Oregon

2008 Maui Invitation Bracket Announced

Press Release — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 15:43:20 -0700

MAUI, Hawaii, Aug. 5, 2008 – The EA SPORTS Maui Invitational today announced the official bracket for the 2008 edition of the nation’s premier early-season college basketball tournament. Marking its milestone 25^th year, the eight-team competition will return to Maui’s ocean-front Lahaina Civic Center Nov.24-26.

Battling this year for the coveted Wayne Duke Championship Trophy, will be North Carolina, Notre Dame, Texas, Indiana, Oregon, Saint Joseph’s, Alabama and host Chaminade. Six of the seven Division I teams in the 2008 lineup participated in the 2008 NCAA Tournament, highlighted by North Carolina’s Final Four appearance and Texas’ run to the Elite Eight. The field also includes three former national champions – North Carolina, Indiana and Oregon – with 10 NCAA titles between them.

The ESPN networks will combine once again to offer live television coverage of all 12 tournament games. In addition, ESPN360.com will provide live simulcasts of the games televised on ESPN and ESPN2.

“Throughout its history the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational has become synonymous with the kickoff of the college basketball season,” said Tournament Chairman Dave Gavitt. “We look forward to commemorating the tournament’s 25^th year with another impressive field vying for Maui glory. Fans from across the nation can look forward to a memorable experience, on and off the court.”

First-round action tips off Thanksgiving week on Monday, Nov. 24, with Game One featuring Atlantic 10 team and Maui newcomer, Saint Joseph’s, led by coach Phil Martelli, against 2008 Elite Eight participant and three-time Maui team, Texas, under head coach Rick Barnes. The winner of this game will take on the winner of Game Two, pitting in-state rivals for battle as five-time national champion and 2002 Maui champ, Indiana, guided by new coach Tom Crean, will face head coach Mike Brey and Notre Dame, a growing BIG EAST force returning for a second appearance at the Lahaina Civic Center. Four-time national champion and two-time Maui titleholder, North Carolina, will hit the hardwood in Game Three, as Hall of Famer Roy Williams pilots his highly touted Tar Heels in a contest with 2008 PacWest Conference champion and tournament host Chaminade, which pulled off an upset over Princeton in Maui last year. The winner of that game will square off with the winner of Game Four, which pairs two teams making their Maui debut: head coach Ernie Kent will call the shots when former national champion and 2007 Pac-10 Conference titleholder, Oregon, plays against the Crimson Tide of Alabama, a Mark Gottfried-led team looking to make its mark in paradise.

The semifinals will take place Tuesday, Nov. 25 at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Eastern time on ESPN, with the winners advancing to the championship game Wednesday, Nov. 26 at 10 p.m. Eastern (also on ESPN).

Cheerleader of the Day: Oregon

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 08:58:19 -0700

Cheerleader of the Day

Thanks to our friends over at Icon Sports Media, we have access to thousands of great college & NBA basketball photos to use on the site. Each day, along with our Picture of the Day, we'll be featuring a Cheerleader of the Day. After a brief mid-summer run of NBA dancers, we're back with college girls..

Oregon: Archived

- Check out past Cheerleaders of the Day!

- Also check out the Picture of the Day!

Poll: Who is the Pac-10's Top Incoming Freshman?

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 06:17:48 -0700

Rise and Fall: Pac-10 Program Review

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:19:22 -0700

Like civilizations, all great basketball programs eventually fall.. replaced by an upstart newcomer. In this week's Rise & Fall series, we'll take a look at which BCS programs are rising, falling, or merely treading water. Up today, the:

PAC-10

ARIZONA - DECLINING (SLOWLY )

While the Brandon Jennings loss hurts, its not the end of the world for this storied program. In fact, a steady decline has been occurring for the last handful of seasons. Bracketing the turn of the century, the Wildcats were a Top 10 RPI team in 8 of 10 seasons, but its hard to imagine those lofty heights being met in the near future. The talent level just isn't what it once was, and with this group, just making the Big Dance will be an accomplishment.

ARIZONA STATE - RISING

In Tempe, there's definitely (and finally) positive momentum building. Herb Sendek was obviously the first key, followed by the big catch of James Harden. With Harden back for another season, some are suggesting this is a Top 15 team. While I wouldn't go that far, this should be the best ASU team since at least 2003 (RPI of 32), and possibly as far back as the mid-nineties.

