Oregon Daily Emerald
Monday, February 21, 2005
“They’re our big three,
even though Corrie is a little short. ”
Oregon’s Brandi Davis describing the team’s seniors
■ Men's basketball
Ducks fall
once again
after early
lead fades
Turnovers, missed free throws
and fouls plagued the second
half of the game for Oregon
BY JON ROETMAN
SENIOR SPORTS REPORTER
For the first 22 minutes of Saturday’s game
against Arizona State, Oregon played like the
much-hyped group of athletes the public was
informed about in October.
For the game’s final 18 minutes, however, the
Ducks looked like the same inexperienced
bunch that has stumbled its way through the
last month of Pacific-10 Conference play.
After building a 38-25 lead two minutes into
the second half, the Oregon men’s basketball
team was outscored 41-18 and fell to Arizona
State, 66-56, at Wells Fargo Arena in Tempe.
Steve Moore scored 17 of his 22 points in the
second half to spark the Sun Devil comeback,
including a three-pointer with less than 12 min
utes remaining to tie the score at 42.
The teams traded baskets for the next five
minutes as the Ducks (12-11 overall, 4-10 Pac
10) grabbed a 53-50 lead on a Brandon Lincoln
dunk with 7:20 remaining. From that point, the
Sun Devils (18-9, 7-8) closed the game on a
16-3 run, with Moore and Ike Diogu scoring 12
of the 16 points.
Oregon was held scoreless for more than five
minutes down the stretch, with its only field
goal during the game’s final seven minutes
coming on a Malik Hairston putback with 32.6
seconds remaining.
“It was a frustrating loss,” Oregon head
coach Ernie Kent said after the game. “I thought
we had complete control of the game at one
point in the second half.”
Oregon was once again plagued by
turnovers. The Ducks finished with 19 give
aways — compared with only six by the Sun
Devils — and turned the ball over on their first
three possessions of the game.
Aaron Brooks, Bryce Taylor and Hairston
combined for 14 turnovers.
When Oregon wasn’t turning the ball over, it
was hampered by missed free throws. The
Ducks turned in another pathetic performance
from the foul line, connecting on only 6 of 16
freebies. Arizona State, on the other hand, capi
talized on its opportunities, knocking down 17
of 25 foul shots.
Many of the Sun Devils’ trips to the foul line
were a result of poor post defense by the Ducks.
Oregon routinely double-teamed Diogu down
low, and the Duck big men continued to reach
in and slap at the ball, forcing officials to blow
their whistles.
“We let (Arizona State) back into the game
with as poorly as we played in terms of our in
telligence on the defensive end of the floor,”
Kent said. “When we had Ike in double-teams,
(we didn’t execute).”
Kent went on to say he didn’t agree with the
officiating but also said it was not an excuse for
the Ducks’ poor second-half play.
“(The game) was very poorly called, I
thought,” Kent said. “I think they’ll go back and
see that we just got hammered inside, and some
times I thought we were in position and Ike just
kind of bowled us over and there were no calls.
“But you can’t blame (the loss) on officiat
ing. I told the guys that officiating is going to be
MEN, page 10
Erik R. Bishoff | Photographer
Oregon's Eleanor Haring takes a shot during the Ducks’ 69-51 victory against
Arizona on Saturday at McArthur Court. The sophomore struggled from the field
but played solid defense that included two steals.
■ Women's basketball
Ducks take
second in
Pac-10 with
Arizona win
The Ducks remained undefeated
in Pac-10 play at Mac Court
after a 69-51 victory Saturday
BY BRIAN SMITH
SPORTS REPORTER
For the Oregon women’s basketball team,
Saturday’s game against Arizona was more
than just a sending off for a heralded group
of seniors.
The victory meant sole possession of second
place in the Pacific-10 Conference going into the
final weekend of the conference season.
Behind a season-high 11 three-pointers and
solid defense, the Ducks (18-7 overall, 11-5 Pac
10) took a 17-point lead early in the second half
and never looked back, beating the Wildcats
(18-9,10-6) 69-51 at McArthur Court.
The victory capped off a perfect 9-0 record
at home in conference play. For the year,
the Ducks are 12-1 at home; the only loss
coming at the hands of then-No. 10 Ohio State
in December.
Before the game, emotions were high as the
Ducks honored seniors Cathrine Kraayeveld,
Andrea Bills and Corrie Mizusawa in front of an
announced crowd of 4,682. Early in the game,
however, that emotion seemed to hinder Ore
gon, as the Ducks started out cold and fell be
hind 10-3 early in the first half.
