SPORTS
Saturday, March 25, 2017
East Oregonian
Page 3B
NCAA Women’s Basketball
Three freshman starters help Oregon to Sweet 16
By ANNE M. PETERSON
Associated Press
Sweet 16
Back before the start of Pac-12
conference play, Oregon freshman
Ruthy Hebard made the bold
prediction that the Ducks would
surprise the league.
Turns out, they’ve surprised the
nation.
Oregon, the only team in the
NCAA Tournament with three
freshmen in its starting lineup, is
in the Sweet 16 field for the first
time in program history. The Ducks
join a record five Pac-12 schools to
advance to the round.
Tenth-seeded Oregon (22-13)
heads to Connecticut for the
Bridgeport Regional where the
team will face third-seeded Mary-
land (32-2) on Saturday.
Oregon advanced with a
dramatic 74-65 upset of second-
seeded Duke in the second round.
Hebard led the Ducks — making
their first appearance in the tourna-
ment since 2005 — with 20 points
and 15 rebounds.
Hebard, who is from Fairbanks,
Alaska, was part of a recruiting class
that was ranked among the best in
the nation. She currently leads the
Ducks with an average of 14.9
points and 8.7 rebounds overall.
In two tournament games,
she is averaging 21.5 points and
11 rebounds, and shooting 58.1
percent from the field.
Earlier this season, Oregon
popped into the rankings for the first
time since 2003. But the Ducks were
challenged in the tough Pac-12,
#10 Oregon
#3 Maryland
Ducks
Terrapins
(22-13)
(32-2)
• Today, 8:36 a.m. (ESPN)
• at Bridgeport, Connecticut
which had a record seven teams
make the NCAA Tournament field
this season. Oregon also struggled
for a time with injuries to freshman
Sabrina Ionescu and sophomore
point guard Maite Cazorla.
But Hebard was undeterred back
in December. She said she thought
the Ducks were underrated.
“Like coach Kelly (Graves)
always says, it doesn’t matter what
the rankings are,” she said, “we just
have to keep doing us.”
Following the victory over
Duke, Hebard noted that now it
doesn’t matter what the seeds are.
“Seeds don’t really mean
anything. We are all going to come
out and play our hardest and hope-
fully we will keep winning,” she said.
Hebard is joined in the starting
lineup by Ionescu, who was consid-
ered one of the top prospects in
the nation when she committed to
Oregon by simply showing up on
campus and surprising Graves and
his staff.
Named the Pac-12’s Freshman
of the Year, Ionescu made a splash
with four triple-doubles. She leads
the nation in the category and is just
two shy of the NCAA record.
MLB
Overall, she’s averaging 14.4
points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.5 assists
for the Ducks.
Ionescu made six free throws
in the final 24.5 seconds to help
put away Duke. She finished with
13 points, eight rebounds and six
assists. In the second half she was
headed into a timeout huddle when
she was knocked to the ground by
Duke forward Kendall Cooper, but
officials didn’t see it as intentional.
Back in Eugene for two days
following the game for final exams,
Ionescu posted video of the knock on
Twitter joking: “Finals hit me like ...”
With all their tests taken, the
Ducks headed to Bridgeport on
Thursday.
Coach Graves, in his third
season with the Ducks, said the
team never set goals for the season
because the coaches simply didn’t
know what they had with all the
new faces. In addition to Hebard
and Ionescu, freshman Mallory
McGwire starts for the Ducks.
McGwire, a 6-foot-5 forward
from Reno, Nevada, is averaging
7.5 points and 4.2 rebounds this
season.
Together, the freshmen have
accounted for 63 percent of
Oregon’s points in the tournament .
“We’ve kind of attacked the
entire season as just a work in
progress, let’s get better today than
we were yesterday and continue to
improve. I think with a young team
you have to do that,” Graves said.
“That’s all that they can really focus
on and that’s what we’ve done. We
continue to get better. “
AP Photo/Gerry Broome, File
In this March 18, 2017, file photo, Oregon’s Sabrina Ionescu, right,
jumps into the arms of teammate Ruthy Hebard following Hebard’s
late shot to put Oregon ahead in the second half of a first-round
game against Temple in the NCAA women’s college basketball tour-
nament in Durham, N.C.
NCAA Men’s Basketball
Florida wins with overtime buzzer-beater
Associated Press
AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File
In this March 10, 2017, file photo, Seattle’s Kyle Seager
looks to throw during spring training, in Peoria, Ariz.
Seager no longer just
young gun for M’s
By STEPHEN HAWKINS
Associated Press
PEORIA, Ariz. — Kyle
Seager is starting to feel like
one of the old guys in the
Seattle Mariners clubhouse.
That really has nothing to
do with his age — the third
baseman is only 29. It’s just that
he’s been such a constant with
the Mariners, now going into
his seventh major league season
with the team that drafted him.
“I think from when I got
here, it’s just me and Felix
... the only two that are left
basically” Seager said.
Six-time All-Star right-
hander Felix Hernandez is
the only other player that
was on the roster then — in
2011, Seager’s rookie season
— and now. King Felix and
Seager are also among only
eight players still on the
Mariners’ 40-man roster that
were there when Jerry Dipoto
took over as general manager
only 18 months ago.
