Last weekend’s 81-72 victory over Oregon State in the first women’s basketball game played at Matthew Knight Arena was a highlight Oregon fans will remember for years to come.
In front of the largest crowd to ever watch a Pacific-10 Conference women’s basketball game, the Ducks put together an impressive performance to match the spectacle surrounding the arena’s opening.
But Oregon won’t have the luxury of basking in the glory of that game for too long. Thursday evening at 6 p.m., they’ll host No. 4 Stanford, arguably the hottest women’s basketball team in the nation.
Since losing back-to-back games at DePaul and Tennessee in mid-December, the Cardinal has won 10 straight games, including victories over some of the country’s top schools.
Stanford was particularly impressive in a 37-point win over then-No. 4 Xavier and a historic 12-point defeat of then-No. 1 Connecticut that put an end to the Huskies’ record 90-game winning streak.
“I watched the UConn game,” Oregon head coach Paul Westhead said. “I was impressed by the quality of the total performance.”
The Cardinal has continued to prove their worth in Pac-10 play. They’ve won all seven of their conference games, by an average of 36 points per contest.
Suffice it to say, even though All-American center Jayne Appel graduated last season, Stanford is loaded with talent.
They rank first in the conference in a number of major statistical categories, including three-point field goal percentage, rebounding margin, assists, assist to turnover ratio, and average margin of victory. The Cardinal also ranks second in the Pac-10 behind Oregon in points per game (79.6) and second in points allowed (54.7).
Junior Nnemkadi (Nneka) Ogwumike, who torched the Ducks for 30 points and 23 rebounds when the teams met last year in Eugene, is the Pac-10’s leading scorer at 16.8 points per game. She’s complemented by a pair of seniors, Jeanette Pohlen and Kayla Pedersen, who average 16.5 and 11.8 points per game, respectively.
True freshman Chiney Ogwumike, the younger sister of Nneka, has also made an impact. She’s emerged as Stanford’s best defensive player (Chiney helped limit UConn star Maya Moore to 14 points on 5 of 15 shooting when the teams met earlier this year), and averages 10.7 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.
“They have many of their key personnel,” Westhead said of Stanford. “Appel is not there inside, but Nneka Ogwumike (is), and she brought along her little sister with her. They’re loaded with talent. They play well, they shoot the ball, they rebound, they run and they defend.”
For Oregon to have a shot at winning, the Ducks will likely have to dictate the tempo of the game. Stanford has a significant advantage in rebounding and interior scoring, so Westhead hopes his team can use their quickness, which could be an advantage in overall athleticism.
“You pick your spots,” Westhead said. “I think we certainly can cut into their rebounding advantage. We really have to try to focus on what we do best, and that is speed. We’re going to try to beat them with our speed.”
Oregon’s Nia Jackson and Amanda Johnson, the Pac-10’s second and fourth leading scorers, respectively, both are capable of scoring in bunches.
And while Jackson is playing as well as she ever has (as epitomized by her 24-point performance in Sunday’s game against the Beavers), Johnson is in the midst of a slump that’s seen her scoring average and shooting percentage fall dramatically.
A breakout game from Johnson and another efficient effort from Jackson could be key to giving, as Westhead sees it, one of the nation’s truly elite teams a real test.
“If not the best team in the country, they’re darn close,” Westhead said of the Cardinal. “They’re a great team.”
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