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Sports Editor Hank Hager hankhager@dailyemerald.com Oregon Daily Emerald SPORTS Best bet NHL: St. Louis at Detroit 4:30 p.m., ESPN2 Wednesday, October 29, 2003 Maxwell, Moore questionable for Husky game Adam Amato Photo Editor Marcus Maxwell (83) dislocated his shoulder in the third quarter Saturday against the Cardinal The Ducks will most likely have to play against Washington without two key injured players By Hank Hager Sports Editor The Ducks have been without key players all season, but two injuries suf fered Saturday in Oregon's 35-0 win over Stanford will test the team's mettle against Washington. Senior cornerback FOOTBALL dislocated shoulder Steven Moore went down after a punt return in the first half with a sprained ankle. Junior wide receiver Marcus Maxwell suffered a the third quarter. Both are listed as questionable for Ore gon's game at 1 lusky Stadium in Seattle. "It's day-to-day," secondary coach John Neal said of Moore's status. "It doesn't look good." Moore was able to gain four yards on one punt return before the injury forced him out of the game. Maxwell caught six passes for 43 yards from quarterbacks Kellen Clemens and Jason Fife before leaving the contest. Maxwell said he hurt the shoulder when the Ducks ran a screen play, lie was switching the ball to his other hand when a Stanford defender stripped the ball from him. Maxwell reached for the ball and became entangled with a Cardi nal defender, dislocating his shoulder. "I knew immediately (it was hurt)," he said. "1 couldn't move my arm. I knew it was something. I thought I could shake it off. 1 thought it was just some type of impingement or something." The transfer from Diablo Valley Col lege in IMeasant Hill, Calif., said he was disappointed that he probably won't be able to step on the field against the Huskies. Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti said sophomore Demetrius Williams is also a little banged up and bruised. Junior Kellen Taylor played against Stanford with a cast on his hand, but did not catch a pass. "Obviously, Kyle Weatherspoon and Jordan Carey need to be the guys (to step up)," Bellotti said. "Kellen Taylor is still playing with a cast on his hand, although 1 think he can be effective given that. But certainly it puts more pressure on the two true freshmen." Moore's loss may put the Ducks at an even bigger hole. Washington wide receiv er Reggie Williams is one of the best in the Pacific-10 Conference and the Huskies complement him with Charles Frederick. Frederick may not play Saturday, al though The News Tribune in Tacoma, Wash., reported Tuesday that his hurt shoulder and ribs may be playable after all. Neal said the Ducks won't alter much of their defensive plan due to the loss of Moore. "You don't ever want to lose your most experienced corner and say things are OK," he said. "It's tough, but I think we'll overcome it." Cal change Oregon's game against California on Nov. 8 at Autzen Stadium has been changed to a 7 p.m. start. The game was originally scheduled to start at 12:30 p.m., but TBS Superstation announced Monday it has decided to air the game nationally. It will be one of five games this season that the Ducks will play at night. Oregon opened the season with a night contest at Mississippi State, then played road night games against Arizona on Sept. 13 and Utah on Oct. 3. Saturday's game with Washington will start at 7 p.m. It will be the first night game at Autzen since the Ducks defeated Arizona State, 42 24, on Nov. 3, 2001. Turn to FOOTBALL, page 6 Oregon improving despite past losses The Oregon volleyball team still has hopes of winning its first Pac-10 match of the season after losing its first 11 of the 2003 season By Jon Roetman Sports Reporter !UP ILP i\ VOLLEYBALL If last week's matches against No. 1 USC and No. 9 UCLA were a midterm for the Oregon volleyball team, the Ducks would've re ceived a passing grade. Oregon won its first Pacific-10 Conference game of the year and hammered out a season high 85 digs in a 3-1 loss to UCLA on Thursday. The Ducks also set a season high with 12.5 blocks the following night in a 3-0 loss to USC. Oregon head coach Carl Ferreira said the Ducks (3-17 overall, 0-11 Pac-10) have im proved, but still have plenty of work to do. "The USC, UCLA weekend were our two best Pac-10 matches of the year," Ferreira said. "It's not coincidental that we have our sea son high in digs of 85 in one match and our season high in blocks with 12.5 in the other match. '"That says you're still progressing, you're getting better and your system is getting better. * Other areas the Ducks have improved on are their on-court chem istry and passing game The latter area was upgraded enough to grab the attention of USC head coach Mick Haley. "Their passing game has improved immensely," Haley said after Friday7s match. "They move the ball around well." Sophomore middle blocker Kelly Russell said the Ducks' chem Turn to VOLLEYBALL, page 6 Davis, Jackson lead at scrimmage Oregon's first scrimmage allowed the veterans to shine, but the Ducks must improve their ball control By Jesse Thomas Sports Reporter Amid the increased speed of play and extensive turnovers, one thing is for sure: It is the beginning, a 40 rpinute snap BASKETBALL shot of what the season may or may not hold for the Oregon men's basketball team, which had its first team scrimmage Monday after noon at McArthur Court. Oregon head coach Ernie Kent mixed up the teams and tried vari ous combinations during the four 10-minute periods, and he liked what he saw. "We did some good things and we did some bad things," Kent said. "I like the speed of this team. I like the versatility of this team. 1 like the way we passed the ball and how well we played together." Oregon played with the speed and offensive flow of a team that didn't lose its leading scorer from a year ago — Luke Ridnour — to the NBA. Un officially, senior guard James Davis led all scorers with 18 points. Senior Luke Jackson was just behind with 17 points and nine rebounds. Jackson knocked in three baskets from beyond the three-point line. "1 feel really comfortable shoot ing the ball beyond the arc," the 2004 All-American candidate said. "That's something 1 worked really hard on all this summer. I feel great about my shot and I'm going to take it when I'm open." Jackson's newfound leadership was evident during the scrimmage. He called plays, brought the ball up the floor and kept his team in check during the scrimmage. "I'm definitely enjoying the role that I'm in right now," Jackson said. "I'm just trying to lead as much as I can. And trying to be an encourage ment to everybody and the younger guys in teaching them what they need to know." There is still much to learn before the team takes the court. I he coaches and players were displeased with the number of turnovers on Monday. Un officially, the ball was turned over more than 30 times. "We can walk the ball up and Turn to BASKETBALL, page 6 Adam Amato Photo Editor Senior Luke Jackson finished with 17 points in Oregon’s first scrimmage Monday.
