Coming off its first two-game conference sweep in more than a year, Oregon (13-10, 5-6 Pac-12 Conference) will look to continue its winning ways with a road trip to Washington (12-9, 4-7) this weekend. On Thursday, the Ducks will head to Seattle to take on the Huskies at 7 p.m. The team then travels to Pullman for a matchup with Washington State (10-13, 4-7) on Saturday at 8 p.m. @@http://www.goducks.com/SportSelect.dbml?SPSID=4304&SPID=236&DB_OEM_ID=500&Q_SEASON=2010@@ @@http://www.goducks.com/SportSelect.dbml?SPSID=4304&SPID=236&DB_OEM_ID=500&Q_SEASON=2011@@ @@http://pac-12.org/SPORTS/BasketballW/Standings.aspx@@
Oregon is currently in seventh place in the Pac-12 Conference, one game behind Oregon State, USC and Arizona State. Though the Ducks sit far behind No. 4 Stanford (20-1, 11-0), the conference’s top dog, they’re breathing down the neck of the trio of teams perched in front of them. @@http://www.ncaa.com/rankings/basketball-women/d1@@
“It’s an adventure in this league,” head coach Paul Westhead said. “You can be anywhere, after this weekend, from third to tenth.”
Oregon’s matchup against Washington will mark its second contest against the Huskies this season. In the first game between the two teams, on Dec. 31, Oregon pulled out an 88-86 victory on a late three-pointer by sophomore forward Deanna Weaver. In that game, the Ducks set several season highs, including three-pointers made (13), three-pointers attempted (38), free throw attempts (34) and points against a Pac-12 opponent (88). @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPID=236&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=205354350@@
Despite the high-scoring nature of the last game, point guard Nia Jackson thinks Thursday’s matchup could play out differently.
“It’s definitely gonna be different because we’ve played each other already,” Jackson said. “We know each other’s habits and what they’re trying to do, so we’re going to be better at stopping them. And they’re going to be better with some of the adjustments they’ve made against us.”
The game is a special occasion for Jackson for a multitude of reasons. First, the senior is a Seattle native, having graduated from Chief Sealth High School in 2007. The game will also pin Jackson against Regina Rogers, a former high school teammate who currently leads the Huskies with 16.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Lastly, the game marks Jackson’s first trip to Seattle since suffering a season-ending knee injury against the Huskies on the road last year. @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=4305&SPID=236&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=1256765&Q_SEASON=2011@@ @@http://www.gohuskies.com/sports/w-baskbl/mtt/rogers_regina00.html@@ @@http://www.pac-12.org/portals/7/images/wbasketball/2011-12-Stats/HTML/WASH.HTM@@
“I plan on having my entire family (there),” Jackson said. “All of my friends, everybody from my churches and stuff come to the game. So there should be a lot of support.
“It definitely is special. It’s going to be my last time playing there. And this is where I got hurt at last year. So I definitely want to go to Washington and obviously get a win. And actually get two wins on this road trip.”
Not that Jackson needs extra motivation to get up for the game. After all, Oregon now sits in a dangerous position in the Pac-12 and could make some serious noise if its play continues to ascend in the coming weeks.
“We’re feeling like, ‘OK, we can build on this. Let’s keep going, pushing,’” sophomore forward Danielle Love said. “We’re working really hard in practice. We’re even getting on each other — finally, we’re bringing some competitiveness to practice, which is really good.”
Shutting down Washington’s long-range gunners will be a point of emphasis. The Huskies rank third in the conference in three-point field goal percentage (.333) and burned Oregon from deep in their last matchup, nailing 12 of 25 three-pointers, including six from sophomore point guard Kellie McCann-Smith. @@http://www.pac-12.org/portals/7/images/wbasketball/2011-12-Stats/HTML/CONFLDRS.HTM@@ @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPID=236&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=205354350@@ @@http://www.goducks.com/downloads2/439733.pdf?ATCLID=205354350&SPSID=4307&SPID=236&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500@@
“On defense, we were going under the screens a lot more, which got them a lot of open looks on offense,” Jackson said. “So we’re adjusting and going over and we’re trying to fight through those screens so we can limit their three-point shooting and that’s going to be a big difference going into this game.”
On Saturday, Washington State will attack Oregon with a well-rounded offense that lacks a player averaging double figures in points. The Cougars have eight players putting up more than five points per contest, anchored by senior guard Jazmine Perkins, who leads the team in scoring (9.5 points per game), rebounding (7.5 per game) and assists (2.13 per game). @@http://www.pac-12.org/portals/7/images/wbasketball/2011-12-Stats/HTML/WSU.HTM@@
Last weekend, Washington State dropped a pair of Pac-12 road games against USC and UCLA. The Cougars lost 67-62 to the Trojans on Thursday despite 18 points from senior guard April Cook and a double-double (17 points, 10 rebounds) from Perkins. On Saturday, the Cougars fell to UCLA, 73-52, as the Bruins used a 50-28 rebound advantage to earn their seventh conference victory. @@http://www.wsucougars.com/sports/w-baskbl/sched/wast-w-baskbl-sched.html@@ @@http://www.wsucougars.com/sports/w-baskbl/stats/2011-2012/wsuwbb22.html@@ @@http://www.wsucougars.com/sports/w-baskbl/stats/2011-2012/wsuwbb23.html@@