Erik Bishoff Photographer Redshirt sophomore Matt Short said senior Jay Anderson (55) is “about the funniest guy you’ll ever run into. STAR continued from page 7 Oregon was Anderson's only colle giate visit after being recruited by schools up and down the West Coast. He said he liked the atmosphere and how the community loves football and basketball so much. "1 just wanted to try something dif ferent," the 6-foot-9 center said. "Try to not do the same thing as everybody else and go to the same small school around Minnesota." Anderson's first years at Oregon were tough: They were the years Anderson didn't play much, if at all. After working hard during the offsea son of his freshman year, Anderson ex f pected to be a starter and play more minutes in his sophomore season. That's when junior transfer Robert r Johnson came into play, and Anderson lost his spot. "That really taught me you can't take anything for granted and (you've) got to keep working," Anderson said. "He (Johnson) did so many things better than me that I realized I needed to keep working on all parts of my game" He did. In his junior season, it made the dif ference Anderson played in all 33 games and averaged 13 minutes per contest He averaged 2.3 points and 1.6 rebounds per game Against then-No. 14 Kansas in the Pape Jam, Anderson had what Oregon head coach Ernie Kent called his "breakout game." That's according to Short and Anderson. Short hasn't let the term die easy. LAZAll FOR MAYOR call: 687-0139 for party info "Whenever Jay has a good game, I'm always like, 'Jay that was a breakout game just to tease him," Short said. "So any time he gets more than four points, I tell him it's a breakout game for him." Anderson, now a senior, doesn't find it as amusing. "He always gives me crap about that," Anderson said. "Matt just won't let it die ever since then, he just beats it into the ground. It's becoming a little annoying, actually." It's nothing more than harmless ban ter between roommates. Short even ad mits, "We just sit around the house a lot of times when we're not playing ball and just insult each other. It's kind of what we do, it's kind of weird, but we get along pretty well." Anderson is having an even stronger impact in his final season with the Ducks. In Oregon's 68-56 win over Cal on Jan. 29, Anderson played 30 min utes, his most ever as a Duck. Anderson had nine points and four rebounds, but that wasn't what pleased him. He held Cal's Amit Tamir to zero field goals on the night, and Tamir earned just two points off free throws. Tamir averages 11.4 points per game. "It seemed like all the other times I've played him, he'd hit threes in my face," Anderson said. "That was really the best part about the game a lot of satisfaction in holding him down." Anderson is averaging 3.8 points and 2.7 rebounds per game, but he brings much more to the court. Short said of Anderson's strengths that he is "the most consistent guy we have." "He's playing with a lot more confi dence this year, and has the opportuni ty to play this year, and he has really re sponded," Kent said. "He is a very integral part of any success we're going to have this year. He's done a tremen dous job for me" Anderson admits it Could have been easy for him to give up and transfer at points in his career when he wasn't play ing. But he said it's not just about basket ball — it's also about the community. "The coolest part about playing here is like when 1 see people around town, and, they know Luke (Jackson) is the star and the scorer and everything, but they come up to me and say how much they enjoy watching me play, and how they enjoy watching somebody play re ally hard and play good defense," An derson said. "It really feels good when people do that." So you may not know who Anderson is. But his teammates know him as an occasional actor who always lightens the mood with his humor, and as a con sistent go-hard-all-the-time player. "Any team could use a guy like Jay, * Short said. Contact the sports reporter at jessethomas@dailyemerald.com. 018148 LAZAR’S BAZAR IS CLOSING DOWN* LAZAR’S BAZAR 57 W. BROADWAY • 687-0139 * pipes, waterpipes dept., snowboards, sticker dept., patch dept., clothing dept. Expires: On primary election day wm. ■lW\Jp t eelht-adhrew • Homemade Soups • Fresh Salads • Fresh Pizza • Hamburgers Fish & Chips • Pastas • Ribs Microbrewed Beer and full bai