Page 2B
SPORTS
East Oregonian
Wednesday, November 1, 2017
Men’s College Basketball
Ducks in transition this season with 4 starters gone
By ANNE M. PETERSON
Associated Press
Oregon guard Payton
Pritchard is just a sophomore
but for now he’s charged
with leading the Ducks
following the departure of
four starters.
Oregon is in transition
with few returnees from
last season’s Final Four
team, joined by a handful of
freshmen and two graduate
transfers.
“We are expecting more
from him in the ways of lead-
ership, especially through
November and December,
until we get a lot of guys on
the page with what we’re
doing,” coach Dana Altman
said about Pritchard . “I
think he’s going to have a
big role, a tremendous role
of trying to get everybody
on the same page.”
The Ducks set a school
record for wins last season,
finishing 33-6 and making
just the second national
semifinal appearance in
school history. It was the
team’s fifth straight trip to
the NCAA Tournament.
Oregon beat Iona, Rhode
Island and No. 23 Michigan
to reach the Elite Eight —
where the team pulled off a
thrilling 74-60 victory over
the Jayhawks.
That sent the Ducks
through to their first Final
Four since 1939, when the
Tall Firs won the first-ever
NCAA Tournament with
AP Photo/Chris Pietsch, file
In this Feb. 18, 2017, file photo, Oregon head coach Dana Altman, center, talks to
players Payton Pritchard, left, and Evan Gross, right, during a game in Eugene.
a final victory over Ohio
State. The team was bumped
from their bid for a spot in
the national championship
game by eventual champion
North Carolina.
Oregon also won a share
of the Pac-12 regular-season
title and went undefeated at
home for the second straight
season.
Pritchard averaged 7.4
points per game last season,
along with 3.4 rebounds and
3.6 assists.
“I think eventually they’ll
blend together and be a
pretty good team,” Altman
said. “But they’re going
to have to work awfully
hard and give up some of
the things they think are
important, to do some of the
things that are important for
the team.”
KEY DEPARTURES:
Dillon Brooks, who aver-
aged just over 16 points
last season for the Ducks,
was a second-round pick
by the Memphis Grizzlies.
Jordan Bell also went in
the second round and was
traded to the Golden State
Warriors. Tyler Dorsey
went to the Atlanta Hawks
in the second round. Chris
Boucher went undrafted but
signed a two-way contract
with Golden State.
“None of them were
projected out of high school
to develop like that. But they
all worked awfully hard.
Because of that, I think they
should all feel really good
about where they’re at right
now. Because it’s taken us to
90 wins in three years like
they did, an Elite Eight and
a Final Four. It was a great
group of guys,” Altman said.
ADDITIONS:
The
Ducks added graduate trans-
fers in Elijah Brown, a guard
who averaged 18.9 points
last season at New Mexico,
and forward MiKyle McIn-
tosh, who averaged 12.5
points and 5.6 rebounds
last year at Illinois State.
There’s also forward Paul
White, who transferred from
Georgetown and redshirted
last year. Freshmen include
forwards Troy Brown Jr.,
Kenny Wooten and Abu
Kigab, and guards Victor
Baily Jr., and late addition
Will Johnson. Elijah Brown
is the son of Golden State
Warriors assistant coach
Mike Brown.
K80 BOUND: The Ducks
are among 16 teams that will
play in the PK80 tournament
over Thanksgiving weekend.
The tournament honors Nike
co-founder Phil Knight in
advance of his 80th birthday.
The field includes five teams
that were in the final AP
Top 25 from last season,
including NCAA champion
North Carolina. The Ducks,
whose home court Matthew
Knight Arena is named after
Phil Knight’s late son, opens
with UConn on Thanks-
giving Day.
TROY BROWN: The
versatile 6-foot-7 freshman
out of Las Vegas was a five-
star recruit, and considered
among the top 20 players
in the country by the major
recruiting sites. He chose
the Ducks over Kansas,
Alabama, Georgetown and
Ohio State. He was among
the players on the 2016 USA
Basketball men’s under-17
world championship team.
OUTLOOK: With the
considerable turnover on
the roster, the Ducks were
picked to finish fourth in
the Pac-12 in the preseason
media poll. Altman said
Arizona is the team to beat.
He also offered something
of a scouting report for the
rest of the league at the
conference basketball media
day in San Francisco.
“Arizona, USC, both
returned a lot of players.
UCLA has a great blend of
returning players and new
guys. Stanford, with all the
players they have returning.
And Oregon State, they’ve
got four really good scorers
and guys that started for
them last year, maybe they’ll
be coming off the bench this
year. So to think they could
be a surprise team,” Altman
said.
