NCAA Tournament Media Guide
What’s Up
After a three-year hiatus, the Ducks (20-9) received an at-large bid and No. 10 seed into the NCAA Tournament and will take on No. 7-seed and 23rd-ranked TCU (23-9) at Seattle’s Bank of America Arena on the University of Washington campus. Tipoff Saturday is 30 minutes after the Baylor-Illinois State game, which begins at 11 a.m. The Ducks’ second-place Pac-10 finish (12-6) is their highest since winning the conference in 2000 and they reached 20 wins for the first time since 2002 and 14th time in the progam’s 32-year history. It’s Oregon’s 12th NCAA Tournament bid overall. The Ducks earned eight straight berths between 1994 and 2001.
Tickets
To purchase tickets, fans must visit GoHuskies.com or call 206-543-2200 during business hours. All-session tickets cost $40 and $24 for those under 18. Single-game tickets are $16 and $10 for youth. If you'd like to sit with Oregon fans, please indicate you'd like to sit in, or as close to, sections 9, 10 or 12 .
Oregon in the NCAA Tournament
Oregon is 4-11 in NCAA Tournament games (16-14 in all postseason competition) and has never advanced past the second round. The Ducks’ last two NCAA Tournament games were overtime losses ? 89-82 in 2001 to Iowa in Salt Lake City and 80-79 to UAB the previous year in Eugene. Oregon’s last win came in 1999, 65-56 over Cincinnati. Overall, the Ducks have played once in Salt Lake, Athens, Nashville, Boulder and San Diego, twice in Knoxville, three times in Ames and five in Eugene.
Radio/TV
The Oregon-TCU game will be televised live on ESPN2 throughout the state of Oregon with Dave Revsine doing play-by-play with Mary Murphy on color. NCAA Tourney games also will be on ESPNU and subscribers to ESPN FullCourt pay-per-view package. 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 can be heard on GoDucks.com for premium-service subscribers.
Ducks Short on NCAA Experience
Corrie Mizusawa is the only Oregon player to have seen court time in an NCAA Tournament (13 points, 11 assists vs. Tennessee in 2001 while at Saint Mary’s). Cathrine Kraayeveld was on the last Oregon team to make it in 2001 against Iowa, but didn’t play.
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. TCU
Oregon and TCU have played two games, the first in 2001 at the annual Pap? Jam in Portland, Ore. (Ducks 75, Lady Frogs 63), and then a return trip in 2002 to Fort Worth (Lady Frogs 76, Ducks 70).
Common Opponents
TCU and Oregon shared four common opponents this year ? UCLA, Miami, California and USC. The Lady Frogs beat UCLA 65-60 in the season-opener, lost at Miami 68-57, defeated the Bears 96-89 and suffered one of its two home losses to USC, 71-70. Oregon beat Miami, split with USC and UCLA and swept California.
Bills-Kraayeveld and TCU’s Irvin-Newton Meet Again
It may seem like many moons ago, but two active players each on the Ducks and Lady Frogs competed against each other in the two games. In the first game in 2001, Oregon’s Cathrine Kraayeveld, then a sophomore, had three points and five rebounds in 17 minutes off the bench. Andrea Bills, a freshman, played 23 minutes, making 3-of-6 from the floor and 4-of-6 from the foul line en route to 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds in a reserve role. Irvin started that game as a freshman and scored a team-high 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting and grabbed a team-best seven rebounds in 24 minutes before fouling out. Newton played 11 minutes and had four points and four rebounds. In the game at Fort Worth in 2002, the Frogs’ aggressive defense forced Kraayeveld into 5-of-17 shooting. Kraayeveld, though, still finished with 15 points, hitting 3-of-5 from 3-point territory, 13 rebounds and five blocks before fouling out for the second and last time of her career. It also marked the last game she played before suffering a staph infection in her right knee just three days later. Bills had 11 points and nine rebounds in a starting role while Yadil Okwumabua, then a freshman, added a steal in seven minutes. For TCU Irvin was held to seven points on 2-of-12 shooting but pulled down a game-high 16 boards and blocked four shots. Newton started and played 13 minutes, scoring eight points and collecting three steals. Oregon’s Carolyn Ganes and Kedzie Gunderson also played (both redshirted in 2004-05).
