plav have
mom to thank
I thank her Selden said
appret ialively ol her mom
She it'll!mils me ol th.it loo
Reynolds
( nntinut'd from P.im1
hounding. 1 lin'd III help (he
In,im <i lot iiinn- As long as I'm
plavmg im slnils and m\
points will i nini' in tin* flow
As his simior visit progri-ssi's.
Kfvnolds is nsdi/.ing that his
I s
i areer .11 the IT n i v«?rs it %
quit kU t tuning tu ,i close
"List year zoomed past, and
this year is halfwas over,’' lit’
said "Hut you have tu go with
the flow Im'i ause life goes on
-T
' ftcpu t-Uxt
&&& Y<xt* - /f •/>
Jt-% *J '<•' t*s,*» t N.** *. f l
As ,i senior, Rey nolds also re
ali/.es that life goes on beyond
college basketball, but remains
uni erlam about bis post-uni
versity plans.
I want to finish school
graduation is the most impor
tant thing Whatever comes al
ter that il basketball drops in,
vs e'll see,' ’ he said
When his college basketball
career comes to .in end. Reyn
olds wants to lie able to remem
ber his years at Oregon proud
ly.
"1 want to look bar k and say
that I gave it all I had." he said
I don't want to hang my head
and wish that I had one more
year.”
Reynolds also hopes that Ids
career will have a lasting im
par t on those who have come
in contact with Duck basketball
in the last two years.
"When I leave. I want them
to say, he was an explosive
player Once he gets in his
flow, it's hard to stop him.'”