Sports Editor:
Adam Jude
adamjude@dailyemerald.com
Assistant Sports Editor:
Jeff Smith
jeffsmith@dailyemerald.com
Best Bet
Olympics: Men’s Hockey,
3 p.m., CNBC
Friday, February 22,2002
Christensen
leaving UO
with a smile
■ He may not receive much
playing time, but Christensen’s
role is appreciated on the team
By Jeff Smith
Oregon Daily Emerald
Members of the Pit* Crew began the
chant with 6:20 left and Oregon lead
ing, 98-60.
“Christensen! Christensen!”
It picked up again with the clock
showing 3:46.
“I think it’s funny. I love it. I’m not go
ing to lie,” Oregon senior Kristian
Christensen said. “It gets me kind of
pumped and ready to go. I’m like,
‘Come on coach, when are you going to
put me in?”’
Thursday night, Christensen’s time
came when Ernie Kent motioned for
him at the 2:57 mark to replace Antho
ny Lever.
Christensen played the rest of the
way and scored two points in Oregon’s
115-77 victory over Washington State at
McArthur Court.
In his career, he had scored nine
points heading into the game — all on
threes — and was eager to record his
first two-pointer.
Every time he touched the ball, the
crowd would yell for him to launch it,
but he said he tries not to force it. Then,
with a minute remaining, his opportu
nity came.
“I got the ball up top, and I kept hear
ing all the people telling me to shoot it,
and I was like, ‘Can I get it off?’” Chris
tensen said. “Then, I drought, ‘No way,’
so I threw it to Jay (Anderson). Jay swung
Turn to Christensen, page 12
Freddie Jones hits a three pointer Thursday night, one of a school-record 16 threes nailed by the Oregon men against
Washington State. The Ducks won by a final of 115-77.
Men bury
WSU with
long ball
Oregon 115
Washington State 77
■Oregon scores its most
points ever in a Pac-10 game
to crush Washington State
By Peter Hockaday
Oregon Daily Emerald
On Thursday night, the No. 15 Ore
gon men’s basketball team served up
treys like they were manning the cafete
ria lunch-line.
Of the 12 Ducks who saw court time
in Oregon’s 115-77 blowout win over
Washington State, eight made three
pointers as the Ducks
sank a school-record
16 treys to crush the
Cougars and stay on
top of the Pacific-10
Conference race.
“We were just on
fire out there, it was
great,” said junior
forward Robert Johnson, who, when
asked why he never attempted a three,
said “I thought about it.”
Oregon (19-7 overall, 11-4 Pac-10) got
its 15th consecutive win at McArthur
Court.over Washington State (5-19, 1
15) in front of 9,050 fans. The victory
moved the Ducks one step closer to an
undefeated home season, setting up a
key final home matchup with Washing
ton on Saturday.
Oregon was led by sophomore point
Turn to Men’s, page 9
Oregon’s shooting takes off in road win over Washington State
■The Ducks defeat the Cougars for their
largest margin of victory in 15 years, and
ensure a ninth straight winning season
By Hank Hager
Oregon Daily Emerald
You just can’t get any better than Shaquala Williams.
The junior guard’s 24 points, seven rebounds and four as
sists led the Ducks to a 88-47 win over Washington State in
Pullman on Thursday.
Williams was perfect against the Cougars, shooting 9-of
9 from the field, including four from beyond the three
point arc.
“Both Jamie (Craighead) and Shaquala were into some
good space and didn’t force anything,” Oregon head coach
Bev Smith told KSCR radio after the game. “They allowed
the team to create some shots for them
and at the same time, created shots for
themselves.”
Oregon (15-11 overall) made a state
ment to the NCAA Tournament selection
committee with their 10th conference win
of the season, and sent Washington State
closer to the first winless conference sea
son in Pacific-10 Conference history.
In their 12th victory in the last 14 games against the
Cougars (2-25, 0-17 Pac-10), the Ducks played their best
game of the season.
“We’ve got to get some wins to get a good seeding in the
Pac-10 Tournament,” freshman Kedzie Gunderson said.
On Jan. 22, 1987, Oregon defeated the Cougars 101-55 in
Pullman, the Ducks’ last win of more than 40 points. This
year’s version was not much different.
Turn to Women’s, page 9 ,
Adam Amato Emerald
Freshman Kedzie Gunderson had a career high 12 points against Washington State on Thursday. The freshman from Kirkland, Wash., played 16 minutes
against the Cougars, collecting seven rebounds in the Ducks’ 88-47 win.