Game Recaps vs. TCU
Dec. 22, 2002, at Fort Worth, Texas
Despite Oregon’s prolific 3-point shooting, it fell 76-70 to TCU before 1,794 fans at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. Oregon tied a school-record with 13 three-pointers on 25 attempts?tying the previous mark of 13 one week ago against Santa Clara?but poor shooting inside the arc and from the foul line did in the Ducks. Oregon shot just 7-of-16 (42 percent) on free throws and 11-of-45 (24 percent) on shots inside the arc. Oregon trailed 69-57 after TCU’s Tricia Payne nailed a 3-pointer with 3:18 left. But the Ducks’ defense forced three turnovers, sparking a 10-1 run to pull Oregon to 70-67 at the 1:33 mark. Payne, however, then struck again with a 3-pointer near the baseline, her third of the game, and the Ducks committed three turnovers in the final minute to help seal TCU’s win. Brandi Davis scored 17 of her game-high 20 points in the final 10 minutes. She hit 7-of-18 from the field, including 5-of-10 on 3-pointers, in 18 minutes off the bench. Senior Alissa Edwards and junior Kayla Steen provided solid guard play for Oregon. Edwards, playing on a sprained right ankle, swiped a career-high eight steals, which is tied for the sixth highest single-game total in school history. Steen dished out a career-best eight assists. Tiffany Evans led four TCU players in double-figures with 14. TCU shot 32 free throws, making 20, and were called for 11 fouls while the Ducks had 25.
Nov. 24, 2001, at Portland, Ore.
Shaquala Williams and Edniesha Curry combined for 43 points as Oregon topped TCU 75-63 at the Rose Garden. Williams hit 7-of-15 from the floor, 6-of-6 from the foul line en route to a game-high 22 points and passed out a team-best four assists. Curry, meanwhile, hit 6-of-10 from the field, including 4-of-7 from 3-point range, to finish with 21. The Ducks, who never trailed, played an inspired defense that helped force TCU into 36 percent shooting. The Horned Frogs managed just 25 percent shooting in the first half as Oregon took a 34-21 lead. The Ducks were hot from 3-point territory, hitting 8-of-18, while nailing 46 percent overall from the field. The Horned Frogs cut the Ducks’ lead to 54-46 with 8:36 left in the game, but that was as close as they would get. Williams retaliated by scoring four points and Alyssa Fredrick dropped in a free throw to make it 59-46 with five minutes on the clock. Freshman Andrea Bills provided a lift, tallying then-career highs of 10 points and eight rebounds. Bills hit 3-of-6 from the field, 4-of-6 from the foul line.
Three Ducks Earn Pac-10 Honors
Andrea Bills and Cathrine Kraayeveld both were first-time All-Pac-10 selections Thursday while Kristen Forristall became the third straight Oregon player (Carolyn Ganes, 2003; Eleanor Haring, 2004) to make the All-Freshman Team. Bills has been an honorable mention pick once (2004) and Kraayeveld twice (2002, 2003).
Kraayeveld a Region 8 All-American
Cathrine Kraayeveld earned WBCA/Kodak All-America Region 8 honors for the first time in her career. Kraayeveld now is a finalist for selection to the Kodak/WBCA All-America Team which will be announced at the Final Four on April 2. Kraayeveld joins a prestigious six-member list that also includes Nikki Blue (UCLA), Kristen Mann (UCSB), Shawntinice Polk (Arizona), Dee-Dee Wheeler (Arizona) and Candice Wiggins (Stanford). WBCA Region 8 members vote on the nominees, who are comprised of the Pac-10, Big West, Mountain West, WAC, Big Sky and West Coast conferences. The last UO player to accomplish the feat was Shaquala Williams (2002, 2000). Bev Smith is the only Duck to make the First Team ? a two-time member in 1981 and 1982.
Kraayeveld’s Korner
Cathrine Kraayeveld is ranked in seven Pac-10 statistical categories ? sixth in both scoring (14.4) and 3-point percentage (.364) and second in rebounds (8.4), blocked shots (1.4) and defensive rebounding (6.6) while placing ninth in free throw percentage (.747) and 10th in field goal percentage (.459). She has scored in double-figures 23 times and has notched nine double-doubles this year (28 overall). Kraayeveld also became the 18th Duck to reach the 1,000-point mark for her career (1,113). She ranks sixth all-time at Oregon in blocked shots (130), eighth in rebounds (761), fifth in 3-point field goal percentage (.381) and ninth for 3-pointers (77).
Bills Paying Her Dues
Senior post player Andrea Bills defines consistency. Bills has played in every contest of her collegiate career (121, second place all-time in Oregon history) and has made a remarkable 102 consecutive appearances in the starting lineup. Bills also continues to climb Oregon’s all-time rebounding chart with 813, good for seventh all-time. She is ninth in the Pac-10 in scoring (11.7), fourth in rebounding (7.0), fourth in field goal percentage (.521) and ninth in blocked shots (0.9). Bills has scored 1,195 career points, 12th all-time at UO.
Homecoming a Long-Time Coming
Amazingly, fifth-year senior Cathrine Kraayeveld, a native of Seattle suburb Kirkland, has not played a game in her home area since scoring 26 in WNIT victory over Washington on March 20, 2002. Kraayeveld has been sidelined each of the last three years due to injury ? 2005 (inflamed left elbow day before the game), 2004 (right ACL), 2003 (staph infection in right knee) ? in games against the Huskies.
