The twelve days of UO basketball
Although you returned
to school this week
with Bing Crosby and
holiday carols still
stuck in your head, let me offer
you a rendition of “The Twelve
Days of Christmas” that accu
rately reflects the holiday season
of an Oregon women’s basket
ball player.
On the last day of Christmas
my coaches gave to me twelve
turbulent plane flights, eleven
packs of pretzels, ten sets of
sprints, nine days of snow, eight
scrapes and scratches, seven rag
ing referees, six days of travel,
five golden games, four days at
home, three TV appearances, two
Christmas parties, and one Pacif
ic-10 victory!
After returning from icy-cold
conditions in Spokane, Washing
ton; Anchorage, Alaska; and
Ames, Iowa, our team seems to
be in tune with the Pac-10 season
that is heating up before us. Our
preseason schedule is an essen
tial part of our preparation for
conference play. While on the
road we leant more about the
game of basketball, but also more
about each other.
The musicians on our team,
Cindie Edamura, Renae Fegent,
Kirsten McKnight and Shannon
Thome, who make up the band
“Celery,” entertain us in airports
with their guitars. Games of
hacky-sack and frisbee enjoyed
by myself, Mendy Benson, Ari
anne Boyer and Nicole Strange
encourage us to spontaneously
meet other travelers as our game
toys accidentally fall into their
Player’s
NOTEBOOK
laps, bonja
Curtis is the
queen of
crosswords
and Jenny
Mowe al
ways has a
glamour
magazine in
hand.
Constant
interaction
24 hours a
day devel
ops team
dynamics
that coin
cide with
our ability
to cooperate and understand
each other on the court. That is
not to say there are not moments
of frustration when your plane is
delayed, or your luggage doesn’t
arrive, or you discover that your
roommate snores. Nevertheless,
these trials teach us about what
defines us as individuals, and are
part of a maturation process that
silently takes shape over the col
lege years and extends far be
yond the walls of McArthur
Court.
But inside those same walls,
we now face our biggest and most
immediate challenge. We must
draw upon what we have learned
in the off-season and in practice
since Nov. 1 to establish our
selves as one of the teams to beat
in the Pac-10 title race.
Our team has been one of the
hunters in the past, a team that
would pull off surprising upsets
with a confidence that promised
future success. That time is now
upon us, and we are one of the
teams being hunted.
Our role has changed and so
have our hopes, dreams and ex
pectations. We are surrounded
by a field of talented teams that
have their own sets of aspira
tions. Each week we study game
films, learn the opponents’ plays
and condition ourselves in
preparation to play each week
end. There is no team in the con
ference that can be overlooked in
the pursuit of our goal.
As we enter winter term with a
2-0 record in the Pac-10, we are
also bombarded with a schedule
of four unfamiliar classes five
days a week and six days of bas
ketball practice and games. This
time around it may not be a
Christmas carol, but it’s sure the
experience of a lifetime.
Betty Ann Boeving is a member
of the Oregon women's basket
ball team. This article is
an exclusive to the Emerald.
Women: Oregon excited for weekend
match-up against Washington Huskies
■ Continued from Page 11
team (9-2, 2-0) more than it needed to win.
For the second straight game the Ducks used a bal
anced offense combined with a strong defensive ef
fort to cruise to victory. Oregon had 11 players see 10
or more minutes of action while the team tied a sea
son-high rebounding mark with 50. Forward Arianne
Boyer scored 16 points, center Renae Fegent had 15,
and forward Sonja Curtis added 13.
“We have some kids that are very dissimilar to
each other playing at different positions,” said Ore
gon head coach Jody Runge, “so it’s really interesting
to put a lot of different looks out there on the floor
and to be to look for different things with those line
ups. The most positive thing is that our legs are fresh
and that we’re probably shooting better because
we’re not having to rest on defense.”
Being able to have “fresh” players on the court at
all times enabled Oregon to execute its game plan.
“Part of our plan was to run the floor and try to get
some fastbreak baskets because they didn’t have a lot
of depth — especially inside,” said Oregon head
coach Jody Runge.
Oregon attacked the inside early, using Boyer, Fe
gent, Curtis and center Jenny Mowe down at the
posts, feeding them the ball on nearly every offensive
possession. With nine minutes gone by in the first
half, the Ducks held a 19-10 advantage and began a
21-8 scoring run before the first half came to a close.
In the second half, the Ducks added to their 18
point lead by stretching the Cougars’ defense with
outside shooting. After attempting only four three
point shots in the first half, Oregon hit 3-of-ll triples
in the second. Oregon finished 4-of-15 on the night.
Next up for the Ducks is Washington, a rivalry
game that should live up to the billing.
“It’s always such a great game,” Fegent said.
“We’re two very good teams and that alone will make
it a rival game.”
The Huskies and Ducks will play on Saturday at
Mac Court. Game time is set for 12:30 p.m. with live
television coverage on the Fox Sports Network.
Rebounds: Washington State’s Kunze held
to only one rebound in 24 minutes of play
■ Continued from Page 11
Against the Cougars, Oregon
got its share of second shots. Of
the Ducks’ 50 rebounds, 20 came
on the offensive end where Ben
son and Boyer combined for nine
offensive rebounds.
Oregon’s dominance of the
glass drove Washington State to
tie its season-low of just 30-team
rebounds. And Washington State
center Yvonne Kunze, who was
averaging six rebounds per game
before Thursday night, finished
with only one rebound against
Oregon; however, Kunze did get
herself into foul trouble, which
limited her to 24 minutes.
The Cougars’ loss to Oregon
moves them to 0-6 on the season
when having less rebounds than
their opponent.
“They were pretty strong on the
inside and we were getting
pushed out,” Cougars’ guard Jade
Hyett said. “We boxed out, but we
let them push us underneath the
basket.”
Oregon center Renae Fegent,
who finished with five rebounds,
was one of the Ducks doing the
pushing.
“That’s something 1 personally
have been trying to concentrate
on,” Fegent said of her rebound
ing. “It is something that we need
to improve, especially [against]
the team tonight.
“They had a couple of big play
ers, and we knew we had to get
some offensive boards and make
them work hard.”
Runge said the key to the
Ducks’ rebounding was keeping
Washington State’s centers out of
the key.
“As long as you can catch those
girls out of the lane and keep
them out of there, you’re OK,”
Runge said. “It is real hard when
you let them get in the lane to
push [Kunze] and [center Amy
Saneholtz] away from the basket
because those are some big gals.”
Saneholtz and forwards Jen
nifer Ludwicki and Doreen Evans
each finished with three re
bounds, tying them for second on
the team.
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Fine Italian <&
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Kitchen open ‘til bar closes
Lunch Served M-F11:30-2:00
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OREGON WOMEN'S
BASKETBALL
BI MART HALF-TIME
$ §
s Dash-Jor-Cash $
$ $
OREGON vs. WASHINGTON
Saturday, January 11
McArthur Court • 12:30 pm
2 lucky U of 0 students will have a chance to scramble
around the court and search for as many Bi-Mart
dollars as they can. Bi-Mart offers everything from
electronics to household items and food products.
Sign up at the promotional table before the game.
UO Students admitted free with current l.D. Card.
For more information call 346-5690TTY 346-5418.