Editor’s note: This week’s guest commentary is by University sophomore Keith Becker. He’s a double major in sports marketing and public relations, and his blog, The UO Sports Dude, has been a popular site for fans of Oregon sports looking for additional opinion.
I planned on writing this article a week ago about why Ernie Kent needed to get the boot. The team looked lost, disinterested even, and well on its way to yet another underwhelming season in an underwhelming Pac-10 conference.
And then the UCLA game happened.
And then the USC game happened.
And then a top five overall recruit for 2011 saying Ernie Kent is the only reason he’s interested in Oregon happened.
It was like Kent’s guardian angel swooped down from the Pearly Gates and stopped in Eugene to save him.
I guess without a week of protection from the basketball gods, it would have been too darn easy for me to write this column.
But there is good news, I can still make a solid case.
For example, a mere two weeks ago, Oregon looked like it was trying to build a brick house at Haas Pavilion. The Ducks shot 1-18 from beyond the arc and 38 percent overall, in a pathetic 89-57 loss at Cal, their fourth in a row.
And the worst part? After the game, Cal forward Jamal Boykin said, “I was surprised at how easy the win was. I was expecting them to play harder.”
Play harder? How often do you hear a player from the opposition criticize a losing team’s effort? Rarely, if ever.
How did Kent and his team respond two nights later against Stanford? Not much better, losing 84-69 and finishing with more turnovers than assists.
During their five-game losing streak, the Ducks led for a total of 55 seconds and never by more than two points.
Also, during that 27-day stretch, I will sadly admit that I watched more “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” than I did winning Oregon basketball. Just sad.
That will happen when a team loses five games by a collective 80 points, a number the Ducks have failed to reach in a single game all but three times this season.
If it weren’t for the football team showing up to honor teammate LaMichael James at halftime against Arizona, there would have been more empty seats at Mac Court than occupied ones. Of course, after the presentation, the football team left faster than James’ 40-yard dash time.
But perhaps the most telling measure is when the fake Twitter accounts started popping up, and fans started lighting the proverbial charcoal under their coach’s hot seat.
And that’s exactly what happened on Jan. 15, a day after a 76-57 thrashing by Arizona State: @NotErnieKent was born, christening the Twittersphere with his first tweet, a quote from Tajuan Porter: “We just need to start holding each other accountable, start coaching ourselves.”
More tweets quickly followed, quoting journalists, players, fans and Ernie Kent himself, on the current state of Oregon basketball:
“It was Oregon’s worst defeat in a Pac-10 game since March 3, 2001.” — The Register-Guard
“Oregon reverted back to last season’s horrible form, or maybe even worse.” — Mike Tokito, The Oregonian
“It can’t get any worse for Oregon … can it?” — Bob Clark, The Register-Guard
That was bad, but worse was on its way.
Somebody else created an account impersonating the Oregon coach with an un-Kent-like sense of humor. Some examples:
“Yes, things have been tough the last few weeks but I have good news: I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance by switching to GEICO;” and, “Lache Seastrunk only picked Oregon because I told him he’d never have to come watch a basketball game. Score one for the Kent-meister.”
Sure, last week was great, but I think it’s just another excuse for Kent. He has proven far too many times that he can’t develop his players, can’t run a half-court offense and most importantly, can’t consistently make the tournament without multiple NBA-quality upperclassmen leading the way.
I truly respect what Kent has done for the Oregon program, bringing it to a Rich Brooks-like relevance, but now that we’re here, we need a coach that can take us to the next level.
Unfortunately, Kent isn’t that guy.
With Nike money, the new stadium, workout facilities and the Jaqua temple, Mike Bellotti has more than enough to offer an elite coach. He just needs to open the checkbook and bring in a new face.
Hopefully one named Mark Few or Steve Lavin.
[email protected]