Oregon WBB Weekly Release: Cal State Northridge
12/17/11 | Women's Basketball
CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE at OREGON LIVE COVERAGE
• Date: Monday, Dec. 19
• Time: 7:00 PM
• Venue: Matthew Knight Arena
• Radio: KUGN 590 AM in Eugene/Springfield; Terry Jonz, play-by-play
• Webcast: O-Zone
• Live Audio: O-Zone • Live Stats: www.GoDucks.com
• Twitter: @OregonWBB for in-game updates, stats, etc
• Facebook
• vs. Cal State Northridge: First Meeting
GAME DAY PROMOTIONS
Happy Holidays! - Monday, Dec. 19
FREE Oregon women's basketball trading cards will be given to the first 2,000 fans through the doors! General admission tickets will be available for $3, and pregame Gingerbread house making for all kids in attendance.
Family Furlough Day - Wednesday, Dec. 21
All kids ages 12 and under can purchase $3 general admission tickets. Bring your ticket from the Dec. 20 men's basketball game against North Carolina Central, and receive free admission.
THIS WEEK
Oregon (7-3) returns to the floor this week to end the non-conference portion of its schedule at Matthew Knight Arena. The Ducks will host Cal State Northridge (5-5) on Monday (7 p.m.) before welcoming Saint Mary's (6-4) on Wednesday (12 p.m.) in the club's last game before the holiday break.
HEALTH REPORT
• Freshman center Janitah Iamaleava suffered a season-ending left knee injury during a pre-season practice that will keep her off the floor for the 2011-12 season.
• Oregon leading scorer and rebounder Amanda Johnson suffered a left thumb fracture on Dec. 11 in a loss at Denver. She will be evaluated on a weekly basis, and will miss the games against Cal State Northridge and Saint Mary's.
CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE NOTES
• Monday night's game will mark the first meeting between Oregon and Cal State Northridge.
• The Matadors (5-5) are off to their best start through 10 contests since the 2004-05 season.
• As a team, CSUN is averaging 44.8 rebounds per game, the best average in the Big West. Individually, freshman Ashlee Guay leads the league and ranks 12th among all Division-I players with an average of 3.8 steals per game. Finally, Jasmine Erving ranks second in the conference and ranks 48th in the nation with a rebounding average of 9.6 per game. She also is tied for eighth among all Division-I players with five double-doubles.
• The Ducks are 2-0 this season against teams from the Big West Conference with wins over Cal Poly and UC Irvine. Head coach Paul Westhead is 5-1 during his Oregon tenure against Big West programs.
• Oregon will be the third Pac-12 opponent for the Matadors this year. CSUN fell to Oregon State, 83-63, in Corvallis on Nov. 17, and also suffered a 73-67 loss at Washington on Nov. 19.
• Oregon and Cal State Northridge both played Fresno State this season. CSUN suffered a 70-61 loss in Northridge on Dec. 11.
SAINT MARY'S NOTES
• Oregon's game on Wednesday against Saint Mary's (6-4) is a return date from last year. On Dec. 19, 2010, in Moraga, Oregon defeated SMC, 100-71, led by 19 points from Amanda Johnson and 11 assists courtesy of Nia Jackson.
• Saint Mary's appearance in the state of Oregon marks the return of three players to the state. Saint Mary's current leading scorer (15.0 ppg), senior guard Jasmine Smith played one season at Oregon State (06-07) before transferring to Saint Mary's. The Gaels' second leading scorer (11.6 ppg) is Portland native Jackie Nared. A graduate of Westview High School, Nared spent two years at Maryland before transferring to Saint Mary's, and is playing in her first season for the Gaels. Junior Andrea Bailey (The Dalles, Ore.) has appeared off the bench in 10 games, and is averaging 2.5 points per game.
• Oregon is 6-0 all-time against Saint Mary's, and the last time the Gaels visited Eugene, UO defeated SMC on Nov. 30, 2006 after Eleanor Haring scored 23 points and Jessie Shetters had 10 points and 10 rebounds at McArthur Court. Oregon is 1-0 this year against the West Coast Conference, defeating Portland, and head coach Paul Westhead has posted an undefeated 6-0 record against the WCC during the last three years.
• Similar to the Ducks, the Gaels also have a win over Cal Poly this season, defeating the Mustangs 65-62 on Dec. 4 in Moraga. SMC has played one team from the Pac-12 this season, falling 65-55 to California in Moraga.
PLAYING FAST
Head coach Paul Westhead said before the season started that he wanted his team playing even faster. So far, so good. The Ducks' 82.4 points per game leads the Pac-12 and UO entered the week ranking seventh in the country. North Carolina leads the nation averaging 87.5 points per game.
During head coach Paul Westhead's three years at Oregon, the Ducks have finished in the country's top-15 in scoring in back-to-back seasons, averaging 81.4 points (2010, 2nd) and 73.3 points per game (2011, 15th). In fact, during the last two seasons, the Ducks have averaged 79.0 points per game overall, out done only by Oral Roberts (84.7 ppg) and Gonzaga (82.7 ppg). In the last three years, Oregon has produced seven 100-point games, recording a 6-1 mark in those contests.
Oregon's 8.1 three-pointers per game rank 12th in the nation, as Florida Gulf Coast leads the country with 13.0 long-distance buckets per game.
The Ducks have proven to be a deadly three-point shooting team, finishing third in the country averaging 8.5 three-pointers per game in 2011, while ranking seventh in 2010 knocking down 8.4 long-distance buckets per game.