CALIFORNIA - DECLINING (SLOWLY )

While you might think this program is in a freefall, the reality is that the Bears haven't been good since 2003 (2006 being a flukey interlude). Last year's team won only 6 league games.. and that was with Ryan Anderson and DeVon Hardin. It would be an amazing accomplishment for new coach Mike Montgomery to match that total. Montgomery and stud recruit DJ Seeley prevent Cal from dropping into the Declining (Quickly) category, but it will take some time to get things back on the right track.

OREGON - STATUS QUO

The Ducks have been frustratingly mediocre for the last decade. In fact, there's only been one Top 30 team in the past 8 years. Last year's experienced team blahed it up to a 9-9 Pac-10 record (the NCAA bid simply being a result of the league's undeserved hype). While the roster turns over with some talented kids coming in, another similar mediocre effort should be in store. For whatever reason, the administration is satisfied with this state of affairs (recently extending Kent's contract), but I'm not as easily impressed.

OREGON STATE - DECLINING (QUICKLY)

In a sense, this is an unfair assessment. Last year's results were such an embarrassment (to not only the program, but D1 basketball in general) that there's really nowhere to go but up. But maybe I'm wrong.. their RPI trend is from 103, to 176, to 198, to 276.. leaving 40 more spots for OSU to fall. (In reality, the Pac-10 schedule strength creates a floor around 280 or so that OSU couldn't possibly fall through unless they literally didn't win a game all season).

STANFORD - STATUS QUO

Last year was impressive, but the Lopez twins were the main reason why. Now they should be back to the trend set in 05-06-07, about 17 wins and an RPI of 60. If anything, it might be a little worse this year, but those middling NIT-type teams should be the norm in the near future.

UCLA - STATUS QUO

Ben Howland has already completed one of the all-time great turnarounds.. turning an 11-win program into a three-time Final Four participant in less than a blink of the eye. Now, there's really nowhere to go but down. But considering the monster class heading to Westwood and the return of Darren Collison, another Final Four trip is certainly within reason. When Final Fours become the "status quo", you know you're doing a great job.

USC - RISING (SLOWLY)

While the one-year OJ Mayo era might simply be replaced by the one-year Demar DeRozan era.. Tim Floyd has already done a good job getting the Trojans back on track. In the last four years, the RPI has risen every season.. and this year's crew should once again fall in the Top 25-30 range. The next step for the program (now that they have the Galen Center) is to add the needed depth that will sustain the growth for years to come.

WASHINGTON - DECLINING (SLOWLY)

From 3rd in the country in 2005, the Huskies RPI has dropped from 35 to 81 to 121.. pretty brutal stuff. But they avoid the dreaded "Declining Quickly" category because I expect big-time improvement this season due to the return of Jon Brockman and an impressive recruiting class. Still, this was a program that was seemingly all the rage a handful of years ago, and now Lorenzo Romar and crew barely register on the national radar.

WASHINGTON STATE - RISING (SLOWLY)

Coming off two of the most improbable Top 25 seasons in college basketball history.. WSU is now at a crossroads. Do they begin the steady slide back into the dark & dank confines of the conference cellar, or does Tony Bennett ride the wave and build up a legitimate Top 25 program? Based on this year's loaded recruiting class (for WSU's standards), the latter seems more likely. While a major drop-off should be expected with Weaver, Low, etc gone.. the future is still bright in Pullman.

- up next & last is the SEC -

Additional Resources:

Rise & Fall: ACC

Rise & Fall: Big East

Rise & Fall: Big Ten

Oregon Announces 2008-09 Schedule

Press Release — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 12:51:28 -0700

NOVEMBER

OPPONENT LOCATION TV TIME

2 Sunday NORTHWEST CHRISTIAN (EX) McArthur Court TBA
9 Sunday SOUTHERN OREGON (EX) McArthur Court TBA
14 Friday NORTHERN COLORADO McArthur Court TBA
17 Monday OAKLAND McArthur Court TBA
21 Friday at UC Irvine Irvine, Calif. TBA
24 Monday & Maui Invitational Lahaina, Hawaii TBA
25 Tuesday & Maui Invitational Lahaina, Hawaii TBA
26 Wednesday & Maui Invitational Lahaina, Hawaii TBA