“Colorado and Utah are
always competitive. And
Arizona State, their guards,
a dangerous team,” he
added. “And we have three
teams that are major transi-
tion with Washington, Cal,
and Washington State with
personnel that they lost. So
those three teams are kind of
mystery teams.”
Gonzaga coming off greatest Kent says Washington State on
pace to be where it needs to be
season in program history
SPOKANE, Wash. —
Gonzaga is coming off the
greatest basketball season
in its history but apparently
that doesn’t impress the
other West Coast Confer-
ence coaches.
The Bulldogs, who lost
many key players from a
team that advanced to the
NCAA title game, were
picked this year to finish
second in the WCC, behind
archrival Saint Mary’s.
It’s the first time in 17
seasons that the Bulldogs
were not picked to win the
league.
“It doesn’t sit well, but
Saint Mary’s is a great
team,” said forward Johna-
than Williams, one of two
returning starters. “They’ve
been building their program
just like the Bulldogs have.
We just have to go out there
and just prove ourselves
again.”
Gonzaga broke through
all kinds of psycholog-
ical barriers last season
when the Bulldogs (37-2)
advanced to the title game,
where they lost 71-65 to
North Carolina. They had
never before gotten beyond
the Elite Eight.
But the Bulldogs lost
Przemek Karnowski and
Jordan Mathews to gradua-
tion, and Zach Collins and
Nigel Williams-Goss early
to professional dreams.
Josh Perkins and
Williams are the
returning starters,
and veterans Silas
Melson and Killian
Tillie saw plenty of
minutes last year.
Everyone else is basically
a question mark as the team
seeks a 20th consecutive
NCAA Tournament appear-
ance.
Coach Mark Few has
made a specialty the past 20
years of reloading the Zags.
This year is not likely to be
different.
Jacob Larsen, Zach
Norvell Jr. and Jack Beach
are coming off redshirt
seasons. Alex Martin is a
community college transfer,
and Rui Hachimura and
Jeremy Jones showed some
flashes in limited minutes
last year.
Also on the roster are
freshmen Joel Ayayi, Corey
Kispert and Jesse Wade.
Kispert might provide
immediate help.
Brandon Clarke, who
averaged 17 points per
game for San Jose State
last year, must sit out this
season to satisfy NCAA
transfer requirements.
The Zags this season did
not land a graduate transfer
impact player, as they have
done in recent seasons.
“It’ll
be
different
looking,” said Few, who
has the highest winning
percentage of any active
coach.
“It’s probably going to
be more face-up
and drive, and in
some
instances
(more)
perime-
ter-oriented,” Few
said. “We always
kind of play to our
strengths.”
Other things to know
about Gonzaga for the
upcoming season:
LEAGUE
PLAY:
Gonzaga has owned the
WCC for the past two
decades, winning 20 confer-
ence championships since
1994. But Saint Mary’s and
BYU have provided solid
challenges. Last year, BYU
beat the Zags in Spokane,
handing them their only
regular-season loss.
THE
SCHEDULE:
Gonzaga has a solid
non-conference slate again.
They play some of the
nation’s top programs in the
PK80 Invitational at Moda
Center and Memorial Coli-
seum in Portland, Oregon.
They also play at Villanova,
San Diego State and at
home against Utah State
and Creighton.
FEW LOSSES: Few
has an overall record of
503-113 in 18 years as head
coach.
ANOTHER STREAK:
Gonzaga has won at least
25 games for 10 straight
seasons.
ONE MORE STAT: In
the past decade, Gonzaga’s
.777 winning percentage on
the road or on neutral courts
is tops in the nation.
Local slate
Prep Scores
PREP FOOTBALL
Friday
No. 15 Stanfield at No. 2 Monroe (2A first
round), 6 p.m.
No. 14 La Salle Prep at No. 3 Hermiston
(5A first round), 7 p.m.
No. 13 Pendleton at No. 4 Churchill (5A
first round), 7 p.m.
No. 11 Echo at No. 6 Falls City (1A first
round), 7 p.m.
Saturday
No. 9 Neah-Kah-Nie at No. 8 Heppner (2A
first round), 1 p.m.
No. 13 Arlington at No. 4 Crane (1A first
round), 1 p.m.
