Eagles to face Ducks

Eastern Washington makes its second postseason women’s basketball appearance, and first in 23 years, with a bittersweet trip to Oregon.

The Eagles (19-11) face the Ducks (16-15) in the first round of the Women’s NIT on Thursday night, a rematch of an opening week game in Eugene.

Oregon, in its first game under offensive-mind coach Paul Westhead, rolled to an 86-48 win.

“We feel honored and privileged just to have another opportunity to play,” Eagles coach Wendy Schuller said. “It’s another great step forward for the direction we want our program to go.

“We know that Oregon is a great team. They proved throughout the season that they were a team to be reckoned with in the Pac-10. But we could have told people that early in the year.”

The WNIT was guaranteed when EWU won the Big Sky Conference regulation-season championship, if they didn’t win the league tournament. The Eagles lost in the semifinals at Reese Court on Friday.

After the debacle in Eugene, Eastern went on to forge a defensive identity, giving up about 61 points a game, while the Ducks continued to fly, averaging more than 81 points a game, fourth in the nation.

“They have a pressing, high-tempo offense,” Schuller said. “They really like to shoot the 3 and have players that can score. They want to get up and down the court, much like we faced against Sacramento State but with Pac-10-calibre players.

“Having faced them before and having faced that style in our league will help prepare us for the challenge ahead. It’s tough playing in Eugene but the positive is that there will be some familiarity and it won’t be a totally foreign experience to us.”

The winner will play the winner of Wednesday’s Southern Methodist vs. New Mexico game.

UW to WBI

The University of Washington women’s basketball team has reached its first postseason event in four years.

The Huskies on Monday accepted a bid to the inaugural, 16-team Women’s Basketball Invitational. Washington (12-17) will host Portland (18-12) on Wednesday night.