There were smiles, high-fives and laughter all over the new McArthur Court floor Thursday as the 2001-02 version of the Oregon men’s basketball team met with the media for the first time.
And in addition to the different floor — which has replaced the Duck at center court with an “O” similar to the one at Autzen Stadium — Oregon is promising a much different team than the one that went 5-13 in the Pacific-10 Conference last season.
Namely, the Ducks are guaranteeing to be tougher on defense, which they will begin working on Saturday in the team’s first practice. Think their defensive efforts from a season ago haven’t been on their minds all summer? Take a listen.
From senior guard Freddie Jones: “We were one of the worst defensive teams in the Pac-10 last season.”
From fellow senior guard Ben Lindquist: “Our defense was pretty bad last year during that nightmare season when everything sort of snowballed on us.”
And from head coach Ernie Kent: “It was definitely the worst defensive team that I’ve coached.”
Which makes it easy to see why Kent is so excited about the addition of Fred Litzenberger as an assistant coach. Litzenberger spent the past six seasons as a defensive specialist with the Oregon women’s basketball team and is chomping at the bit to get started with the men’s team.
“I’ve been waiting for this day to come all summer,” said Litzenberger, who’s in his 35th year of coaching, including being a men’s assistant with Kent for two seasons at Colorado State in the late ’80s. “I’m so excited. I’ve watched all their tapes from last season and could see the areas they needed to improve in. They were so close, yet so far.”
Litzenberger will have some big bodies to work with as the Ducks’ roster boasts seven players standing at 6 feet, 8 inches or taller. In addition to returnees Chris Christoffersen (7-3), Mark Michaelis (6-10) and Jay Anderson (6-9), Kent has brought in four players who help make the Ducks one of the biggest teams in the country.
Of the four, junior college transfers Robert Johnson (6-8) and Brian Helquist (6-9) are expected to contribute immediately with freshmen Matt Short (7-0) and Ian Crosswhite (6-11) being allowed to come at their own pace.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun this year and I just want to contribute and live up to the expectations,” said Johnson, who Kent predicted will be the team’s top rebounder. “Every day I walk into Mac Court and visualize what it’s going to be like. I can’t wait.”
The team is already a tight-knit bunch as most of the players lived in Eugene all summer working out. Also in that time, a few Ducks were able to gain experience at some big-time camps. The two Lukes, Ridnour and Jackson, performed well at a Nike camp and both have added muscle to their bodies for their sophomore campaigns.
Christoffersen, meanwhile, attended the renowned Pete Newell’s Big Man Camp. The senior from Denmark, who actually grew an inch over the summer and bulked up to a solid 304 pounds, has gained confidence over the offseason and has his teammates hoping to see his flashes of domination on a consistent basis this season.
“You all haven’t seen what big Chris can do just yet,” Jones said. “You just watch.”
As for Jones, he attended Michael Jordan’s elite camp in Santa Barbara, Calif. While there, he competed against top collegiate players such as Duke’s Jason Williams and Michael Dunleavy and Stanford’s Casey Jacobsen, as well as pro players like the Clippers’ Darius Miles and Quentin Richardson, and, of course, the Wizards’ newest addition, Michael Jordan.
“Jordan talked with me a little bit and congratulated me on things that he liked about my game and told me stuff I needed to work on,” Jones said. “I think he was surprised we could play like that up here in Oregon.”
Jones knows the onus is on his shoulders this year, being the senior leader and top returning point scorer.
“I’m ready to get it going,” Jones said. “This is my last go-round, and we’re just going to go out here and have a blast. Our fans kept cheering last year even though we weren’t winning a lot of games. So hopefully this year we can reward them with a lot of wins.
“We have to win. I didn’t come here to lose.”
While some may view the loss of forward Bryan Bracey and his team-leading 18.6 points per game as a negative, Kent sees the silver lining. While the coach applauded Bracey’s offensive skills, he said that Bracey was a weak link on the defensive side of the ball.
“Every ‘4’ man in the Pac-10 had a career night going against us and we struggled at that position on the floor,” Kent said. “Through a committee, we’ll replace Bracey’s points and not give up as many points in that position.”
Also missing from this year’s team is Anthony Norwood, kind of. He’s actually returned, but with a different name. The senior legally changed his name to Anthony Lever in honor of his father, former NBA player Lafayette “Fat” Lever. Kent, though, still needs to remember that as he referred to Lever as Norwood twice during his press conference.
One thing Kent hasn’t forgotten is how many talented players have left the Pac-10 via graduation or the NBA Draft, leaving the league race wide open.
“With Stanford and Arizona and what they lost, this will probably be as competitive of a Pac-10 Conference since I’ve been here,” Kent said.
That Pac-10 slate begins early this season with the Arizona schools visiting Mac Court on Dec. 20 and Dec. 22. The first preseason game is on Nov. 6 at home, while the regular season kicks off on Nov. 15 when Alabama State drops by The Pit.