OSAA PLAYOFFS
Tuesday
Girls Soccer
3A/2A/1A First Round
No. 10 Cascade Christian 3, No. 7 River-
side 2, OT
No. 5 St. Mary’s Medford 4, No. 12
Western Mennonite 0
No. 8 Blanchet Catholic 1, No. 9 River-
dale, 0
No. 11 Lakeview 2, No. 6 Santiam Christ. 1
4A First Round
No. 1 North Marion 3, No. 16 Henley 2
No. 2 North Valley 5, No. 15 Stayton 0
No. 3 Scappoose 3, No. 14 Baker 0
No. 4 La Grande 1, No. 13 Yamhill-Carlton 0
No. 5 Molalla 1, No. 12 Cascade 0
No. 9 Hidden Valley 4, No. 8 North Bend 2
No. 10 Valley Catholic 4, No. 7 Junction City 0
No. 11 Philomath 2, No. 6 Gladstone 1
5A First Round
No. 1 North Eugene 6, No. 16 La Salle 0
No. 2 Summit 3, No. 15 Lebanon 0
No. 3 Crescent Valley 4, No. 14 St.
Helens 1
No. 4 Sandy 4, No. 13 Silverton 0
No. 5 Bend 3, No. 12 Churchill 0
No. 6 Ridgeview 2, No. 11 Marist Cath. 1
No. 7 Corvallis 5, No. 10 Ashland 1
6A Second Round
No. 1 Jesuit 1, No. 16 South Medford 0
No. 2 Sunset 1, No. 18 Sheldon 0
No. 3 South Eugene 3, No. 14 Oregon
City 2, OT
No. 4 Cleveland 2, No. 20 Forest Grove 1
No. 10 Grant 1, No. 26 Lake Oswego 0, OT
No. 11 Glencoe 2, No. 6 West Salem 0
No. 25 Tualatin 4, No. 9 Sherwood 2
10 innings
Game 6: L.A. Dodgers 3, Houston 1
Game 7, Wednesday: Houston at L.A.
Dodgers, 5:20 p.m.
By NICHOLAS K.
GERANIOS
Associated Press
By NICHOLAS K.
GERANIOS
Associated Press
Washington State coach
Ernie Kent is in familiar
territory as he prepares to
open his fourth season with
the Cougars.
The team was picked
for the third straight year to
finish last in the Pac-12.
That’s not all that
surprising, considering the
Cougars lost five of the six
leading scorers from a team
that finished 13-18 overall
and ninth in the league at
6-12.
Kent isn’t buying the
prediction.
“I had three guys last year
that redshirted that would’ve
made all the difference in the
world with our program last
year,” Kent said. “But we
kept them on that bench and
I’m glad we did because it’s
going to give us even more
depth on this team.”
Kent was referring to
guard
Milan Acquaah,
forward Arinze Chidom and
guard Jamar Ergas, who
become eligible this year.
The only returning starter
is point guard Malachi Flynn,
who averaged 9.7 points and
dished out 91 assists last
season, starting all 31 games
as a freshman.
Other key returnees
include Robert Franks,
Viont’e Daniels, Jeff Pollard
and KJ Langston, who all
played between 21 and 31
games last year.
Franks was the
most productive of
the four, averaging
6.3 points and 3.3
rebounds per game.
He dismissed the
preseason prediction.
“I don’t really listen to the
media when it comes to stuff
like that,” the junior forward
said.
Franks called the predic-
tion “just another chip that
can be on our shoulder. But at
the end of the day we’ve got
to lace up our shoes the same
way everybody else in the
Pac-12 laces up their shoes
night in, night out.”
The Cougars lost four
starters — Josh Hawkinson,
Ike Iroegbu, Charles Callison
and Conor Clifford — who
combined to score 44.2
points per game.
The loss of Iroegbu makes
Flynn the floor leader, Kent
said.
“All of that totally falls on
to Malachi,” Kent said.
But he noted that Acquaah
is expected to help Flynn.
The Cougars will also
look for help from transfer
students Kwinton Hinson
and Davante Cooper, both
from Tyler Junior College
in Texas. Drick Bernstine, a
transfer from North Dakota,
is battling an injury but
should be ready for the
conference season, Kent said.
“With the pieces we have
in place, it’s difficult for
everybody to understand
where we’re at,” Kent said of
the last-place prediction.
He pointed to
his past building
programs at Saint
Mary’s and Oregon.
“We’re on pace to
where we need to be,
and it’s time to make a push,”
Kent said.
Things to watch as Wash-
ington State prepares to begin
its season:
GOODBYE TO THE
HAWK: Josh Hawkinson
graduated after posting the
most double-doubles in
program history. As a senior,
he averaged 15.5 points and
10.2 rebounds per game.
THE SCHEDULE: Kent
assembled a non-conference
schedule that should help
his team. They open against
Texas Southern, Seattle and
Idaho State before heading
to The Wooden Legacy in
California. Other non-confer-
ence opponents include UC
Davis, IUPUI, and Bethune-
Cookman. They host Kansas
State in Spokane.
