Two games in two states is the theme of the weekend for the Oregon women’s basketball team. Starting today, it travels to play Brigham Young University at 2:30 p.m., followed by a trip to South Dakota to play South Dakota State on Sunday at noon.
The Ducks (2-0) have already proved they can win on the road, but this weekend’s teams will be slightly better than San Jose State.
Last year the Cougars were 7-9 in the Mountain West Conference, and placed sixth in the conference – the same position the Ducks ended in the Pacific-10. This year, BYU has a 1-1 record after losing by nine points to Portland State to open the season, followed by an 81-63 win over Nevada on Tuesday night. They’re led by Mindy Nielson, who is averaging 18 points a game, one four players averaging double digits in scoring.
South Dakota State (2-0) will be another challenge for the young Ducks. The Jackrabbits return 10 players from last year’s 23-7 team that went 16-2 in conference. So far this year, South Dakota State has beaten Missouri 55-50 and Wisconsin 64-44.
South Dakota State has made it a habit of beating big conference teams. Last year it not only beat Missouri, but also the Ducks in Eugene, 67-60. That will be a motivation for the Ducks, but they must also control themselves in order to compete this weekend.
“What we have to do as a young team is learn how to be consistent in transition,” head coach Bev Smith said. “In the first half we just have to be aggressive, but in the second half we should only be aggressive when we are in control and on balance.”
Smith says part of the reason the Ducks had so many turnovers against Pacific on Tuesday was the speed of the game, but they still need to cut down on the mental mistakes that cause them.
“Twenty-seven is far too many,” junior Micaela Cocks said. “It’s about making better decisions with the ball.”
But Smith is happy so far with how her team has played. After the San Jose State game she was concerned about things, but after seeing them hang tough and beat Pacific, Smith said she felt better.
“I felt that we played much better than we did against San Jose. I was concerned coming home from that game. I had thoughts of had we made it clear to them what we wanted.”
“We really stepped up from the first game,” Cocks said. “But we still have a lot of things we need to work on, like rebounding, boxing out and taking care of the ball. But we’ve definitely improved, which is good.”
Part of the reason the coach’s thoughts have been quieted is the play of Cocks and sophomore Ellie Manou. Without the scoring of junior Taylor Lilley, Manou and Cocks have stepped up. Both are averaging more than 20 points a game, and Manou already has two double-doubles to her credit this season.
“Ellie has been true to what she wanted to do at the end of last year, and that was to become a commanding post player,” Smith said. “She’s really matured and she’s a presence right now.”
On Cocks, Smith said that she believes every young kid should watch how she plays the game and take notes.
“She is just outstanding,” Smith said. “She has really embraced the leadership role.”
With Lilley still day-to-day and senior Rita Kollo and sophomore Nia Jackson out, Oregon is going to rely on the inside presence of Manou and Cocks’ sure-shooting this weekend, but the opportunity to play some of the other players is something Smith sees as a positive.
“The silver lining in (Lilley’s) absence is the development of some of the others, and we will be a stronger team with her back,” Smith said.
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