Since its grand opening just over a year ago, Matthew Knight Arena was always expected to become Mac Court 2.0. “From Mac to Matt,” they deemed it — a seamless transition from old to new, spotty to spotless, all without losing an ounce of the passion and energy that defined MacArthur Court for 84 years.
Washington guard Abdul Gaddy attempts to block Olu Ashaolu and Carlos Emory. In Oregon’s first matchup with Washingotn this season, the Huskies outscored the Ducks 76-60, despite Oregon’s superior rebounding (36-34). (Jack Hunter/Freelance)
That was the plan, anyway. Right now, as the Oregon men’s basketball team prepares to face Pac-12 leader Washington on Thursday at home, the tangled mess of Kilkenny Floor is an effective metaphor for the Ducks’ recent play in Eugene. At just 3-2 at home in conference play, Oregon has actually been better on the road this season (4-2), and no one knows exactly why. @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=205335431@@
“We’re not giving the fans much to cheer about,” sophomore point guard Johnathan Loyd said. “We’re not playing hard and flying around like we do on the road … Coach has really, really stressed about playing well at home.”
The Ducks will have a chance to do just that in what Loyd calls a “must-win weekend” coming up against the Washington schools, but until then they will be left to do more soul-searching to try and determine what has gone wrong since Pac-12 play started.
“Coach (Dana Altman) has his theories,” Loyd said,” about how it’s girlfriends in the crowd and wanting to look good and all that, but honestly I haven’t figured it out either. I don’t understand it.”
It might sound silly, and Altman smiles when he mentions it, but at this point he would be willing to believe just about anything.
“Girls have something to do with everything, and friends (too)” Altman said. “We just haven’t been as sharp at home as I hoped we would be.”
Though they might have laughed at Altman’s quirky assessment, the Ducks are searching for just about any answer at this point. Until the problem is solved, what choice do they have?
“I feel like he is serious,” Loyd said. “I honestly don’t know — it could be a distraction. If people want to look good for the girls, can’t go wrong with that.”
Attendance, which has petered throughout the season, should not be a problem on Thursday as Oregon renews its rivalry with a talented Washington squad. Loyd, for his part, has already seen his phone flooded with text messages asking for tickets.
“I know that everybody wants to come to this game,” Loyd said. “A lot of Duck fans don’t like Huskies, so it’s going to be a packed house. It’s going to be loud, and we’re going to try to play as hard as we can to get the fans in the game.”
A bit of extra motivation — as if the Ducks needed any — could come on the heels of a gut-wrenching loss at Colorado last Saturday. They’ve moved on from a questionable foul call that would decide the game, but that doesn’t mean they can’t take out the frustration in a heated rivalry matchup.
“I tried not to dwell over it too much,” senior guard Garrett Sim said. “Just moving on and focusing on this weekend.”
“You can’t feel sorry for yourself,” Altman said. “It’s no different than any adversity you face anywhere else in life — you just move on. You can’t focus on it; you learn from the past, but you look ahead.”
Washington looms, and Oregon will have to find a way to untangle the branches on its home court if it is to bounce back from this latest setback.
