Tonight’s challenge for the Oregon women’s basketball team is to slow down the Pacific-10 Conference’s version of Shaquille O’Neal.
Arizona center Shawntinice Polk leads the Wildcats (14-4 overall, 6-1 Pac-10) into McArthur Court tonight to face the Ducks (10-7, 2-5). At 6-foot-5 and with a sturdy build, Polk is considered one of the nation’s top players, averaging 16.3 points and 9.4 rebounds per game.
With Oregon’s recent problems in the paint, the Ducks will need a tremendous defensive effort to slow down last season’s Pac-10 Freshman of the Year. The last time Arizona ventured to Eugene, Polk had a dominant 23-point, 15-rebound performance in a 71-66 victory over Oregon.
“Her presence and her talent require some extra thought defensively,” Oregon head coach Bev Smith said. “She’s a player we have to have a good individual game plan against, but also a great team game plan.”
Having Polk on the floor often causes opposing defenses to collapse, leading to wide-open looks for her teammates. One of those teammates is junior guard Dee-Dee Wheeler, who is third in the conference in scoring at 17.4 points per game.
Wheeler, the 2001-02 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year, makes a living off burning defenses that focus on Polk. Oregon will likely counter with Corrie Mizusawa, who has done a good defensive job against opposing point guards.
“In the games that we’ve played where we’ve had to have somebody shut down a point guard, Corrie has done it very well,” Smith said. “I think Corrie has the smarts and the quickness to stay with (Wheeler).”
Tonight’s game will be the toughest test the Ducks have faced since defeating then-No. 9 LSU 76-67 on Nov. 16.
The Oregon team that beat the Tigers at McArthur Court and the Oregon team facing Arizona tonight, however, are quite different. The Ducks relied on Cathrine Kraayeveld to carry them early in the season, a luxury Oregon lost after the senior All-American candidate injured her right knee on Dec. 2.
Facing Arizona with a healthy Kraayeveld wouldn’t seem like such a daunting task. Facing Polk, sans Kraayeveld, with the worst per-game rebounding margin in the conference (minus 3.6), is a different story altogether.
Oregon has been in this situation before, however, facing the Wildcats twice last season without the services of Kraayeveld, who sat out 13 games with a staph infection in her right knee. The Ducks know what it takes to stay competitive.
“We have to make (Polk) make tough shots,” Smith said. “She’s going to get her points — I don’t think we’re going to shut her out — but she’s going to have to work every minute, every second to get shots.
“It’s going to be a challenge but I think our players are looking forward to it.”
Oregon enters the game on a positive note after beating Washington State 60-50 Saturday. The win helped the Ducks forget about their 45-point loss to Washington two days earlier and ended a seven-game streak of scoring fewer than 60 points.
“It was pretty big for us to come back from the loss (to Washington),” Oregon forward Eleanor Haring said. “It pepped our confidence. It was really major for us.”
If Oregon is going to beat Arizona it will need an offensive boost. Kedzie Gunderson and Carolyn Ganes need to pick up some of the slack, as the scoring average for each has dropped from last season.
Andrea Bills has carried the load for most of the year and is the only Duck averaging double figures in scoring (11.9). Brandi Davis has come alive of late, including a 20-point performance against the Cougars. Chelsea Wagner and Haring have also provided occasional offense.
Wagner’s ability to play will be a game-time decision after suffering a knee injury against Washington.
Oregon leads the all-time series with Arizona 22-14, but has dropped the last five to the Wildcats, including a 96-65 loss in Tucson last season.