Home Sweet Home
Oregon went 12-1 at home this year (9-0 in conference play). It marked only the third time in program history the Ducks have finished the Pac-10 home slate undefeated ? it also happened in 1998-99 and 1986-87. 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.
Dialing Long Distance
The Ducks rank third in the Pac-10 with 5.8 three-pointers made per game ? the highest average in Oregon history ? and a .348 shooting percentage from long range. The Ducks’ 169 3-pointers also is the second-most in program history (194 in 2001-02).
Getting Defensive
They say defense wins championships. And the Oregon defense this year has certainly paved the way for success. On Dec. 4, George Washington had its worst scoring game (40) since 1988, 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. In the Pac-10 opening week, both Cal (50) and Stanford (58) were contained to its fewest points all season. In the Ducks’ win over Washington in the Pac-10 Tournament, the Huskies scored their second-fewest points all season. Oregon has held its opponents to fewer than 60 points 18 times and 50 or fewer in six instances this year. The Ducks also rank third in the Pac-10 in scoring defense (60.5). Just two years ago, Oregon ranked ninth in the league in scoring defense at 70.5.
Passing Fancy
Point guard Corrie Mizusawa has led the Pac-10 in assists in each of the last two seasons. This year, she is averaging 6.9 assists, good for third in the nation and has set the Oregon single-season record with 193 ... and counting. Her 2.9 assists-to-turnover ratio also leads the league and is third in the nation behind West Virginia’s Yolanda Paige and Villanova’s Betsy McManus. 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 fifth all-time in school history with 373.
... More Mizusawa
Corrie Mizusawa also could become one of the very few players in collegiate basketball history ? 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. Corrie Mizusawa (2000-present) 606 607 -1
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 Wecker 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.
A Hard Road
The Ducks are 19-29 on the road under Bev Smith and 25-33 overall (including neutral sites). After dropping seven of its last nine on the road this year, Oregon is 5-7. Oregon hasn’t been above .500 on the road since going 10-5 in 1999-00.
Giant Killers
Oregon’s Dec. 29 win over then No. 5-ranked Stanford tied the highest-ranked team the Ducks have ever defeated. On the same date in 1983, Oregon beat No. 5 Maryland at the Winston Tire Classic in Los Angeles. Last year, Oregon claimed a win over Final Four bound and No. 9-ranked LSU and again beat Stanford, ranked No. 10 at the time.
Ducks Finish First in Pac-10 in Attendance
Oregon’s 3,896 crowd average at McArthur Court ranks first in the Pac-10 and the 27th best in the nation, in unofficial rankings compiled weekly by the University of Wisconsin. Stanford finished barely behind the Ducks with an average of 3,891.
Home-Court Advantage
When seniors Cathrine Kraayeveld and Andrea Bills were in the starting lineup at McArthur Court, the Ducks posted a 28-3 record over the course of their careers. They have only lost to Arizona State (Jan. 6, 2002), Stanford (Feb. 7, 2002) and Ohio State (Dec. 18, 2004).
Davis Delivering
Brandi Davis has given the Ducks a much-needed spark in the last two months. On Feb. 19 vs. Arizona she led the team in scoring for the fourth time in a seven-game stretch with 19 points, preceded by a 16-point game against ASU en route to her second U.S. Bank Pac-10 Player of the Week honor of the year ? only the fourth time an Oregon player has been honored more than once in a season and first since Arianne Boyer did it in 1997 (Kasperski, three times 1989; Landerholm, twice 1987). On Jan. 27, Davis lit up the scoreboard against UCLA with a career-high 28 points. It was the most points scored by an Oregon player since Cathrine Kraayeveld had 33 against Santa Clara in 2002. Davis is in fourth place on Oregon’s all-time 3-pointers list with 142. Davis leads the team with 44 baskets from 3-point range this year and led the team with 43 last year and 54 in 2002-03.