Seager hit .278 with 30
home runs and 99 RBIs last
season, all career highs. He has
averaged 158 games over the
past five seasons, and that is
how many he played last year.
“He’s one of the more
underrated
players
in
the league,” second-year
Mariners manager Scott
Servais said. “I’ve come to
appreciate him maybe more
than anybody, just the ability
you can write his name in the
lineup every day and you’re
going to get a great effort.
He’s into the game, he’s a
great teammate, he does
everything the right way.”
After all the changes in team
leadership and the roster, Seager
senses a much different vibe for
the team that has MLB’s longest
current postseason drought. The
Mariners, who finished second
in the AL West last season,
haven’t been to the playoffs
since making it to the 2001 AL
Championship Series.
“We have a good presence
between older guys that have
done it and established them-
selves, and young guys that
are bringing a lot of energy
and upside,” Seager said. “I
think we’re as a whole in a
very good position.”
Seager also has a will-
ingness to be a resource for
the younger players, who
Servais said can learn from
the third baseman’s consis-
tency and how he has fun
playing the game.
“Kyle’s very down to
earth, he’s easy to talk to
him,” Servais said.
And, yes, Seager’s younger
brother is 22-year-old Los
Angeles Dodgers shortstop
Corey Seager, the unanimous
NL Rookie of the Year last
season after hitting .308 with
26 homers.
“He’s earned it,” the older
Seager said. “I couldn’t be
prouder of him.”
A Gold Glove winner in
2014, Seager made defense a
priority after making a career-
high 22 errors last season, the
most by an AL third baseman.
Many of those were on
groundballs to his left, and he
has spent plenty of time this
spring focusing on his foot-
work with Mariners bench
coach Tim Bogar.
“I do feel like I got to balls
that I hadn’t gotten to in the
past, but at the same time I
had errors that I shouldn’t
have had. It was a very strange
season in that regard,” he
said. “Ideally, hopefully this
year I put it all together. ... It
doesn’t get as much glamour
as going and hitting and doing
other stuff, but you look at the
teams that are playing in the
postseason, you’ve got to be
able to catch the ball.”
Seager said he’s not afraid to
make adjustments or be uncom-
fortable when trying to improve
any aspect of his game.
While acknowledging that
it wasn’t a typical season for
Seager on defense, Servais
said there were plenty of
great plays. One that stands
out was a game-saving
diving backhanded stab
with the bases loaded, when
Seager then got up and threw
across the diamond for the
final out in a 4-3 win over the
Los Angeles Angels.
“He’s awesome going to
his right,” Servais said. “I
think he just wants to get more
efficient going the other way.”
NEW YORK — Chris
Chiozza went end to end
and made a 3-pointer at
the buzzer to give Florida
an 84-83 victory against
Wisconsin on Friday night
in the first overtime game
of this NCAA Tournament.
Nigel Hayes had given
the
Badgers
(27-10)
a 2-point lead with 4
seconds left on two free
throws. With no timeouts
left, the Gators inbounded
to Chiozza and the point
guard stopped right the arc
and dropped in the winner
for Florida (27-8).
Wisconsin’s Zak Show-
alter forced overtime with
a leaning 3-pointer off one
leg with 2.1 seconds left in
regulation as the Badgers
wiped out a 12-point
deficit in the last 4:15.
The
fourth-seeded
Gators (27-8) will play
South Carolina on Sunday
in an all-Southeastern
Conference
regional
final at Madison Square
Garden. Florida is in the
Elite Eight for the first time
since 2014, and for the
first time with second-year
coach Mike White — the
man who replaced Billy
Donovan in Gainesville.
SOUTH CAROLINA
70, BAYLOR 50 — At
New York, Sindarius
Thornwell scored 24
points and seventh-seeded
South Carolina cruised
past third-seeded Baylor
70-50 on Friday night in
the East Regional semi-
finals, the Bears’ worst
NCAA Tournament loss.
The
Gamecocks
(25-10) were in control
from the middle of the first
half on, mixing defenses
and hustling all over the
Madison Square Garden
court to advance to the
Elite Eight for the first
time.
South Carolina will
meet the winner of the
Wisconsin-Florida game
on Sunday with a trip to
the Final Four at stake.
DJ Dozier and Chris
Silva had 12 points each
and Duane Notice added
11 for the Gamecocks.
Johnathan Motley had
18 points, 12 in the second
half, for Baylor (27-8),
which just couldn’t get
any offense going. The
Bears missed 11 of their
first 13 shots from the
field and it didn’t get a
whole lot better the entire
game. They finished 17
for 56 from the field (30.4
percent), including 3 for
13 from 3-point range.
KENTUCKY
86,
UCLA 75 — At Memphis,
Tenn., De’Aaron Fox
scored a career-high 39
points as the Kentucky
Wildcats beat UCLA
86-75 Friday night in a
showdown between two
of college basketball’s
goliaths for a spot in the
South Regional final.
The only No. 2 seed to
survive and advance, the
Wildcats (32-5) won their
14th straight game. Now
the NCAA’s winningest
program will play another
of
basketball’s
titans
Sunday in top-seeded
North Carolina with a trip
to yet another Final Four
on the line.
