Sports Editor:
Adam Jude
adam jude@dailyemerald. com
Assistant Sports Editor:
Jeff Smith
jeffsmith@dailyemerald.com
Friday, March 1,2002
Best Bet
Women’s hoops:
Oregon vs. WSU
6:30 p.m., KEZI
Incredible’ win gives UO Pac-10 title
■ Oregon claims at least a share
of the Pac-10 championship
with a last-second win over USC
By Jeff Smith
Oregon Daily Emerald
He wanted it. He got it. And he delivered.
Senior Freddie Jones hit the biggest shot
of his career Thursday night to give the
Ducks their first conference championship
in 57 years.
Jones’ running, one-handed floater in the
lane with one second left clinched No. 13 Ore
gon’s 67-65 victory at No. 18 USC and at least
a share of the Pacific-10 Conference title.
Jones’ herqics also guaranteed the Ducks
(21-7, 13-4) a No. 1 seed in the March 7-9
Pac-10 Tournament.
“During the timeout I told the team I
wanted to make the play,” Jones told KUGN
radio. “When I got out there on the court, I
looked at coach and he gave me the ‘OK’ to
go and get it.”
The reason Oregon was in the nail-biting
situation to begin with was because of USC
senior David Bluthenthal’s clutch, long
range three-pointer that erased the Ducks’
lead. Bluthenthal, who was just 1-of-ll from
the field and O-for-5 on threes before the
shot, nailed a trey from the top of the key to
even the score at 65 with 31 seconds left.
Then came the series of three timeouts to
set up the game’s final play. Oregon had the
ball with 24.3 ticks left. Luke Jackson in
bounded it to Luke Ridnour who passed it
back to Jackson. Jackson then threw it over
to James Davis, who put it back in the hands
of Ridnour with 10 seconds left.
It was at this time that Jones displayed his
senior leadership.
“Freddie wanted that ball,” Oregon head
coach Ernie Kent said. “He looked at Rjji
and said, ‘Give it to me.’”
Ridnour did just that and the game was in
Jones’ hands with five seconds remaining.
Jones penetrated past Bluthenthal and found
some room in the middle of the lane for a
clean look at the basket.
“It seemed like they just opened a big
wide lane for me to get to the paint, and once
I got in the paint, I just elevated and shot a
little floater that I’ve been working on for I
don’t know how long,” Jones said. “And fi
nally it worked.”
The ball sailed in and the Oregon bench
went wild, but the victory wasn’t official just
yet. USC’s Brandon Granville heaved a 60
foot shot at the buzzer that nearly sent the
Trojans a shocking victory.
“Do you realize Granville’s three almost
went in?” Kent said. “I think I would have
still been lying out there on that floor. Some
body would have had to give me mouth-to
mouth because I would have just been gone. ”
Instead, Granville’s desperation heave
bounced off the front of the rim and the
Ducks all mobbed one an
other as the 11,505 at the
L.A. Sports Arena made
their way to the exits.
There the Ducks were, fi
nally celebrating a close
win on the road. Their last
road trip consisted of two
heartbreaking overtime de
feats in the Bay Area that pushed their
record in games-played away from
McArthur Court to 4-7.
“This win is because of what happened
in the Bay Area,” Kent said. “We knew this
was going to be the game. Incredible. Just
incredible.”
Ridnour led the scoring for the Ducks
with 17, including five three-pointers, and
Jackson contributed 12. Jones wasn’t in his
offensive flow for most of the game, missing
all six three-point attempts, but still man
aged to record a double-double with 15
points and 10 rebounds.
As a team, Oregon shot just 42.3 percent
from the field, committed 21 turnovers and
got outrebounded 44-39. The Trojans ap
peared to be in control of the game when
they took a 53-42 lead on an Errick Craven
three-pointer at the 11:04 mark. But then
USC’s Sam Clancy, who led all scorers with
25, picked up his fourth foul and the mo
mentum changed.
“We know we’re never out of the game,”
Jones said.
Jackson, who was held scoreless for the
first 28 minutes of the game, scored 11
Turn to Men’s, page12A
Adam Amato Emerald
Oregon senior guard Freddie Jones, seen here in a Feb. 2 game against the Trojans, scored the game-winner
in the Ducks’ 67-65 win Thursday night at USC that clinched Oregon’s first Pac-10 championship since 1944-45.