In the RPI
What’s Happened Ducks vs. Washington (Sat., March 5, at San Jose) Bills Nears Double-Figure Scoring List Ball Control Bills Picked Pac-10 Player of the Week Fast Starters Foreign Flavor St. Eleanor’s Fire Other MIA Ducks
Oregon is No. 48 in the WBCA/Summerville RPI and No. 49 according to
Ducks vs. Arizona State (Sun., March 6, at San Jose)
Arizona State capitalized on four Oregon turnovers in the final 2:31 to win 54-47 in the semifinals of the State Farm Pac-10 Tournament at HP Pavilion. Oregon led 47-43 on two Kristen Forristall free throws at the 2:31 mark. Emily Westerberg countered with two running lay-ins to tie it at 47 apiece. A tough turnaround 8-foot baseline jumper by Aubree Johnson gave the Sun Devils a lead they wouldn’t lose. Meanwhile, the Ducks missed on their final five field goal attempts in the last five minutes. Oregon grabbed its largest lead of the game at 37-29 with 13:19 left, thanks to a suffocating defense that forced Arizona State into 1-of-16 shooting to open the second half. The Sun Devils chipped away at the lead and tied it at 37 all on a Westerberg lay-in. Cathrine Kraayeveld led Oregon with 14 points while Andrea Bills was the Ducks’ other double-digit scorer with 11 to go with five rebounds. Johnson had 14 to lead Arizona State and Westerberg scored 12. Oregon forced Arizona State into 32 percent shooting while the Ducks made 37 percent, but just 29 percent after halftime. Corrie Mizusawa, who had eight points, five rebounds and three assists for the Ducks, set the single-season assists standard with 193. She claimed the record on a pass to Kraayeveld for a lay-up four-and-a-half minutes into the game.
Andrea Bills and Cathrine Kraayeveld each notched double-doubles as Oregon won 64-50 in the quarterfinals of the State Farm Pac-10 Tournament. Kraayeveld had 20 points and 10 boards ? her ninth double-double this year ? while Bills scored 18 and also grabbed 10 rebounds ? as the No. 2-seed Ducks won their first conference tournament game since 2002. Washington, which had soundly beaten Oregon in Seattle Feb. 12, ends its season with a 14-16 mark. Oregon, which trailed by as many as seven in the first half, used a 14-2 run the final 5:31 to lead 30-25 at halftime. The Huskies fought back to take a 36-34 lead with 16:24 remaining, but a 3-pointer by Kaela Chapdelaine and baskets by Kraayeveld, Bills and Kristen Forristall sparked the Ducks to an 11-3 run and a lead they would not relinquish. In all, Oregon dominated the paint, outrebounding Washington 54-39, and scored the majority of its baskets on lay-ups. Last month in Seattle, the Huskies had a 13-rebound advantage as the Ducks played without their leading rebounder Kraayeveld. Bills made 8-of-12 from the field in only 17 minutes. Freshman Gabrielle Richards also provided a lift off the bench with 10 points and seven rebounds to go with two blocked shots. The Huskies, playing without leading scorer Kayla Burt (flu), had one double-digit scorer, Cameo Hicks (17). Oregon’s defense held Washington, the tournament’s No. 7 seed, to its second-fewest points all season. It was the fourth time this season Bills and Kraayeveld had a double-double in the same game, with the Ducks winning all four.
Andrea Bills’ 62 double-figure scoring games ranks 11th all-time. She needs just one more to break into UO’s top 10.
Oregon’s six turnovers Jan. 8 against Oregon State were its fewest in a game in school history, according to available records. In addition, the Ducks’ seven-turnover game against nationally-ranked Ohio State was their second-lowest turnover mark ever. The previous low-turnover game was eight, which had happened many times. Oregon has the third-fewest turnovers in the Pac-10 with 472. Oregon is 6-8 when turning the ball over more than its opponent, compared to 14-1 when having the same or fewer.
Andrea Bills was picked the U.S. Bank Pac-10 Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for Dec. 22-29. Bills, who led Oregon to a home sweep of California and then-No. 5 Stanford, averaged 14.0 points, 10.5 rebounds and shot 10-of-16 (62.5 percent) from the field and 8-of-11 (72.7) from the foul line for the week. It was Oregon’s first honoree since Cathrine Kraayeveld did it in February 2002.
Oregon tied the school record this year for consecutive wins to open a season (seven) since it joined the Pac-10 in 1986-87. The Ducks also began the 1996-97 season at 7-0. The all-time record is 21 in 1978-79.
With five players from outside the U.S., the Ducks are tied for sixth in the country among Division I programs. Florida International and Long Island share the distinction of having the most foreign players with seven apiece. Arizona is the next Pac-10 team on the list with two foreigners on its roster. Among Canadian players, only Utah (five), Vermont (five), Canisius (four) and Quinnipiac (four) have more than Oregon (three).
Sophomore Eleanor Haring hit on her first nine shots and finished 10-of-11 from the field ? the 10th best field-goal percentage (.909) in a single game in Oregon history ? also tied for the 12th-best single-game shooting performance in the nation in 2004-05.
Junior guard Chelsea Wagner (Springfield, Ore.) tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee Jan. 13 against Washington to end her season. She was leading the Pac-10 in 3-pointers per game (2.5) at the time of her injury and underwent surgery Feb. 14 in Eugene. Senior guard/forward Kedzie Gunderson (Bellevue, Wash.) tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee in a wake-boarding accident last July. Meanwhile, junior forward/center Carolyn Ganes (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) decided to take a redshirt this season.
