With so much attention this week banking on the men’s program and the 75th anniversary of McArthur Court, it’s understandable if the women’s basketball team is feeling a bit unappreciated.
Come Saturday, though, that will all change.
The year’s first Civil War meeting is scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday, a game that has always been a hot sell for all Oregon sports, including women’s hoops.
There’s no “Pit Crew” for women’s games, but the home-court advantage is historically evident — especially against Oregon State. The four largest crowds to attend women’s games at the Pit have been against the Beavers, with the biggest support coming in Oregon’s 69-60 Civil War victory on March 8, 1996, when 9,738 fans attended the game.
“Traditionally, this has been one of the biggest drawing games for the women’s program. And this year should be no different,” first-year Oregon head coach Bev Smith said. “I really hope that we get a good crowd because regardless of who wins the game, women’s basketball wins, and that’s what’s really important.”
Over the last four years, the fan support for women’s games at Mac Court has been the best in the Pac-10. Oregon averaged a school-record 5,852 fans per game in the 1999-00 season, 12th best in the nation. This year, an average of 4,373 spectators attend home games.
The support for women’s basketball in Eugene has paid off in the standings. The Ducks won (or shared) the Pacific-10 Conference in 1999 and 2000. Since the 1976-77 season, the women’s team has won more than 77 percent of its games — a 238-68 clip — at Mac Court, including four undefeated seasons under former head coach Elwin Heiny.
As a star forward for the Ducks from 1978-82, Smith lost just two games at Mac Court.
“I’ve tried to put the other person’s shoe on and I certainly would not that situation for us,” Smith said. “We’ve gone into some hostile gyms, but nothing like it is here at Mac Court. Here, the people are special because they understand the game and they understand what our young athletes are trying to do.
“They know they can be that sixth person for us and make it difficult for the opposing team, and that’s a real bonus.”
The Ducks are 5-3 at home this season (10-7 overall).

From way downtown
Senior sharpshooter Jamie Craighead’s 147 career three-pointers rank second on Oregon’s all-time list. Craighead, the only returning starting from last year’s NCAA Tournament team, is hitting 46 percent of her three-point attempts, third-best in the conference and sixth-best in the nation.
Craighead’s roommate, junior guard Shaquala Williams, is third on the school’s career three-point list with 110. Williams is 20-for-77 from beyond the arc this season.
As a team, Oregon is shooting 32 percent (92-of-285) from long range this season.

By the numbers
The Ducks are shooting 44 percent from the field this season, second only to No. 4 Stanford, who is shooting nearly 48 percent.
Rebounding was the biggest question mark coming into the season, and the Ducks have responded, relatively, by nearly equaling their opponents in rebounding average. Oregon is averaging 35.8 boards per game, while its opponents grab 36.1.