Washington State Looks to Beat Ducks in Eugene for First Time Since 2009
With just four games left in the season, the Oregon Ducks do not have much time if the team wants to edge Arizona for the conference championship. The Ducks have Washington State, Washington, UCLA, and USC left on the schedule. This Wednesday’s game against Washington State will prove to be very important.
The Washington State Cougars (9-18, 1-14) only have one conference win this season and have all but clinched last place in the Pac-12. The Cougars only conference win came against UCLA. The Cougars were not much better out of conference play this year either. They currently are 0-10 against top 50 RPI opponents.
The Cougars “Big Three” of Josh Hawkinson, Ike Iroegbu, and Que Johnson have combined for an average of 39.8 points per game, 16.6 rebounds per game, and 6 assists per game. Hawkinson is one of only 26 players in the nation who is averaging a double-double.
Despite the lofty statistics put up by certain players, the Cougars have thoroughly disappointed fans. Washington State has not won a game since early January. Since then, they have lost 13 straight games by an average of almost 17 points per contest.
The Ducks (21-6, 10-4), on the other hand, are second in the Pac-12 behind Arizona and are almost a sure lock for the NCAA tournament. The team has dominated the Pac-12’s best in Arizona and Utah and the Ducks have nine wins against top 50 RPI teams.
Freshman guard Tyler Dorsey has come alive over the past two games, scoring 14 against Stanford, and tying his career high against Oregon State with 25 points. The Ducks have been up and down as of late. They lost to both California and Stanford on the road, but beat in-state rival, Oregon State, at home.
With the team’s recent win over Oregon State, the Ducks continue to win at home. The team has won the past 23 games at Matthew Knight Arena, which is the fourth longest active home winning streak in the nation. With a win against Washington State, the Ducks will break the school record for longest home winning streak.
Dorsey said the home winning streak is huge to the team’s success. “It’s the atmosphere. It’s the fans. They get us going and we have to protect home court. We know what we have to do,” said Dorsey.
Washington State does not have much to play for other than pride at this point in the season. They will look to play spoiler against the Ducks and win their first game in Eugene since 2009. Tip-off is at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.
