After getting swept on the road by the Arizona schools to open Pacific-10 Conference play, the Oregon women’s basketball team returns home to take the floor at McArthur Court for the last time.
The Ducks (9-4, 0-2 Pac-10) will play Washington State Thursday and Washington Saturday – the last two games that will be played at the 85-year-old building before Matthew Knight Arena opens next week.
With that in mind, Oregon coach Paul Westhead hopes his team gives the arena a proper send-off.
“Our players will be very keenly aware that this is the last weekend of any sporting activity here in Mac Court,” Westhead said. “My hope is that our players will not leave one ounce of energy left, because if it’s left it will be left forever.”
If Oregon’s players take that message to heart, it could help provide an extra boost for a team that has yet to truly find its rhythm this season. Last weekend, Oregon lost to Arizona and Arizona State by a combined 34 points, surrendering a combined 195 points.
“Being able to play at home, in front of our home crowd and our home fans, is going to give us a lot of momentum,” senior center Nicole Canepa said. “Playing in Mac Court for the last time, ending the tradition almost, and moving into Matt Court is going to be starting the tradition. I think we feel really honored that we can do that.”
It could be an emotional few games for the Ducks.
“It’s kind of emotional leaving here,” Oregon junior Jasmin Holliday said. “This is all I know as a college player. It’s like my sanctuary for the last two years. I can’t wait to play at Matt for the next two years, but I’m going to miss Mac a lot. “
Until then, beating Washington State and Washington is of the highest priority for Oregon. And judging by the Huskies’ and Cougars’ recent performance, the Ducks will certainly have a good shot to notch a pair of wins.
When Oregon tips off against Washington State at 7 p.m., they’ll face a team that has lost six straight games, all by at least 11 points. Most recently, Washington State opened their Pac-10 season by losing to USC and UCLA.
Winless on the road, the Cougars (2-12, 0-2 Pac-10) shoot only 43 percent from the floor and have no players that average double figures in scoring – Carly Noyes does lead the team in that department at nine points per game.
Washington State also suffered through several lopsided losses against lower level competition – losing to UC Davis by 39 points, Wyoming by 20, South Dakota State by 11 and Portland by 11.
While perhaps a more challenging foe, Washington (5-6, 0-2 Pac-10) hasn’t exactly been on a roll lately, either. The Huskies were also swept by USC and UCLA last weekend and have dropped four of their past five games.
Like their interstate rivals, Washington had some embarrassing results in their non-conference schedule, getting blown out by Georgia Tech by 33 and BYU by 25, and dropping close games to historically inferior Kent State and UC Riverside.
Part of the reason for the Huskies’ early season struggles has been an array of injuries that has deprived Washington of a combined 28 games. Perhaps most significant has been the loss of center Regina Rogers, who has only played in one game, in which she scored 18 points, this season. According to the University of Washington website, Rogers is currently considered “day-to-day”, so it’s conceivable she could be ready to play Saturday.
Aside from Rogers, versatile junior Kristi Kingma is Washington’s lead offensive presence. She averages 16.8 points per game and shoots 37 percent from three-point range.
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