Ducks open Pac-10 with WSU
■The Pac-10 Tournament starts with the Ducks and
Cougars, a rematch from Oregon’s win last week
By Hank Hager
Oregon Daily Emerald
Brittney Hawks stands 6-foot-2, averages 12.9 points per
game, and led the Pacific-10 Conference in double-doubles
with 12.
In other words, the senior center is probably Washington
State’s only chance to complete an upset against the seventh
seeded Ducks tonight at McArthur Court.
“I’m an optimistic person and I think it’s
good that we have tournaments like these,”
Hawks said in reference to the Pac-10 Tour
nament, which begins at 6:30 tonight with
the Ducks and Cougars at McArthur Court.
“I think our team has totally improved in
every game we’ve been playing in.”
The first team in Pac-10 women’s basket
ball history to finish without a win, the
Cougars (2-26 overall) have not fared well against Oregon in
their two games this season. The Ducks dominated at Mac
Court, 76-47, in December, then did it again, 88-47, last week
in Pullman, Wash.
However, Washington State knows that Oregon cannot
overlook them. In a short tournament, any team can win.
“I don’t believe Oregon is looking past us,” Washington
State guard Whitney Martindale said. “I think we’ve earned a
Turn to Women’s, page 12A •
Pac-10
Women’s Hoops
Bayer of the Year:
Nicole Powell, Stanford
Freshman of the Year:
Dee-Dee Wheeler, Arizona
Tara VanDerveer, Stanford
All-Pac-10 Team:
Ebony Hoffman, USC
Ai$haHollans,USG
Amanda Levans, ASM
Guliania Mendiola, UW
Loree Payne, UW
Elizabeth Pickey, Arizona
Nicole Powell, Stanford
Felicia Ragland, OSU
Shaquafa Williams, Oregon
Lindsey Yamasaki, Stanford
All-Freshmen Team:
KitstanOmuW
I Kelley Suminski. Stanford
TNae Thiel, Stanford
Racial Woodward, USC
cDee-Dee Wheeler, Arizona
No. 23 Oregon wrestlers travel to
Corvallis for Pac-10 Tournament
■The Oregon wrestling team has high
hopes of going to the NCAA Tournament
with a strong effort this weekend
By Chris Cabot
Oregon Daily Emerald
The women’s basketball team isn’t the
only Oregon team to be competing in a Pa
cific-10 Conference Tournament this
weekend.
Wrestling’s version of the Pac-10 champi
onships begins Saturday at the Gill Colise
um in Corvallis at 11 a.m.
Oregon head coach Chuck Kearney and
his team, which is 9-7 overall and 5-4 in
the Pac-10 this year, are approaching the
weekend with confidence and hope to
continue on to the NCAA Tournament in
Albany, N.Y.
“We look at the conference tournament as
an extension of the national tournament,”
Kearney said. “If you don’t do well at the
conference, you don’t go to the nationals.
The better you do (in the conference tourna
ment), you are on a positive roll and have an
opportunity to get seeded at nationals’’
The Ducks, who are ranked No. 23 in the
country, won four of their last five dual
meets, including an 18-14 win over Oregon
State on Feb. 13. Other Pac-10 teams that
hold a top-25 slot are the No. 25 Beavers
and the No. 13 Arizona State Sun Devils.
The fifth and final Pac-10 poll appeared
on Feb. 5 with Arizona State holding the
top spot as it did throughout the season.
Oregon State was No. 2 followed by No. 3
Boise State, No. 4 Oregon, No. 5 Cal Poly,
No. 6 UC Davis, No. 7 Stanford, No. 8 Cal
State Bakersfield, No. 9 Portland State and
No. 10 Cal State Fullerton.
The Sun Devils finished the regular sea
son with a 6-0 record against Pac-10 oppo
nents, so they may be difficult to beat.
Oregon was the last team to lose to the
tournament favorite, a 30-11 decision on
Feb. 3. Since then, Arizona State has lost
three meets to No. 5 Iowa State, No. 24
Fresno State (whom Oregon defeated ear
lier this season) and No. 6 Oklahoma.
Kearney is aware of the unpredictability
of tournaments.
Tgoi to Wrestling, page. 10A