Sports Editor
Peter Hockaday
peterhockaday@dailyemerald.com
Wednesday, December 4,2002
-Oregon Daily Emerald
Sports
Best bet
NCAA Basketball:
Virginia at Michigan State
6 p.m., ESPN
Seattle, San Jose bowls will take place
The NCAA approves finances
for Seattle and Silicon Vfeilley bowls
Football notes
Adam Jude
Senior Sports Reporter
Bowl bound? Yes, you can remove the
question mark. The Ducks will definitely
be bowling soon.
After a brief scare Monday, when the
Seattle Bowl and the Silicon Valley Clas
sic again missed the deadline to submit
to the NCAA the required #1.5 million
letters of credit, the two bowls provided
bank statements Tuesday that guarantee
payouts for participating teams.
“It was just a formality that you have
to go through, and it’s taken a little bit
longer for us,” Seattle Bowl president Jim
Haugh said Tuesday.
Both bowls were granted an extended
deadline by the NCAA after missing the
original date on Nov. 1. Neither bowl has
a title sponsor, but both have guaranteed
that the participating teams will receive
#750,000 each.
“We are 100 percent on schedule to
kick off at 12:30 on Dec. 31,” said Karin
Mast, a spokeswoman for the Silicon
Valley Classic.
So the bowl games will go on, but
where will Oregon go? The Ducks will
have to wait and see what happens with
the Washington State-UCLA game Satur
day and for the final Bowl Championship
Series poll to be released Sunday. USC,
ranked No. 4 in the BCS, is rooting for
UCLA, which could give the rival Trojans
the outright Pacific-10 Conference title
and a trip to the Rose Bowl.
If WSU wins, though, the Cougars go to
the Rose Bowl and USC would hold out
for a trip to the Orange Bowl. In that see
nario, Oregon would likely be eligible for
the Silicon Valley bowl in San Jose.
But the Seattle Bowl — to be played on
Dec. 30 at the new Seahawks Stadium —
is hoping to land the Ducks and their
large Northwest fan base. Haugh said
about 13,000 Oregon alumni reside in
the Seattle area.
“My understanding is that there’s been
some discussion with the San Jose group
to keep the Ducks here in the North
west,” Haugh said. “Oregon’s just ecstatic
about coming here. It’s like staying home
for Christmas. Having a bowl in your
back yard is a dream.”
Haugh said the Seattle Bowl has nar
rowed its choices from the Atlantic Coast
Conference to Virginia (8-5) and Georgia
Tech (7-5), which defeated Stanford in
the inaugural Seattle Bowl last year. The
Ducks have never played either team.
Oregon seems to be the only other pos
sibility for the Seattle Bowl. If the Ducks
go to San Jose, the Seattle group would
have slim pickings on the remaining at
large teams eligible for a bowl game.
But the Silicon Valley Classic also has
great interest in the Ducks.
“Oregon, despite what some would call
a bad season, is doing just fine and has
great fans and we would love to have
them here,” Mast said.
Fresno State (7-5) has already accept
ed a bid to play in the Silicon Valley Bowl
at San Jose Spartan Stadium. The Ducks
(7-5) have already played the Bulldogs
this season — they needed a fourth-quar
ter comeback at Autzen Stadium on
Sept. 7 for the 28-24 win — prompting
Haugh to say that Oregon-Fresno State
“is not a good matchup.”
“The idea is to meet the needs for both
sides,” Haugh said.
Meanwhile, after a week break, the
Turn to Football, page 8
Mark McCambridge Emerald
Keenan Howry and the Ducks are bowl-bound this season, but they don't know yet where they'll go.
U(J has not forgotten Portland
Oregon looks to avenge
last year's shocking loss
in Portland tonight at home
Men’s basketball
Adam Jude
Senior Sports Reporter
The Oregon men’s basketball team is
in a jam — but they’re not quite ready for
the Pape Jam.
The No. 7 Ducks have two choices
when Portland visits McArthur Court at
7 p.m. tonight: Either beat the wings off
the Pilots or give them some cookies and
a “thank you” card.
You see, Oregon has reason to credit
Portland for its Pacific-10 Conference
championship and NCAA Tournament
run that ended in the Elite Eight last sea
son. Yet the Ducks are still sour about a
stunning 79-78 loss in the Rose City on
Dec. 2,2001.
“The good part about it is it gave us a
wake-up call last year,” Oregon head
coach Ernie Kent said. “Losses to Min
nesota, UMass and Portland gave us a
chance to grow through adversity and
show our character.
“The bad part about it is we don’t want
to go through that again.”
In other words, no cookies for Portland.
Ranked No. 6 in the ESPN/USA Today
coaches’ poll and No. 7 in The Associated
Press poll — their highest ranking ever in
that poll — the Ducks (3-0) hope to ex
tend their home winning streak to 20,
the second longest in school history, with
a win over Portland (3-0).
“It really hurt,” Oregon guard Luke
Ridnour, the Pac-10 Player of the Week,
Jeremy Forrest Emerald
Luke Jackson (with ball) scored 28 points in Oregon's 79-78 loss to Portland last season.
said of last year’s loss. “We’re definitely
thinking about it. They took it to us last
year, but we’re going to be ready
for ’em.”
Though it has a rematch of the Elite
Eight loss to Kansas looming Saturday
in the Pape Jam at Portland’s Rose Gar
den — which has sold more than
16,000 tickets and will be televised on
CBS at 12:30 p.m. — Oregon is careful
not to look past Portland.
“It would be crazy to think these
young kids are thinking about Kansas
and national TV, of course they are,”
Kent said. “But at the same time, they
know they have work to do (against
Portland).”
Unfinished work. At the Chiles Center
in Portland last season, Luke Jackson
scored 28 points, then a career high, to
lead the Ducks, while Ridnour chipped in
17 points and seven assists. But guard
James Davis, who was held scoreless in
11 minutes, missed a desperation three
pointer at the buzzer.
“Portland played very hard and very
well, and we didn’t respond to the
Turn to Men's, page 8
Women rebound,
turn over ideas
for losing streak
Rebounds and turnovers have hurt
the Ducks in their three straight losses
Women’s basketball
Jesse Thomas
Sports Reporter
With three straight losses under its belt, the Oregon
women’s basketball team is in unfamiliar territory. The
Ducks haven’t seen a 1-3 record in more than 15 years.
And the answers are just a quick glance away, on the
statistic sheet.
Turnovers and rebounding margin have impaired the
Ducks in their three losses. In the three matchups, Oregon
has turned the ball over 69 times. The Ducks have lost in
that category, as Boston College, South Carolina and Wis
consin-Green Bay gave up the ball just 49 times.
“We played really hard in those games; we just did some
things that we usually don’t do, like turnovers,” junior for
ward Cathrine Kraayeveld said. “We just don’t turn over the
ball that much, but we just didn’t play well as a team.”
Kraayeveld has been the top rebounder in each Oregon
game, yet it hasn’t been enough as her team has been beaten
consistently on the boards.
Oregon’s last few opponents have been able to dominate
in rebounding and it has hindered the Ducks’ performance,
especially in second-ehanee shots.
Oregon has averaged less than 10 offensive rebounds in
its past three games and has averaged less than 30 re
bounds per game total. Boston College and South Carolina
accounted for 40 rebounds apiece, beating Oregon by a 29
combined boards.
“It’s important for me to make sure that I go for the re
bound every time, because that is going to initiate others
to go hard too,” Kraayeveld said, who has averaged more
Turn to Women's, page 6