In 5 A.D., Ducks Chase Ncaa Berth Smith Has Been Heart, Soul Of Oregon Hoops In Past Five Years

The guys to the left of A.D. Smith on the bench have changed. So have the guys to the right. In fact, for five years the only thing that has remained the same at the Oregon men’s basketball program is Smith. Well, there is one other thing that has remained a constant in the Oregon basketball program over the last five years - winning.

You don’t necessarily need Robert Stack’s help to solve that mystery, do you? But for those a little lacking in the core math requirements, here is a breakdown. Only once in Smith’s five years have the Ducks had a losing record. And that year was the first year of a new system with an entirely new coaching staff and many new faces. Still the Ducks finished a respectable 13-14 overall and 8-10 in one of the country’s toughest conferences.

Last year, in Smith’s junior campaign, the Ducks reached the NIT semifinals. This year, with Smith’s 15.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per game leading the way, the Ducks are 12-3.

The last time Oregon was off to such a solid beginning (1994-95) Smith was a senior at Churchill High in Eugene. That was also the last time the Ducks made it to the NCAA Tournament. Until, perhaps, dare we say, this year?

“That’s the goal,” said Smith. “That’s the goal every year. I don’t think anybody on this team would be satisfied with anything less than winning the national championship. I know I wouldn’t.”

That may be jumping the gun a little bit. After all there are still the Cincinnatis, Dukes, Stanfords and Arizonas of the world to hurdle. But there is little doubt around the Pac-10 that the Ducks are legitimate contenders for at least some glory and highlights in the conference.

“Oregon is a very athletic and efficient team,” said Washington’s Bob Bender. “They play uptempo, and can be aggressive and score a bunch of points on you because they shoot the ball so well.”

Bender should know. His Huskies bowed out in an overtime game at home against the Ducks on Thursday night. Now, with a game against Washington State today, the Ducks are trying to make it a clean sweep in the state of Washington for the first time since 1994. If Smith and his team can accomplish that, they will be in the thick of the Pac-10 race at 4-1.

“We have always been a pretty good road team and we have already beat Oregon State at their place,” said Smith. “So if we can come back 2-0, I think we would feel that we are certainly in contention (for the Pac-10 crown).”

If the Ducks could get all their players hitting on the same night, they might be taking hat measurements. Oregon coach Ernie Kent’s lament all season is that, night in and night out, he has not had six or seven guys playing at the same level like Arizona and Stanford do. Instead, Smith goes out and has a big game one night. Alex Scales has one the next night. Then Freddie Jones or Darius Wright might step it up.

“We have a lot of weapons,” said Smith. “And there is going to be a night that everybody is going off. The three seniors (Smith, Wright and Scales), we are all capable of putting up 20 on the same night.”

That’s just what the Ducks did as they stormed into the finals of the Rainbow Classic. But the final of the Classic was indicative of Oregon’s big problem. The Ducks faced Hawaii in the game, a team that doesn’t have as much talent as the Ducks. But Oregon lost. Prior to that, the Ducks lost at home to Cal State Northridge.

Now comes Pullman and Washington State, the Pac-10’s only 0-fer team. If the Ducks have another sobering hiccup in their season of merriment, this game could certainly be it.

“Pullman has always been a tough place to play,” said Smith. “My first year there was when Ike Fontaine and Mark Hendrickson were still there and they really had things going. The place was packed and the crowd was loud. It was amazing.

“It’s not like that anymore,” he continued. “But they are still a team that has talent and you can’t overlook them.”