Instead of getting flustered, the Ducks relied
on some key scoring by a couple of freshman
—■ Kristen Forristall and Gabrielle Richards —
to weather the early Arizona run and stay
WOMEN, page 12
■ Women's basketball
Davis eligible for one more year
The Ducks' other three seniors, Kraayeveld, Mizusawa aHpHQKI
and Bills, played for the last time at McArthur Court
BY STEPHEN MILLER
SPORTS REPORTER
The table was set for the Ducks on
Saturday: The chance to claim both
second place in the Pacific-10 Confer
ence and an undefeated home record
against Pac-10 teams on Senior Day
were available for the taking.
Three Oregon seniors played at
McArthur Court for the final time in
their careers. They each got plenty of
recognition, and they each went out
with a lot to be proud of.
But what about the fourth senior on
the Ducks’ roster?
Senior guard Brandi Davis remind
ed fans — and has reminded oppo
nents all season as she did in
Oregon’s 69-51 victory over Arizona
— that she’s a dangerous and excit
ing player with another season of
eligibility left.
But she doesn’t want to be the
one to break the bad news to her
Pac-10 opponents.
“I’m not trying to put a certified
stamp on what I’m doing,” said
Davis, who finished Saturday’s game
with a team-high 19 points on 7 of 15
shooting with five three-pointers.
“It’s not a ‘hey, I’m coming back.’ It’s
just I went out there and played. We
all competed, and we came out with
the win.
“This was a big game for the sen
iors, and I was just enjoying it be
cause they were enjoying it.”
Davis, a native of La Habra, Calif.,
has started the last five games for Ore
gon and was the leading scorer in four
of the last seven contests.
“She’s playing a lot more — play
ing very confident,” Arizona head
coach Joan Bonvicini said. “She
misses one (shot), but she doesn’t
have any conscience about putting
up the next one.”
That’s how Davis has played
all season and all through her career.
Even though she lets the ball fly with
more frequency than her teammates,
she has gained a recent shooting
discipline similar to seniors Cathrine
Kraayeveld, Andrea Bills and Corrie
Mizusawa, a trio that has led
the team.
“They’re our big three, even though
Corrie is a little short,” Davis said.
“We’re really proud of all our seniors,
and we were just happy to give them
the biggest present of all, and that’s
going pndefeated at Mac Court in
Erik R. Bishoff | Photographer
Oregon’s Brandi Davis made a 19-point
statement in the Ducks’ 69-51 Senior Day
victory over Arizona. Davis is expected to
return next year tor her last season of eligibility.
Pac-lOplay.”
Before the game, the three outgo
ing seniors were recognized for
their accomplishments and the sta
tistics they’ve recorded in their ca
reers, which have included countless
floor burns.
Kraayeveld notched the 27th
SENIORS, page 10
GAME TIME
Mon. Feb. 21
Tue. Feb. 22
Women's golf
Oregon @ Wildcat
Invitational
Thu. Feb. 24
Women's basketball
Oregon @ Stanford, 7 p.m.
Men's basketball
Oregon vs. California
7:30 p.m.
Fri.Feb. 25-Sat
Feb. 26
Track
Oregon @ Mountain Pacific
Championships
Fri.Feb. 25-Sun.
Feb. 27
Softball
Oregon @ NFCA Leadoff
Classic, Columbus, Ga.
Fri.Feb.25
Women's tennis
Oregon @ Arizona,
1:30 p.m.
Lacrosse
Oregon @ Denver, 2 p.m.
Sat Feb. 26
Women's tennis
Oregon @ Arizona State,
11 a.m.
Lacrosse
Oregon @ Northwestern
in Denver, 11 a.m.
Women’s basketball
Oregon @ California, 2 p.m.
Men’s tennis
Oregon vs. Texas Tech
in Seattle, 3 p.m.
Men’s basketball
Oregon vs. Stanford, 4 p.m.
Sun. Feb. 27
Men’s tennis
Oregon @ Washington,
2 p.m.
Sun. Feb. 27
Mon. Feb. 28
Wrestling
Oregon @
Pac-10 Tournament
in San Luis Obispo, Calif.
GAME
SCORES
Fri. Feb. 18
Men’s tennis
Oregon 5, Minnesota 2
Sat. Feb. 19
Men’s basketball
Arizona State 66, Oregon 56
UO: Hairston 18 pts, 11 reb
ASU: Diogu 23 pts, 9 reb
Women’s basketball
Oregon 69, Arizona 51
UO: Kraayeveld 14 pts,
11 reb, Bills 10 pts, 10 reb
Sun. Feb. 20
Softball
Game 1:
Oregon 2, Portland State 1
UO: Cook CG, 3 hits, 12 Ks
Game 2:
Portland State 6, Oregon 5