The third-seeded Bruins
(31-5) still have the most
national titles. Yet they
leave their third Sweet 16
under coach Steve Alford
short of the Elite Eight.
Fans lustily booed
Kentucky coach John
Calipari in his first game
in Memphis since leaving
in April 2009 for the Wild-
cats. Calipari’s latest crop
of talented freshmen put
Kentucky into a regional
final for the sixth time in
seven years.
NORTH CAROLINA
92, BUTLER 80 — At
Memphis, Tenn., Joel
Berry II scored 26 points
and Justin Jackson added
24 as top-seeded North
Carolina moved to the
Elite Eight with a 92-80
victory over Butler in the
NCAA South Region on
Friday night.
Luke Maye recorded
his first career double-
double with 16 points and
12 rebounds, helping fuel
a quick start for Carolina
(30-7). The Tar Heels
never let their lead get
under double digits in the
second half.
Andrew Chrabascz led
the fourth-seeded Bulldogs
(25-9) with 21 points and
seven rebounds, while
Kelan Martin finished with
16 points for Butler, which
struggled shooting early
and did not recover.
Carolina,
which
reached the Elite Eight for
the 27th time, will face the
winner of Friday’s second
game between UCLA and
Kentucky. The Tar Heels
connected on 54.4 percent
of their shots, while Butler
was at 43.5 percent.
ELITE 8: Teams use nearly identical tactics
Continued from 3B
(31-5) roared into the
Midwest Regional final
with an average margin of
victory of 30 points, dusting
aside Big Ten champion
Purdue on Thursday night.
They played at such a high
level in the second half that
Boilermakers coach Matt
Painter, always willing to
give credit where it’s due,
stopped just short of calling
the Jayhawks invincible.
Frank Mason III has
become the front-runner
for national player of the
year. Devonte Graham has
poured in 3-pointers at a
record-setting rate. And
star freshman Josh Jackson
has brushed off his many
off-the-court issues to send
his NBA draft stock soaring.
Oh, and the Jayhawks
get to play No. 3 seed
Oregon at Sprint Center, the
glass-enclosed downtown
arena that happens to sit
about 40 minutes from their
campus in Lawrence.
“We know we have a
tough game ahead of us,”
Oregon guard Tyler Dorsey
said Friday. “They’re going to
have a homecourt advantage.
We just have to be ready, keep
taking it game by game.”
The Ducks (32-5) have
done a sublime job of that
so far.
Whereas Kansas has run
roughshod through the first
AP Photo/Orlin Wagner
AP Photo/Charlie Riedel
Kansas coach Bill Self applauds his team
during the first half of a regional semifi-
nal against Purdue in the NCAA men’s
college basketball tournament, Thurs-
day, March 23, 2017, in Kansas City, Mo.
Oregon coach Dana Altman shouts to his
team during the second half of a regional
semifinal against Michigan in the NCAA
men’s college basketball tournament, Thurs-
day, March 23, 2017, in Kansas City, Mo.
three rounds, the Ducks
cruised past Iona before
running into trouble. It took
a heart-stopping final few
minutes to put away Rhode
Island last weekend, and a
missed 3-pointer by Mich-
igan at the buzzer to survive
Thursday night.
But now, they sit on the
precipice of their first Final
Four since winning the 1939
title, and Altman sits one
game away from reaching
the first national semifinal
of his career.
“Dana and I have known
each other a long time,”
Self said. “We know that
(Saturday) is going to be a
highly competitive game.
We’ve been fortunate we’ve
played consistently well,
but it’s going to take another
effort like that to advance.”
As the Jayhawks and
Ducks prepare to meet, and
Self and Altman match wits
with more at stake than ever
before, here are some of the
key story lines:
MIRROR
IMAGES:
Kansas and Oregon both
prefer to play at a quick
tempo, utilizing three or four
guards without a true center,
and have an abundance of
experience. The Ducks even
have a stretch four-man in
Dillon Brooks, just like the
Jayhawks have in Jackson,
and it’s possible the two stars
will be going at each other
one-on-one much of the night.
BEEN
THERE
BEFORE: Kansas lost to
Villanova in the Elite Eight
a year ago, while Oregon
fell in the same round to
Oklahoma. Both teams
have used those losses as
motivation. “It was tough,
trying to get over that
game,” Graham said, “but
we’re back here again and
excited to be here.”
TOUGH SCOUT: The
48 hours between semifinals
and finals means a condensed
scouting period, and that
could be to Oregon’s benefit.
The Ducks play a variety
of defenses, sometimes
switching between zones and
man-to-man every trip down
floor. “We can’t let that affect
us,” Mason said. “It can kind
of confuse us sometimes, but
Coach always says, ‘Let the
mismatches come naturally.’”
THE SERIES: The
Jayhawks are 4-3 against
the Ducks and, more impor-
tantly, beat them in their only
NCAA Tournament meeting.
That was in the 2002
regional finals in Madison,
Wisconsin. Kansas went on
to lose to eventual champion
Maryland at the Final Four
in Atlanta.