Sports Editor:
Hank Hager
hank hager@dailyemerald.com
Tuesday, February 17,2004
-Oregon Daily Emerald
SPORTS
Best bet
NCAA basketball:
Purdue vs. Michigan State
4 p.m., ESPN
Hank Hager
Behind the dish
Rodriguez
deal draws
even more
shock value
So the New York Yankees just acquired
Alex Rodriguez from the Texas Rangers.
Should we all be impressed by this re
cent move? Is an approximate $ 190 mil
lion payroll really something the Yan
kees should be proud of?
Better yet, will this really make a dif
ference in the scheme of things?
My answer is no, no and no. And not
because it's the Yankees, or Rodriguez,
whose contract is more of an albatross
than a benefit. Unless, of course, your
name is Alex Rodriguez.
What most people forget is that New
York lacks a seemingly forgotten postsea
son ingredient.
Pitching.
Mike Mussina and Javier Vazquez an
chor the rotation. From then on, though,
it lacks any kind of bite. Kevin Brown is
an excellent starter, but he's been to the
doctor's office so often it would make
Eric Lindros' head spin.
Mariano Rivera is a quality doser, but the
rest of the bullpen is questionable. And in
the American League East, bullpens can
mean 10 extra wins or losses.
So, unless George Steinbrenner finds
a crown jewel from his farm system, the
Yankees will have to bash their way to
the pennant. Whidi is possible, but not a
safe way to play ball.
There's an underiding principle in all
of this. The move will create a long line
of assumptions that the Yankees are the
team to beat.
xxiiiiiv iwilc uciuic uuiiig au.
Every so often these days we all make
judgments in the world of sport based on
shock value. So the Yankees received Ro
driguez; therefore, they will be the best
The Los Angeles Lakers acquired Gary
Payton and Karl Malone this offseason.
Reactions across the country suggested
they would roll.
Look at them now.
It's a fallacy to assume that a team will
automatically be the team to beat be
cause of one big move. The Florida Mar
lins were a ragtag team of relative no
bodys before the season, yet they beat
the Bronx Bombers in the Fall Classic.
The year before, the Anaheim Angels
came out of nowhere to stun the San Fran
cisco Giants for the World Series crown.
This even stretches to collegiate athlet
ics. Sure, Southern California had a
whole host of big names that carried the
Trojans to a partial national champi
onship. But USC was an all-around
dominant team. The Trojans didn't win
the Rose Bowl solely on the shoulders of
quarterback Matt Leinart.
No, the Trojans won because they out
worked, outhustled and outsmarted
their opponents. Their pieces fit beauti
fully and it showed in the end.
Even college baseball saw the best of
Turn to HAGER, page 8
Steen shows Oregon's depth at point
Kayla Steen received more minutes than
normal Saturday due to an injury to guard
Corrie Mizusawa; Steen played 22
By Mindi Rice
Senior Sports Reporter
Saturday's loss to Washington provided a window
to the soul for Oregon's bench.
When point guard Corrie Mizusawa, who has started
all 24 games for the Ducks,
_ played limited minutes because
a knee in>ury' senior Kayla
B » »i Steen found her opportunity to
BASKETBALL Step in at the point.
Steen, Oregon's returning as
sists leader, played 22 minutes Saturday — 12 more than
her season average — and contributed three points, five
rebounds and three assists.
"Kayla Steen came in and played very well and was
very gritty for us," Oregon head coach Bev Smith
said. "She got some boards for us and really took over
when we needed her in replacement of Corrie."
Mizusawa matched Steen's three assists in her 15
minutes on the court, playing four minutes in the
second half. By the 10-minute mark of the second pe
riod, Mizusawa had her warm-up jersey back on and
had taken a seat toward the far end of the bench.
Despite limited minutes against Washington, the
transfer junior moved up another spot on Oregon's
single-season assists list. With four regular-season
games and the Pacific-10 Conference tournament re
maining, Mizusawa is No. 4 all-time with 157. She
passed associate head coach Allison McNeill's 151 as
sists to move up on the list.
Mizusawa played 27 minutes against Washington
State on Thursday in addition to her 15 on Saturday,
both below her season average of 32.5 per game.
"Corrie has been diagnosed with a small meniscule
tear and a bone bruise (on her left knee)," Smith said
Monday. "We want the bone bruise to have time to heal,
but she'll have to play through the meniscule tear."
The meniscus tear is the same injury that guard
Chelsea Wagner plays on right now. Wagner's left
knee is drained regularly and the sophomore wears a
brace on her knee in games and practices. Smith said
that once Mizusawa's bone bruise heals that the
meniscus tear will be evaluated for a course of reha
bilitation and work, possibly similar to what Wagner
goes through with her knee.
Mizusawa played against both Washington schools
with a brace on her knee after initially suffering the
Turn to POINT, page 10
Senior Kayla
Steen (4)
earned kudos
from head
coach Bev
Smith. She
filled in for
guard Corrie
Mizusawa
Saturday at
the point
against
Washington.
Mizusawa has
an injured
knee.
JErik Bishoff
Photographer
Cardinal move to top after 21st win
No crowd or
amount of
rowdy fans
have been
able to stop
Josh Childress
and Stanford
from earning
21-straight
wins.
Childress had
15 points and
nine rebounds
in Stanford’s
win over Cal.
Erik Bishoff
Photographer
After North Carolina upset then-No. 1 Duke Sunday,
Stanford moved into the nation's top spot on Monday
By Jesse Thomas
Sports Reporter
One had to wonder, at least at some point, when 21-0 still wasn't
good enough.
When is a school that has had its best start
ever, an undefeated record, and hasn't lost a
game since March 22, 2003, still not considered
the best in the nation?
Well, for the past four weeks it was that way as
Stanford (21-0 overall, 12-0 Pac-10) held the No. 2
spot in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, trailing Duke.
Now that Duke has lost to then-No. 21 North Carolina State on Sunday,
21-straight wins are finally enough to vault the Cardinal into the nation's
top spot.
And as Stanford continues its winning ways, head coach Mike Mont
gomery is gradually becoming more accustomed to the fact that his team
will likely keep winning.
"It's the best we've ever done at the school," Montgomery said. "I had to
change my tune with the guys. We're not affaid of winning every game. I
think some of that was starting to creep in, that it would be bad if we won
every game.
"We're not trying to win every game, but it's ludicrous for us to act and
think like we're going to win every game and we're the greatest"
WIEN'S
BASKETBALL
Turn to TOP, page 9