DECEMBER
3 Wednesday at Utah Salt Lake City, Utah TBA
7 Sunday KANSAS STATE McArthur Court TBA
13 Saturday % SAN DIEGO Rose Garden TBA
17 Wednesday SAINT MARY’S McArthur Court TBA
20 Saturday PORTLAND McArthur Court TBA
29 Monday LONG BEACH STATE McArthur Court TBA

JANUARY
2 Friday # USC McArthur Court TBA
4 Sunday # UCLA McArthur Court TBA
8 Thursday # at Arizona Tucson, Ariz. TBA
10 Saturday # at Arizona State Tempe, Ariz. TBA
15 Thursday # WASHINGTON McArthur Court TBA
17 Saturday # WASHINGTON STATE McArthur Court TBA
22 Thursday # at Stanford Stanford, Calif. TBA
24 Saturday # at California Berkeley, Calif. TBA
31 Saturday # at Oregon State Corvallis, Ore. TBA

FEBRUARY
5 Thursday # ARIZONA STATE McArthur Court TBA
7 Saturday # ARIZONA McArthur Court TBA
12 Thursday # at Washington State Pullman, Wash. TBA
14 Saturday # at Washington Seattle, Wash. TBA
19 Thursday # CALIFORNIA McArthur Court TBA
21 Saturday # STANFORD McArthur Court TBA
28 Saturday # OREGON STATE McArthur Court TBA

MARCH
5 Thursday # at UCLA Los Angeles, Calif. TBA
7 Saturday # at USC Los Angeles, Calif. TBA
11-14 Wed.-Sat. + Pac-10 Tournament Los Angeles, Calif. FSN/CBS TBA
19-22 Thurs.-Sun. NCAA 1st & 2nd Rounds TBA CBS TBA
26-29 Thurs.-Sun. NCAA Regionals TBA CBS TBA
4/4-6 Sat.-Mon. NCAA Final Four Detroit, Mich. CBS TBA

Malik Hairston: NBA Draft Profile

Jeff Fox — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 07:46:12 -0700

Rudy Mbemba

College: Oregon

Class: Senior

Position: SG/SF

Height: 6’6”

Weight: 220lbs

Accolades: Honorable Mention All-Pac-10 (08), NCAA All-Midwest Regional Team (07), Honorable Mention All-Pac-10 (06), Pac-10 All-Freshman Team (05), McDonald’s All-American – high school (04), First Team Parade All-American – high school (04).

Scouting Report: A high school phenom who disappointed in college.

Strengths: Strong build. Good wingspan. Great three-point shooter – shot around 43% from deep his junior and senior years. Good rebounder for a guard. Good leaper. Shoots for a great percentage for a guard – 52.5 % this past season. Proven scorer in college – over 1600 points for his career. Very experienced – played four years of big minutes in the Pac-10.

Weaknesses: Needs to improve his ball-handling for the pros. Has to improve his assist to turnover ratio – almost had as many turnovers as assists in his collegiate career. Was thought of as an underachiever in college. Isn’t extraordinary in any aspect of the game.

Projected 2008 Draft Range: Mid second round pick to undrafted.

Consensus: Despite having a real solid collegiate career, Hairston never lived up to the huge hype surrounding him coming out of high school. He will have to reverse that and overachieve to be really successful in the NBA.

Stats: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=22482

CHN's Six-Star Ranking System

= Superstar/All-NBA Potential

= Potential NBA All-Star

= Consistent NBA Starter

= 6th Man/Fringe Starter

= Career Reserve

= Fringe NBA Player/12th Man

0 stars = Life in the Minor Leagues

More 2008 NBA Draft Profiles

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Straight-Forward Tourney Commentary: Overrated Teams

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 13:24:32 -0700

This column is not the place for in-depth team information (which you can find here), or in-depth game previews (which you can find here).. this here is all about straight-forward, honest, to-the-point, useful NCAA Tournament commentary:

Overrated Teams

Vanderbilt (4)

Why? 7-7 away from home is rather pathetic for a 4 seed, especially considering their best non-home win was on a neutral floor against 71st ranked Utah State. Luckily for the Commodores, Siena shouldn't be an issue in the first round.. but they might not make it past the Round of 32.

