Washington Schools Await Women's Basketball Team
What’s Up
The Ducks (15-6, 8-4 Pac-10) enter the stretch run of the conference race one game behind third-place UCLA and two and a half games behind second-place USC. This week, Oregon ventures on the road to take on a much-improved Washington State (5-17, 1-12) team Thursday at 7 p.m. and regional rival Washington (9-14, 5-8) Saturday at 1 p.m. in a game nationally televised by Fox Sports Net.
Radio/TV
The Oregon-Washington game Saturday will be televised live on Fox Sports Net with Cathy Nelson and Cara Capuano handling play-by-play duties. All Oregon women’s basketball games also are broadcast on KSCR (1320 AM) and KUGN (590 AM) in Eugene as well as KUIK (1360 AM) in Portland, with Ray Martin providing the play-by-play for the 10th straight year. If the women’s game conflicts with the Oregon men’s game, KSCR will air the women. Radio broadcasts also can be heard on GoDucks.com for premium-service subscribers.
Coach Bev Smith
Oregon’s fifth women’s basketball coach, Bev Smith leads her alma mater in her fourth year and first U.S. college coaching stint. In addition to having served as the Canadian National Team coach (1997-01), she coached for 15 years in the Italian pro leagues. Smith has been inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame (2004), Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame (2003) and Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame (2001). Smith was the head coach at the University of British Columbia for one year (1988-89). As a Duck, Smith earned first-team All-America honors twice and still holds school records for rebounds (1,362), assists (443) and steals (349).
Series vs. Washington State
The Ducks lead the series with the Cougars 47-9 ? Oregon’s best winning percentage against any Pac-10 school. Oregon has won the last eight. WSU last won Feb. 15, 2001, at Eugene, and its last home win came in the same season, a 67-64 decision.
Last Time vs. Washington State
Jan. 15, 2005, at Eugene
Oregon won 69-50 before 3,702 fans at McArthur Court. Cathrine Kraayeveld had game-highs of 16 points on 4-of-5 shooting from long range and 11 rebounds. It took a while for Oregon to get on track, as Washington State held a 15-11 first-half lead with 7:12 left. But two baskets by freshman Kristen Forristall and a 3-pointer each by Kraayeveld and Kaela Chapdelaine helped give the Ducks a 26-18 lead at the 1:45 mark. The Cougars would get no closer than five down the rest of the game. Andrea Bills led Oregon’s inside charge with 12 points, eight rebounds and two blocked shots. It was Oregon’s first game without starting guard Chelsea Wagner, who tore her left ACL vs. Washington. Chapdelaine started in her place and Corrie Mizusawa (seven points, seven assists) also returned at the point after missing the Washington game with flu-like symptoms. Kate Benz recorded a double-double for the Cougars with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Adriane Ferguson added a team-high 13 points. Gabrielle Richards came off the bench to score seven points, pull down five rebounds and block a career-high four shots for the Ducks.
Series vs. Washington
The Ducks hold a slim series lead over the Huskies, 35-33. Washington, had won the previous four before losing last month at McArthur Court. Before the Huskies swept the series in 2002-03 and 2003-04, Oregon had won 14 of 15.
Last Time vs. Washington
Jan. 13, 2005, at Eugene
Andrea Bills scored a season-high 21 points while Chelsea Wagner had 20 behind a personal-best six 3-pointers Oregon won 86-77. The Huskies went on an 11-2 run to tie the game at 77 apiece with 1:52 left. But Bills hit a basket, followed by an Eleanor Haring 8-foot jumper, then four straight Bills free throws put the game out of reach. Bills scored 17 of her points in the second half and finished making 5-of-8 from the field and a career-best 11-of-15 from the foul line. With the Ducks trailing 48-46 with 16:11 left Wagner took over by scoring 11 points on three 3-pointers and two free throws as Oregon took a 61-52 lead at the 10:36 mark. Wagner, however, went down with 7:54 on the clock with a torn left ACL. The Ducks also were without guard Corrie Mizusawa, who sat out because of flu-like symptoms. Kaela Chapdelaine stepped in to make her first career start, finishing with three points and five assists in 35 minutes. Gabe Richards came off the bench to score 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting and grab six rebounds in 15 minutes. Cathrine Kraayeveld had a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Kayla Burt led four Huskies in double-figures with 19, nailing 8-of-13 from the field including 3-of-6 from 3-point territory. Cameo Hicks added 16 while Jill Bell had 12. Oregon shot 8-of-15 from long range while Washington managed just 6-of-21.
