One of the more dangerous teams in the Pacific-10 Conference invades McArthur Court tonight at 7 p.m. as Oregon hosts the Arizona State Sun Devils.
Both teams are coming off winless weekends, making this matchup a must-win.
“At 7-8, every game is a must-win game for us,” said Oregon coach Ernie Kent, whose team is 1-2 in the Pac-10. “We understand that, so every game is a big game for us.”
How dangerous is Arizona State (6-7, 0-4)?
The Sun Devils haven’t won a conference game and at least five players are fighting
injuries that include a nasal fracture and the removal of benign tumor. They rank last in the Pac-10 in three-point percentage defense, allowing opponents to convert 40 percent. Those aren’t factors in Oregon’s leading scorer Malik Hairston’s mind.
“(Arizona State is) definitely a dangerous team … They are not going to stay 0-4, 0-5; they are going to get a win somewhere,”
Hairston said. “We just don’t want it to be on us. We don’t want to lose at Mac (Court) in the Pac-10 season. We would never let somebody just come in our home and dominate us.”
Arizona State lost two one-point games last weekend to USC and No. 11 UCLA, respectively.
“They had two games in the bag and they were taken away from them this past weekend,” Kent said. “So they are a very capable team that I think can play with anyone in the conference.”
Last season the Sun Devils swept the Ducks, but Oregon’s performance at home sticks in the minds of the current players. The Ducks were 4 of 34 from beyond the arc against the Sun Devils’ zone defense. The loss was the second in a row in a slump when the Ducks dropped eight out of nine games. That cold shooting night resembles much of the struggles Oregon has faced this season, finding the bottom of the bucket.
“We are definitely going to be working on our zone offense … just be prepared to face that zone and knock down the open shots,” said Oregon guard Bryce Taylor, who made 1 of 10 field goals in that game.
Hairston puts the emphasis on early defense, which he believes will trigger an often-misfiring Oregon offense.
“I think it is coming out defending early, stopping their offensive runs and I think that will open up our offense more,” he said.
Post players combined to make 3 of 7 field-goal attempts in that game, which will be an area of focus in tonight’s game. However, the Ducks might be short-handed in the post because Ivan Johnson, Maarty Leunen and Matt Short are questionable to play.
Johnson, who was suspended last Friday for “not living up to personal expectations previously established” between himself and Kent, returned to practice Tuesday.
“It is a day-to-day situation. What I mean by that is that he needs to stay in tune with what we are doing so that when he does come back he won’t hold us up or be behind,” Kent said. “Basketball seems to be the thing that gets his attention right now more so than anything else. So if I have to use basketball to get his attention, I will use basketball to get his attention.”
Leunen sprained an ankle late in the first half at Stanford last Saturday after landing on the foot of a defender. He didn’t play in the second half of the game.
“The swelling has gone down a lot and I can put all of my weight on it, so I’m just taking it day by day and seeing how it goes,” Leunen said. “As long as I can run up and down (the court) and jump, I’ll be fine.”
An elevated heart rate sidelined Short during Monday’s practice and tests haven’t ruled out anything.
All are listed as game-time decisions.
Contact the sports editor at [email protected]