WSU Standout Falls Down, Then Cougs Go Boom Botched Layup Boosts Oregon Toward Victory

Thump!

When Washington State center Yvonne Kunze hit the floor hard Saturday afternoon in a women’s basketball game against the University of Oregon, the hopes of a Cougars upset also went crashing.

Physically, Kunze was OK, but with the Cougars trailing by two points in the final 42 seconds, the outcome rested heavily on Kunze, who was driving in for a layup. She tripped, teammate Tricia Lamb and Oregon’s Lisa Bowyer became entangled going for the loose ball, and Lamb was whistled for a foul, sending Bowyer to the line as Oregon continued on its way to a 62-57 road win.

“I tripped,” said Kunze, who finished with 12 points and a team-high six rebounds. “The pass was so high I was glad I caught it. And then I saw myself on the ground.

“There was pushing and shoving the whole game. They’re very aggressive and were very physical.”

The win was the Ducks’ 10th in 11 meetings, including an earlier tour nament victory this season, against WSU and pushed their record to 8-6, 4-2 in the Pac-10. The Cougars, whose win-one, lose-one cycle has reached four straight, dropped to 8-6, 2-3. But this one had coach Harold Rhodes spinning.

“We’re just kind of puzzled,” said Rhodes, venting his frustration over the lopsided free-throw shooting. UO was called for 14 fouls to WSU’s 20. The Ducks attempted 23 free throws and converted 17, including 3 of 4 down the stretch. The Cougars were 8 of 9 from the line.

Alke Dietel, WSU’s leading scoring with 18 points, was called for three fouls in the second half in a span of 1 minute. She sat on the bench with four fouls with 8:50 left in the game and the Ducks leading 43-42. Dietel, a 22-year-old freshman forward who’s as big a threat with her outside shot, returned with 4:15 left to play and Cougars ahead 52-50.

The lead went back and forth until UO’s Natalie Hughes scored on a jumper with 46 seconds remaining to give the Ducks a 59-57 lead. Hughes finished with 19 points on 6-of-15 shooting.

WSU’s next trip downcourt ended with Kunze on the floor underneath the hoop and Lamb scrambling for the ball. Rhodes claims Kunze didn’t just trip, but rather, “she was tripped by Oregon center Angelina Wolvert.”

“It’s just ridiculous,” continued Rhodes. “You can’t play the game.

They’re out there mugging people left and right, hitting and slapping you in the face and you get fouled. That’s garbage.”

In 14 games this season, Oregon has been called for 261 fouls vs. 336 for its opponents. The Ducks have attempted 402 free throws to their opponents’ 270. In Thursday’s win at Washington, UO was 24 of 35 from the line and the Huskies were 5 of 11.

“People complain about that all the time,” Oregon coach Jody Runge said. “But we don’t foul. We’re not up there trying to block shots, we’re not trying to work the steal. We play people straight up. How can you call what’s not out there to call?”

WSU’s Jennifer Kerns finished with 14 points, and hit two clutch 3-pointers.

Oregon 62, Washington St. 57

Oregon (8-6, 4-2) - Strange 1-2 0-0 2, Meharry 3-5 3-4 9, Wolvert 2-3 0-0 4, Hughes 6-15 4-4 19, Bowyer 1-6 5-8 8, Piers 0-3 0-0 0, O’Brien 2-7 0-0 5, McKnight 0-2 0-0 0, Thorne 0-1 0-0 0, Dion 1-3 1-1 3, Benson 0-1 0-1 0, Curtis 4-6 4-5 12. Totals 20-54 17-23 62.

Washington State (8-6, 2-3) - Dietel 7-17 2-2 18, Evans 1-7 0-0 2, Kunze 6-9 0-0 12, Nyseth 0-0 0-0 0, Lamb 1-7 2-2 4, Harrod 0-0 0-0 0, Smith 1-2 0-0 3, Kerns 4-7 4-4 14, Volkman 1-5 0-0 2, Quinton 0-1 0-0 0, Rubio 1-6 0-1 2. Totals 22-61 8-9 57.

Halftime - Oregon 27, Washington State 25. 3-point goals - Oregon 5-23 (Hughes 3-9, O’Brien 1-4, Bowyer 1-5, Meharry 0-1, Piers 0-1, Benson 0-1, McKnight 0-2), Washington State 5-20 (Kerns 2-4, Dietel 2-7, Smith 1-2, Volkman 0-3, Lamb 0-4). Fouled out - None. Rebounds - Oregon 43 (Bowyer, Curtis 8), Washington State 37 (Kunze 6). Assists - Oregon 8 (Hughes, Bowyer, Curtis 2), Washington State 16 (Lamb, Kerns, Volkman 3). Total fouls - Oregon 14, Washington State 20. Technicals - None. A - NA.

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