Sports Editor:
Adam Jude
adamjude@dailyemerald.com
Assistant Sports Editor:
Jeff Smith
jeffsmith@dailyemerald.com
Friday, February 1,2002
Best Bet
Winter X Games,
12 p.m., ESPN
Senior duo
leads Ducks
to big victory
■Jones and Christoffersen give
Oregon a one-two punch-out
over UCLA Thursday night
By Peter Hockaday
Oregon Daily Emerald
Thursday night could have been
Senior Night at McArthur Court,
with the way Oregon seniors Freddie
Jones and Chris Christoffersen lit up
the nets and boards.
Jones and Christoffersen com
bined for 40 points and 20 rebounds
in the Ducks’ 91
62 blowout win
over UCLA at Mac
Court. Jones domi
nated on the floor
and Christoffersen
dominated on the
glass, giving the
Ducks a one-two
punch that the
Bruins never answered.
Jones’s high-flying antics have be
come commonplace during Oregon
home games, but he can still amaze
those who have played with him all
these years.
“I’m still amazed by him,” Christof
fersen said. “Even though I’ve played
with him for four years, I’m amazed
how he can get off the floor. ”
Jones had 26 points on 8-for-14
shooting from the floor, and a pair
of dunks that nearly caused Mac
Court to crumble from the noise
they created. The first came late in
the first half, as Jones finished a
scrambling play by driving on un
suspecting UCLA guard Andre Pat
terson and slamming home a one
handed tomahawk.
“When (Jones) scores like that,
we’re really tough to beat,” Oregon
point guard Luke Ridnour said.
Jones’s second big dunk came late
in the second half, when Ridnour
picked the pocket of a UCLA’s Cedric
Bozeman, went on a fast break with
Jones and fed the senior an alley-oop
pass, which Jones obligingly
slammed home.
“He’s explosive in transition,”
Oregon’s Luke Jackson said. “I don’t
Turn to Duo, page 10
The Pit plays its part in UO rout
Adam Amato Emerald
Senior center Chris Christoffersen shoots over UCLA’s Dan Gadzuric in Oregon’s 91-62 win Thursday at
Mac Court. Christoffersen had 14 points and a career-high 15 rebounds.
Oregon: 91
No. 13 UCLA: 62
Next Oregon vs. USC, 3 p.m. Saturday
at Mac Court, Fox Sports Network
■ Five Ducks score in double figures as Oregon
remains in first place by trouncing UCLA
By Jeff Smith
Oregon Daily Emerald
There have been some incredible atmospheres at
McArthur Court since Ernie Kent took over as head coach
in 1997.
But Thursday night, with a sold out crowd of 9,087
sounding like a few thousand more, the Oregon Ducks
thumped No. 13 UCLA, 91-62, in a game that Kent be
lieves jumps right to the top of the list.
“The crowd was the best crowd it’s been all year long, and
maybe the best one in the last five years,” Kent said. “I felt
the intensity in that building from the moment we walked
out there. It was just an unbelievable environment.”
Kent treated those students standing in line early to 200
pizzas as his way of thanking them for their support.
“We want to do that again Saturday,” Kent said.
He wouldn’t mind seeing his team play the same way
Saturday, either.
Oregon (16-5, 8-2) could do no wrong against UCLA and
proved itself worthy of its first-place status. Some began
doubting the Ducks because of their loss at Washington,
which pushed them out of the polls this week.
But Oregon will surely jump right back in after Thurs
day’s resounding victory, which kept the Ducks tied for the
league lead with the Trojans, who come to town Saturday.
The 29-point win was Oregon’s largest ever over the
Bruins and the most since Oregon beat UCLA, 56-30, in
1936. It also delivered the Bruins (14-6, 6-4) their most lop
sided defeat of the season while the Ducks improved to
12-0 at home.
“I thought it’d be a closer game than that,” point guard
Luke Ridnour said.
Once again, one of the keys for the Ducks was balance,
as all five starters scored in double figures. Senior guard
Freddie Jones put on a highlight worthy performance in
front of a national television audience, scoring a game
high 26 points. Sure enough, a few of his spectacular
dunks were featured on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” Thursday
night, including his one-handed facial over Bruin fresh
man Andre Patterson with 4:14 left in the first half that put
Oregon up 41-20.
Senior Chris Christoffersen recorded a career-high 15 re
bounds, along with 14 points, for his second double-dou
ble of the season, and Ridnour scored 14 as well. Luke
Jackson and Robert Johnson each contributed 11.
“Tonight, they were successful arid we weren’t able to
even be competitive,” UCLA head coach Steve Lavin said.
Perhaps even more impressive, though, was the play of
the Oregon defense. On the road at the two Washington
schools, the Ducks gave up a combined 183 points and let
one guy score over 30 points each game.
Turn to Men’s, page 12
Women fall to fifth after loss to Sun Devils
■Arizona State’s Melody Johnson
continues her assault on the Ducks
in the Devils’ 69-58 win in Tempe
By Adam Jude
Oregon Daily Emerald
There’s something about Melody
Johnson that Oregon just can’t contain.
Johnson, Arizona State’s 6-foot-2
senior post, has a knack for knocking
the Ducks, and did so again Thursday,
scoring a game-high 18 points in Ari
zona State’s 69-58 Pacific-10 Confer
ence women’s basketball victory.
Against Oregon, Johnson averages 19
points a game.
“She was a thorn in our side,” Ore
gon head coach Bev Smith told KSCR
radio.-thought we-did-a better job
on her in the second half, but that’s
what’s so good about this ASU team
— you stop one hole and another one
opens up.”
With the win, the Sun Devils (17-6
overall, 8-4 Pac-10) moved out of a
four-way tie for sec
ond place in the
conference. Oregon
(12-9, 7-5) dropped
out of the mix and
into fifth place.
Arizona State
jumped out to a 44
33 lead with about
15 minutes remaining in the second
half, but the Ducks kept it close.
Sophomore forward Cathrine
Kraayeveld led an Oregon charge ear
• ly -in- the second half, hitting the
team’s first-three pointer of the game
with 16:10 to play to bring the Ducks
within seven at 40-33. Two posses
sions later, Kraayeveld grabbed an of
fensive rebound and scored on a pass
from Jamie Craighead to cap off a 7-0
Oregon run, to cut Arizona State’s 11
point lead to 44-40.
One possession later, Kraayeveld
picked up another offensive board,
scored the put back and was fouled on
the play. She converted the free throw
to cap a 12-2 run that brought the
Ducks within one at 46-45.
But not even Kraayeveld could stop
the Devils’ sharp shooting.
Boardman, a Beaverton, Ore., na
tive, quickly responded with a trey
and after an Oregon miss, freshman
, , , . Turn to Women’s, page 12 , ,, .
Wrestlers have long
haul vs. Pac-lOfoes
■The Ducks travel to Boise State and Arizona State
this weekend for key conference matches
By Chris Cabot
Oregon Daily Emerald
The Oregon wrestling team will face an important test
this weekend when they travel to Boise State and then to
Arizona State.
Coming off three weeks of intensive training and two wins
last weekend over Pacific and Central Washington, the Ducks
begin a stretch run when they will face six Pacific-10 Confer
ence opponents and host one nonconference foe (Fresno
State) in the next 20 days.
The Ducks are currently 2-1 in Pac-10 meets. They began
the season with commanding wins over Stanford and UC
Turn to Wrestling, page 10