Wounded Ducks still fearsome for WSU

COUGARS

The Cougars held a late practice at Mac Court Friday afternoon, as WSU coach Tony Bennett wanted to give them some rest after Thursday night’s overtime win over Oregon State. They shot, they ran through their entries and in-bounds plays and they went over what they expect the Ducks to do. Typical day-before-a-game practice. We watched, then did a couple of interviews. Our advance that will be in tomorrow’s S-R appears in its unedited version on the link. Read on.
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EUGENE, Ore. – You wouldn’t think a flock of wounded Ducks would be the most feared beasts in the Northwest right now, but the group that congregates at Mac Court actually is. At least for Tony Bennett.

“Having not won a (Pac-10) game, being 0-5, they are going to put up a heck of a fight,” the Washington State coach said Friday as his team prepared for this morning’s conference battle with the University of Oregon.

“I’m sure it will be a physical game and quite a battle, considering the circumstances for them.”

Those circumstances include a 4-5 record at usually raucous Mac Court for the 6-11 Ducks, last in the Pac-10 standings and in seven statistical categories, including scoring defense and field goal percentage defense. That usually wouldn’t be all that bad for an Ernie Kent-coached team, because oftentimes they just outscore opponents.

But not this freshman-dominated group – two start and six play heavy minutes. It is the worst shooting team in the Pac-10, hitting just 41 percent of its shots.

The Ducks are playing so poorly that even the Mac Court edge, usually the most feared in the conference, has abated.

“We were shocked when we first came in, because we usually hear the fans when we get off the bus,” Washington guard Justin Dentmon told the Eugene Register-Guard after Thursday’s 84-67 UW win, adding the quiet crowd was “way, way not what we expected.”

Which makes WSU (10-6, 2-2 in the Pac-10) senior Daven Harmeling, making his fifth trip to Eugene, wary.

“Oregon fans have a lot of pride because they have such great tradition here, so not only will the players be hungry, I think the fans will be riled up, form those comments too,” Harmeling said. “It will be the most hostile environment we’ve ever seen against probably the hungriest team we’ve seen.”

NOTES: Bennett has started to adjust his lineup to the opposition more than he has in the past. Freshman DeAngelo Casto made his first start in the 61-57 overtime win at Oregon State and another freshman, guard Marcus Capers (shown in an Associated Press photo above) , may start against the Ducks. “I think I’m going to start him (today), to get him going,” Bennett said of Capers, who played 20 minutes against the Beavers. “With young guys you never know of bringing them off the bench relaxes them more or starting them. Hard to say.” … Harmeling said he’s not going to tell the freshmen what they’ll get from Duck fans. “It’s not much you can do to prepare them for it,” he said. Mac Court’s life expectancy is a short one – Oregon expects to open its new facility for the 2010 Pac-10 season – but Harmeling said it is his favorite place to play “because of the uniqueness of the gym. … It’s just an awesome place to play a college basketball game.” … Junior Tajuan Porter leads the Ducks in scoring, averaging 13.1 points a game. Undersized post Joevan Catron is their top rebounder at 6.9 per game, despite playing inside at 6-foot-6. … WSU defeated the Ducks three times last season. The win in Eugene, behind Taylor Rochestie’s 21 points, snapped a 13-year losing streak on Mac Court.

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• That’s it for tonight. With the early start tomorrow (11 a.m. on FSN) the Cougars will be up early for their pregame meal at 8:30. Then it’s a quick walk to get acclimated and the short bus trip to UO. How do you think the 11 a.m. start will affect WSU? The Cougars will be playing more this season. Let me know. We’ll be back tomorrow morning before the game, combining our usual links and pregame thoughts into one post. Till then …