After three seasons of distinct memories and memorable players, what can a fan, a player or a coach take away from the Oregon men’s 2004-05 basketball season?
In the 2001-02 season the Ducks had Fred Jones, Luke Ridnour and Luke Jackson and the amazing run to the Elite Eight.
In the 2002-03 season Oregon won the Pacific-10 Conference Tournament with Luke and Luke.
In the 2003-04 season the last remaining Luke provided McArthur Court with one of the most spectacular games it has ever seen when he scored 29 straight points to help Oregon recover from an 18-point second-half deficit to beat Colorado in the opening round of the National Invitation Tournament.
Well maybe this season will be known as the slight bump in the road before another great run by the Ducks — the year the pieces were there, but they never quite fit together.
There were so many close games and moments where it seemed this team could pull it together and make a run at the tournament.
It was a matter of free throws against Washington when the Ducks lost at home to the then-ranked No. 11 Huskies 95-88 in overtime at Mac Court. The Ducks shot a school-record 54 free throws, but connected on only 33 of them.
There was the game against Arizona State in which the Ducks were up by 13 points early and self-destructed against the Sun Devils.
Speaking of the Sun Devils, the Ducks lost to them at home and shot a disgusting 28.6 percent from the field and an even worse 4 of 34 (11.8 percent) from behind the three-point arc.
During the Stanford game at Mac Court the Ducks seemed to have control of the game until they went on a dry spell and didn’t hit a field goal in the last four minutes of the game.
There are more examples of Oregon losses that could’ve easily been wins. From the Oregon State game at Gill Coliseum to the UCLA
contest in the second game of
the conference to the Cal game at Haas Pavilion, the Ducks could have an additional five or six conference wins, and I would be writing about an NCAA berth, not a what-could’ve-been rant.
This season’s team might also be known for something else.
Maybe it’s the season of overhyped and unrealistic expectations.
Everyone (including myself) put the weight of the program on a team made up of a majority of underclassmen.
For most of the season, two of the starters (Malik Hairston and Bryce Taylor) had never played in a college basketball atmosphere.
Starting point guard Aaron Brooks missed a lot of time last season with an injury, and their most experienced player, Ian Crosswhite, was kicked off the team for unspecified reasons.
Maybe this season will be remembered as the one that gave us all a glimpse of the future.
With everyone returning next season (right Malik?), the Ducks will have a season under their belt and should be ready to make a bigger splash in the conference race.
With Brooks gaining more and more experience at the point and cutting down his mistakes, Oregon will be a dangerous ball club.
At the other guard spot, the Ducks will have a great amount of depth with Taylor and Chamberlain “never found a shot I didn’t like” Oguchi.
Taylor’s streakiness will probably subside, and I was impressed by Oguchi’s play at the end of the year more than anybody’s.
Hairston should solidify himself as one of the best players in the conference next season at the small forward position and Maarty Leunen will have an offseason of working out to bulk up and improve his
already talented game.
And in the middle, Ray Schafer will look to improve his consistency on the floor while still bringing tenacity and fire. Mitch Platt looks as if his offensive game is improving and with his 6-foot-10, 265-pound frame, he should be a force inside.
So while the memories aren’t as great as those from previous seasons, this year might just be the prequel to a spectacular main event for the next few years to come.

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