Kraayeveld’s Korner
All-America candidate Cathrine Kraayeveld is ranked in four Pac-10 statistical categories ? sixth in scoring (15.3) and second in rebounds (9.1), blocked shots (1.5) and defensive rebounding (6.5). She has scored in double-figures 18 times and has notched seven double-doubles this year (26 overall) last Saturday against USC. Kraayeveld, who played in her 100th career game last Saturday, also became the 18th Duck to reach the 1,000-point mark for her career. She ranks sixth all-time at Oregon in blocked shots, eighth in rebounds, fifth in 3-point field goal percentage and 10th in 3-pointers.
Bills Paying Her Dues
Senior post player Andrea Bills defines consistency. Bills has played in every contest of her collegiate career (114) and has made a remarkable 94 consecutive appearances in the starting lineup. Bills also continues to climb Oregon’s all-time rebounding chart with 753, good for seventh all-time. She is 12th in the Pac-10 in scoring (11.8), fifth in rebounding (6.9), fourth in field goal percentage (.538) and eighth in blocked shots (0.9). Earlier this year, she became the 17th player at UO to score 1,000 points.
Dynamic Duo
Cathrine Kraayeveld and Andrea Bills are one of only three tandems in the nation with more than 700 career rebounds apiece. They join an elite group that includes Baylor’s Steffanie Blackmon and Sophia Young along with Kansas State’s Kendra Weccker and Megan Mahoney. They also are one of two duos in the Pac-10 with more than 1,000 career points ? the other is Arizona’s Dee-Dee Wheeler and Shawntinice Polk.
Passing Fancy
Point guard Corrie Mizusawa, last year’s Pac-10 assists leader, again leads the Pac-10 with a 7.4 assists-per-game average ? second in the nation to West Virginia’s Yolanda Paige (9.4). Her 3.0 assists-to-turnover ratio also leads the league and is third in the nation behind Paige and . Mizusawa holds the top three marks for assists (although tied with other Ducks) in a single game at Oregon ? 14, 13 and, earlier this year, 12 against Miami. She also ranks seventh all-time in school history with 328 assists and is 42 shy of tying Jacquie Semeniuk’s single-season school record of 190.
... More Mizusawa
Corrie Mizusawa also could become one of the very few players ? men or women ? to finish a career with more assists than points and the first to do so since 1990. Based on the criterium of playing in at least two-thirds of his/her team’s games, here’s where Mizusawa stacks up:
Player, School (Years) Assists Points Diff.
1. Mary Gavin, Notre Dame (1984-88) - 778, 622, +156
2. Crystal Woodard, Mount St. Mary’s - (1979-83), 740, 603, +137
3. Michelle Koenig, Cincinnati (1988-90) - 231 223 +8
4. Terry Nashif, BYU (2001-present) - 142, 143, -1
5. Corrie Mizusawa (2000-present) - 561, 569, -8
Davis Delivering
Brandi Davis made her first start of the season Saturday against Oregon State and tied a career-best with four steals. Just two weeks ago, Davis lit up the scoreboard against UCLA with a career-high 28 points en route to U.S. Bank Pac-10 Player of the Week honors. It was the most points scored by an Oregon player since Cathrine Kraayeveld had 33 against Santa Clara in December 2002. Davis is in fourth place on Oregon’s all-time 3-pointers list with 124. Next up is Shaquala Williams (1998-02), who had 144.
In the RPI
Getting Defensive Home Sweet Home Road Weary Ducks Lead Pac-10 in Attendance
Oregon is No. 44 this week in the WBCA/Summerville RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) and No. 45 according to
Oregon emphasized defense in the off-season and it seems to have paid off thus far. George Washington had its worst scoring game (40) since 1988 on Dec. 4, also which was the fewest points allowed by a Bev Smith team. The 46-point total for Portland in the season-opener is the third fewest allowed in Smith’s tenure. And in the Pac-10 opening week, both Cal (50) and Stanford (58) were held to its fewest points all season. Oregon has held its opponents to fewer than 60 points 12 times this year. The Ducks also rank third in the Pac-10 in scoring defense (61.0).
Oregon is 10-1 at home this year (7-0 in conference play). Since the Pac-10 began to sponsor women’s basketball in 1986-87, Oregon’s best home record was in 1998-99, where it went 14-1.
The Ducks are 17-27 on the road under Bev Smith and 22-31 overall (including neutral sites). After dropping its last two and five of its last six on the road this year, Oregon is 3-5. Oregon hasn’t been above .500 on the road since going 10-5 in 1999-00.
Oregon’s 3,852 crowd average at McArthur Court is first in the Pac-10 and the 27th best in the nation, in unofficial rankings compiled by the University of Wisconsin. Stanford ranks second in the conference with an average of 3,741 while Washington, which has topped the Pac-10 in attendance the last two seasons, is third at 3,148.
