The Washington basketball team arrives int he Willamette Valley tonight favored to sweep the series against Oregon and Oregon State on paper. The Ducks are down a bit this year and the Beavers are rebuilding as usual.
The biggest obstacle they will face tonight isn't on paper. What they will face tonight are the crazy Oregon fans who have turned Mac Court into the ultimate basketball pit over the years. The "oregon realize they are part of the game and you can shave five points off about every sports line when they are avidly participating in a basketball game.
When Nate Robinson used to play here the Oregon fans began calling him Gary Coleman and used to waive cut out faces of the actor at him. Expect freshman guard Isaiah Thomas to get some of that star treatment tonight.
I'm expecting the same thing Nate had," Thomas said. "They're going to come after me. I like it. It's humorous. It's funny. As long as we're winning, it doesn't matter. I can't wait to see what they've got."
The Ducks (6-10, 0-4) are a young team this season that starts two freshman. Center Michael Dunigan and guard Garrett Sim are getting quality minutes as they feel their way through Pac 10 play.
LeKendric Longmire, who had 15 points and eight rebounds and did a good job defending ASU star James Harden, said confidence is an issue.
"The team confidence is a little down, of course," Longmire said. "It's going to be down when you lose games you feel you can win."
Game notes:
Brockman. The big man needs eight rebounds to become the Huskies' career leader, surpassing Doug Smart's record of 1,051 that has stood for 50 years.
The UW still leads the nation in rebound margin at 11 more per game.
Oregon and UW are among the poorest free throw shooting teams in the Pac 10.