PLAYING IN MARCH:
Washington State hasn’t
played in a postseason tour-
nament other than the Pac-12
tournament since the CBI in
2012. The Cougars haven’t
made the NCAA Tournament
since 2008.
THE HOT SEAT: Kent
was hired at WSU by former
athletic director Bill Moos,
who surprised everyone by
departing for Nebraska in
mid-October. With a 35-58
record in three seasons, his
seat might be feeling a bit
hotter these days.
SCOREBOARD
PREP VOLLEYBALL
Friday
No. 9 Heppner vs. No. 1 Culver (2A first
round at Ridgeview High School), 8 a.m.
PREP BOYS SOCCER
Wednesday
No. 14 Hermiston at No. 3 Hillsboro (5A
first round), 5 p.m.
No. 16 Creswell at No. 1 Riverside
(3A/2A/1A first round), 5 p.m.
No. 14 Mazama at No. 3 Mac-Hi (4A first
round), 7 p.m.
PREP CROSS COUNTRY
Friday
Heppner at 3A/2A/1A State Championships
(Lane Community College), 10:35 a.m.
Mac-Hi at 4A State Championships (Lane
Community College), 11:15 a.m.
Hermiston at 5A State Championships
(Lane Community College), 1:15 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Wednesday
Walla Walla at BMCC, 6 p.m.
Friday
BMCC at Spokane, 6 p.m.
Baseball
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Saturday
Montana Tech. at College of Idaho, 12 p.m.
All Games Televised by Fox
Houston 3, L.A. Dodgers 3
Game 1: L.A. Dodgers 3, Houston 1
Game 2: Houston 7, L.A. Dodgers 6, 11
innings
Game 3: Houston 5, L.A. Dodgers 3
Game 4: L.A. Dodgers 6, Houston 2
Game 5: Houston 13, L.A. Dodgers 12,
COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY
Saturday
EOU, Cascade Conference Champion-
ships (Lane Farms)
MLB POSTSEASON
WORLD SERIES
(Best-of-7; x-if necessary)
Football
NFL
Week 9
Thursday’s Game
Buffalo at N.Y. Jets, 5:25 p.m.
Sunday’s Games
Tampa Bay at New Orleans, 10 a.m.
Baltimore at Tennessee, 10 a.m.
L.A. Rams at N.Y. Giants, 10 a.m.
Cincinnati at Jacksonville, 10 a.m.
Indianapolis at Houston, 10 a.m.
Atlanta at Carolina, 10 a.m.
Denver at Philadelphia, 10 a.m.
Arizona at San Francisco, 1:05 p.m.
Washington at Seattle, 1:05 p.m.
Kansas City at Dallas, 1:25 p.m.
Oakland at Miami, 5:30 p.m.
Monday’s Game
Detroit at Green Bay, 5:30 p.m.
NCAA
College Football Playoff Rankings
Released Oct. 31
1. Georgia (8-0)
2. Alabama (8-0)
3. Notre Dame (7-1)
4. Clemson (7-1)
5. Oklahoma (7-1)
6. Ohio State (7-1)
7. Penn State (7-1)
8. TCU (7-1)
9. Wisconsin (8-0)
10. Miami (7-0)
11. Oklahoma St. (7-1)
12. Washington (7-1)
13. Virginia Tech (7-1)
14. Auburn (6-2)
15. Iowa State (6-2)
16. Mississippi State (6-2)
17. USC (7-2)
18. UCF (7-0)
19. LSU (6-2)
20. NC State (6-2)
21. Stanford (6-2)
22. Arizona (6-2)
23. Memphis (7-1)
24. Michigan State (6-2)
25. Washington State (7-2)
AP Top 25 Schedule
Friday
No. 22 Memphis at Tulsa, 5 p.m. (ESPN2)
Saturday
No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 19 LSU, 5 p.m.
(CBS)
No. 2 Georgia vs. South Carolina, 12:30
p.m. (CBS)
No. 3 Ohio State at Iowa, 12:30 p.m.
(ESPN)
No. 4 Wisconsin at Indiana, 9 a.m. (ABC)
No. 5 Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest, 12:30
p.m. (NBC)
No. 6 Clemson at No. 20 NC State, 12:30
p.m. (ABC)
No. 7 Penn State at No. 24 Michigan
State, 9 a.m. (FOX)
No. 8 Oklahoma at No. 11 Oklahoma
State, 1 p.m. (FS1)
No. 9 Miami vs. No. 13 Virginia Tech, 5
p.m. (ABC)
No. 10 TCU vs. Texas, 4:15 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 12 Washington vs. Oregon, 7 p.m.