Davidson (10)

Why? Everybody loves to love Davidson and Stephen Curry. But they didn't even win a single Top 100 game all year. The only other tournament team with a similar mark of futility is 15th seeded Belmont. If Davidson was also a 15 seed, I'd say they were dangerous and capable of surprising someone, but they're overseeded as a 10. No doubt they'll give Gonzaga a serious run in Round One, but too many people will fall in love with the Wildcats.

Kansas (1)

Why? The Jayhawks only decent non-conference win was against USC early in the year. In fact, you could argue that their only other decent win all year was in the Big 12 Title game against Texas. The Jayhawks looked good on Sunday, but I don't think they're built to make a deep tourney run. Mainly for two reasons: A) I don't trust Bill Self's coaching ability compared to the other big-timers like Howland, Coach K, and Calipari. B) They lack a true go-to star, which will hurt them down the stretch.

Arizona (10)

Why? This bothers me because I've always tended to like the Wildcats.. but really this team is a fraud. In the last month, they have one win over a top 250 ranked team. Considering Oregon State is basically a D2 team, you could say Zona finished 2-8 against D1 teams. Jerryd Bayless is no doubt a stud talent, but Chase Budinger seems unwilling to become a big-time player, and its not fair for Bayless to have to do everything for them to win. If you think Beasley plays a big role for Kansas State, then Bayless take it to another level. He's often a one-man team.

Oregon (9)

Why? I'm not suggesting Oregon doesn't deserve to be a tourney team, but a 9 seed was oddly high. None of the numbers suggest the Ducks will do damage beyond the opening round. 6-10 away from home is weak.. 5-5 to finish the season is weak.. and just 4 wins in 13 tries against Top 50 teams is weaker. There's no doubt Oregon can beat Mississippi St in the opening round, but the #9 seed wasn't fair to begin with.

Kentucky (11)

Why? Is the March version of Kentucky really that much better than the December version that lost to Garder Webb, Houston, UAB, and San Diego? Sure the Wildcats have improved somewhat in recent months, but the gaudy 12-4 SEC record is mostly due to the overrated nature of the entire conference. There was no greater proof of the league's mediocrity than Georgia's run through the SEC tournament. The Wildcats 4-8 record away from home is one of the worst amongst Top 100 RPI teams. In fact the only one's with a worse record are Oklahoma St, Nebraska, and Wake Forest.. ie, NIT teams. Kentucky is basically a glorified NIT team.

- My Underrated Teams will be up soon.

Today's Poll: What is the Biggest Bracket Surprise?

Shawn Siegel — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 22:22:20 -0700

2008 NCAA Tournament Capsule: Oregon

Joel Welser — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 21:52:42 -0700

Oregon Ducks

Pac-10 (18-13, 9-9)

Seed: #9

South Region

RPI: 58

Big Wins: 11/29 at Kansas State (80-77), 1/5 at Arizona (84-74), 1/13 Stanford (71-66)

Bad Losses: 12/15 at Nebraska (79-88), 12/22 vs Oakland (62-68), 1/17 at Washington (70-78)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2007, Elite Eight loss to Florida

Coach: Ernie Kent (6-5 in 5 NCAA appearances)

Probable Starters:

Tajuan Porter, Sophomore, Guard, 13.8 ppg, 2.4 apg

Bryce Taylor, Senior, Guard, 13.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg

Malik Hairston, Senior, Guard, 16.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg

Joevan Catron, Sophomoire, Forward, 9.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg

Marty Leunen, Senior, Forward, 15.2 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 2.8 apg

Key Roleplayers:

Kamyron Brown, Freshman, Guard, 4.4 ppg, 3.2 apg

LeKendric Longmire, Freshman, Guard, 3.8 ppg, 1.5 rpg

Chuchill Odia, Junior, Guard, 1.8 ppg, 1.4 rpg

Why They Can Surprise:

Oregon certainly does not lack in perimeter weapons. Malik Hairston is dangerous from anywhere on the floor and can approach the 30 point plateau on any given day. However, Hairston also disappears at times and has about a half dozen games in which he failed to score double-digits. Even when Hairston fails to score, it does not mean the Ducks are in trouble. Hairston will do more than score and there are plenty of other options who would be more than happy to take some of Hairston’s points.