(FS1)
No. 14 Iowa State at West Virginia, 12:30
p.m. (ESPN2)
No. 15 UCF at SMU, 4:15 p.m. (ESPN2)
No. 16 Auburn at Texas A&M, 9 a.m.
(ESPN)
No. 17 USC vs. No. 23 Arizona, 7:45 p.m.
(ESPN)
No. 18 Stanford at No. 25 Washington
State, 12:30 p.m. (FOX)
No. 21 Mississippi State vs. UMass, 9 a.m.
Pac-12 Schedule
Friday
UCLA at Utah, 6:30 p.m. (FS1)
Saturday
Stanford at Washington State, 12:30
p.m. (FOX)
Oregon State at Cal, 2 p.m. (PAC12)
Colorado at Arizona State, 6 p.m. (PAC12)
Oregon at Washington, 7 p.m. (FS1)
Arizona at USC, 7:45 p.m. (ESPN)
Soccer
MLS Playoffs
Conference Semifinals
First leg
Eastern Conference
Oct. 30: Toronto 2, New York 1
Oct. 31: Columbus 4, New York City FC 1
Western Conference
Oct. 29: Vancouver 0, Seattle 0, tie
Oct. 30: Portland 0, Houston 0, tie
Second leg
Eastern Conference
Sunday, Nov. 5: New York at Toronto,
Noon
Sunday, Nov. 5: Columbus at New York
City FC, 2 p.m.
Western Conference
Thursday, Nov. 2: Vancouver at Seattle,
7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 5: Houston at Portland,
4:30 p.m.
Hockey
NHL
Tuesday’s Games
N.Y. Rangers 6, Vegas 4
Detroit 5, Arizona 3
Winnipeg 2, Minnesota 1
Wednesday’s Games
Philadelphia at Chicago, 5 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Edmonton, 5:30 p.m.
Toronto at Anaheim, 7 p.m.
New Jersey at Vancouver, 7 p.m.
Nashville at San Jose, 7:30 p.m.
Basketball
NBA
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
W
L
Boston
5
2
Toronto
4
2
New York
3
3
Philadelphia
3
4
Brooklyn
3
5
Southeast Division
W
L
Orlando
5
2
Washington
4
2
Charlotte
4
3
Miami
2
4
Atlanta
1
6
Central Division
W
L
Detroit
5
3
Milwaukee
4
3
Indiana
4
3
Cleveland
3
4
Chicago
1
4
Pct GB
.714 —
.667
½
.500 1½
.429
2
.375 2½
Pct GB
.714 —
.667
½
.571
1
.333 2½
.143
4
Pct GB
.625 —
.571
1
.571
1
.429
2
.200
3
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Southwest Division
W
L Pct GB
Memphis
5
2 .714 —
Houston
5
3 .625 ½
San Antonio
4
3 .571
1
New Orleans
3
4 .429
2
Dallas
1
7 .125 4½
Northwest Division
W
L Pct GB
Minnesota
4
3 .571 —
Utah
4
3 .571 —
Portland
4
3 .571 —
Oklahoma City
4
3 .571 —
Denver
3
4 .429
1
Pacific Division
W
L Pct GB
L.A. Clippers
4
2 .667 —
Golden State
5
3 .625 —
Phoenix
3
4 .429 1½
L.A. Lakers
3
4 .429 1½
Sacramento
1
6 .143 3½
———
Tuesday’s Games
Indiana 101, Sacramento 83
Phoenix 122, Brooklyn 114
Oklahoma City 110, Milwaukee 91
L.A. Lakers 113, Detroit 93
Wednesday’s Games
Atlanta at Philadelphia, 4 p.m.
Indiana at Cleveland, 4 p.m.
Milwaukee at Charlotte, 4 p.m.
Phoenix at Washington, 4 p.m.
Chicago at Miami, 4:30 p.m.
Sacramento at Boston, 4:30 p.m.
Houston at New York, 5 p.m.
Minnesota at New Orleans, 5 p.m.
Orlando at Memphis, 5 p.m.
Portland at Utah, 6 p.m.
Toronto at Denver, 6 p.m.
Dallas at L.A. Clippers, 7:30 p.m.
Auto Racing
NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series
Playoff Points Standings
Through Oct. 29
1. Martin Truex Jr., 4117; 2. Kyle Busch,
4100; 3. Brad Keselowski, 4079; 4. Kevin
Harvick, 4035; 5. Jimmie Johnson, 4050; 6.
Ryan Blaney, 4047; 7. Denny Hamlin, 4045;
8. Chase Elliott, 4027.
Upcoming Schedule
Sunday — AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor
Speedway, 11 a.m. (TV: NBCSN)