The diminutive Tajuan Porter is not shooting anywhere close to what he was last year from behind the arc, but the sophomore is still a very dangerous outside shooter. At 5-6, Porter can sneak into the paint and score some points, but he will spend most of his time jacking up three’s, for better or for worse. Bryce Taylor is a lot like Hairston, but slightly less effective. He can hit the three-ball, grab some boards, get to the basket and put up tons of points in a hurry.

Why They Can Disappoint:

While the team has five players who can take over a game, the Ducks lack a true floor leader like they had last year with Aaron Brooks. In Brooks’ absence an already average defense has gotten worse and Oregon will not win any battle of intangibles. On paper, the Ducks still rarely commit turnovers and share the ball very well, but Brooks’ absence is felt in a multitude of other ways. When Brooks was around, Oregon was a great rebounding team despite playing four guards much of the time. Now they have a bigger, more traditional, lineup, but the rebounding numbers are down. It does not have to make sense, but this is a team that pulled together for a magnificent year last season and fell apart to reach mediocrity this season much of this season.

Who To Watch:

And that mediocrity has happened despite Maarty Leunen. The 6-9 senior has had a magnificent year, averaging 15.2 points and 9.2 rebounds. He hits nearly two three-pointers per game and knocks them down at almost 51 percent. Not everyday does a 6-9 forward who has over nine rebounds per game, hit over 50 percent from beyond the arc. Leunen even passes very well from inside and out. Oregon has the ability and talent to beat anybody on any given day. Yet, they can pretty much lose to anybody just as easily, especially away from the friendly confines of McArthur Court.

By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 76.8 (39^th in nation, 2^nd in conference)

Scoring Defense: 72.4 (254, 9)

Field-Goal Percentage: 48.5 (13, 1)

Field-Goal Defense: 44.3 (208, 6)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.7 (26, 1)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 40.1 (11, 1)

Free-Throw Percentage: 68.9 (167, 7)

Rebound Margin: 1.9 (115, 5)

Assists Per Game: 14.9 (76, 4)

Turnovers Per Game: 12.6 (43, 4)

Joel’s Bracket Says: Second Round loss to Memphis

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In or Out: CHN Bubble Predictions

CHN — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 10:20:17 -0700

Much to Joe Lunardi's chagrin.. everyone thinks they're a bracketologist this time of year. So we asked 7 CHN writers which bubble teams will end up in the field or out.

	JB	RC	JF	RJ	SS	JT	JW
Arizona St	Out	In	In	In	Out	Out	In
Dayton	Out	In	Out	Out	In	Out	Out
Illinois St	Out	Out	In	In	Out	In	In
Ohio St	In	Out	In	In	In	In	In
Oregon	Out	In	Out	Out	In	In	Out
Syracuse	In	In	Out	Out	Out	Out	Out
UAB	Out	Out	In	Out	Out	In	Out
Villanova	Out	Out	Out	In	In	Out	Out

Our Consensus:

Arizona State - In
Dayton - Out
Illinois State - In
Ohio State - In
Oregon - Out
Syracuse - Out
UAB - Out
Villanova - Out

Our Guarantees:

Jason Brubaker's Guarantee: I'll 100% guarantee Syracuse will make the Tournament this year, for two reasons. They've shown they have the talent to beat good teams (Georgetown, marquette), and there's no way the committee wants to listen to another off-season of pleading from Jim Boeheim to expand the field to 128 teams.

Rob Carpentier's Guarantee: The Pac-10 will get 7 teams in because Oregon will beat Washington State, ASU will beat USC and Arizona will win two.

Jeff Fox's Guarantee: Dayton will not make the NCAA tournament - 7th place in the A-10 doesn't cut it, plus they peaked too early - the tournament committee likes teams that get hot late.

Raphielle Johnson's Guarantee: I guarantee that Oregon will be left out of the tournament due to early losses to Nebraska and Oakland. (and that Boeheim will rant about the system when he's once again sent to the NIT)

Shawn Siegels's Guarantee: Its a moral certainty that UAB will not make it.. they haven't won a Top 50 game all year and won't do so in the CUSA tournament.

Jon Teitel's Guarantee: I'm 100% certain that the loser of the Big East Tournament 1st round game between Villanova and Syracuse will not make it, as no conference is getting 9 teams into the NCAA Tournament this year.

Joel Welser's Guarantee: Jim Boeheim will be mad, but losses to Cincinnati and South Florida have doomed the Orange.