DOUBLE-FIGURES
• Oregon has recorded four wins by 10 points or more.
• Oregon's roster has totaled 33 occasions of players scoring in double figures led by Jasmin Holiday (9).
• The Ducks have also posted nine double-figure rebounding efforts led by Amanda Johnson (6).
MORE NUMBERS
• The Ducks are an undefeated 7-0 when they shoot a higher percentage than their opponent.
• Oregon has not trailed in two games this season.• In their last five games, the Ducks have held the rebounding edge (260-247), and in addition have averaged 17.7 offensive boards per game, scoring a total of 114 second-chance points.
• Oregon lost back-to-back games for the first time this year at Denver (12/11) and Nevada (12/14).
• Each of UO's three losses have come on the road. At Matt Arena, Oregon is averaging 87.7 points per game, away from home, the Ducks average 70.0 points per game.
SCHEDULE
The Ducks have compiled a difficult schedule as 14 of their opponents reached the postseason a year ago. Nine teams played in the 2011 Women's National Invitation Tournament, and five appeared in the NCAA Tournament.
TREY TROUBLE
In its last five games, Oregon has allowed opponents to knock down a total of 60 three-pointers, and allowed an individual to drain at least five three-pointers in the last five games. The last player to knock down five three-pointers against the Ducks was Danika Sharp of Nevada, who had 19 points in the first half. As of Dec. 11, the Ducks were allowing opponents to shoot 38.2 percent from three-point range.
SENIOR MOMENT
Senior Jasmin Holliday worked harder than ever this offseason, and apparently hard work pays off. The native of Chino Hills, Calif., is averaging a career-best 16.6 points per game (7th Pac-12).
She leads the team with nine double-figure scoring games, already besting her best season total of eight from her sophomore campaign. The Chino Hills, Calif., native is shooting a team-leading 55.5 percent from the floor, which ranks 10th in the Pac-12.
Holliday set a new career high scoring 26 points in a loss at Nevada last Wednesday. It was the third 20-point game of her season and career.
AWARD WINNER
Before two knee injuries sidelined her for the final nine games of last season, senior guard Nia Jackson led the Pac-10 averaging 17.0 points and 5.7 assists per game. Despite missing the final half of conference play, Jackson was named to the 2011 Pac-10 First Team and the 2011 Media All-Pac-10 Team.
The Ducks were 12-9 with Jackson in the lineup, and 1-8 in the final nine games of the year without her. The Ducks averaged 80.5 points per game with Jackson in the lineup, and 66.7 points per game without her.
The Seattle native has returned from off-season surgery and is cleared to play, but is continuing to regain her strength and stamina.
Currently Jackson is averaging 10.1 points and a team-leading 3.9 assists per game. She has reached double figures in three of UO's last four games, and continues to climb two all-time statistical charts. Jackson's 171 career steals rank seventh all-time, and her 295 career assists rank ninth.
JOHNSON ON FIRE
Before her injury, Oregon senior forward Amanda Johnson had recorded six double-doubles in nine games this season, along with eight double-figure scoring games.
The Santa Rosa, Calif., native's average of 20.1 points per game ranks second in the Pac-12 and 18th in the country, while her 10.7 rebounds per game rank second in the conference and 14th in the nation.
Johnson's six double-doubles and six double-figure rebounding games leads the conference. In addition, Johnson's 19-rebound performance against Portland State is the highest single-game total in the Pac-12 this year.
Johnson's career numbers include; 1,327 points (11th), 797 rebounds (8th), 142 three-pointers (7th), 178 steals (5th), 26 double-doubles (7th), 65 double-figure scoring games, three 30-point games, 18 20-point games, 33 times leading the club in scoring and 62 occasions leading the team in rebounding.
ENTERING THE STARTING LINEUP
After ending the 2010-11 season starting the last nine games of the year, Deanna Weaver and Ariel Thomas started their sophomore season on the bench as both battled injuries.
Due to Amanda Johnson's injury, Weaver has replaced her in the starting lineup. After missing three games at the start of the year with a toe injury, Weaver started her first game since March 9, 2011 at Nevada last Wednesday. She scored a career high 18 points in the loss.
As a freshman last season, Thomas averaged 8.0 points and 2.2 assists per game, appearing in 26 games. In the absence of Nia Jackson, Thomas took over point guard duties and started the final nine games of the year, averaging 14.3 points, 4.3 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game during that stretch.
With Jackson back on the floor, Thomas has moved into the starting role at shooting guard, registering her first start of the year at Nevada. She missed the first three games of the year with Achilles trouble, and is averaging 7.1 points per game.
FINALIZING THE TRIO
Sophomore Danielle Love finalizes the starting front court trio of herself, Deanna Weaver and Jasmin Holliday. The Everett, Wash., native has recorded three new career scoring highs this year. The latest was a 16-point effort in a Dec. 4 win over Portland. She added 10 rebounds and a career-best five assists, recording her first double-double this season and the second of her career.
Love is the one player head coach Paul Westhead can't take out of the game as she is playing a team-best 32.8 minutes per game.
MEET THE NEWCOMERS
Oregon's freshman class was ranked 49th in the country by ESPN HoopGurlz.
SHE'S A SHOOTER
Freshman guard Jordan Loera is a second generation Duck as her mother, Lori Carver Loera, played basketball at UO from 1983-84.
Loera scored a career-high and team-high tying 17 points in an 89-77 victory over UC Irvine, while also knocking down a career-best five three-pointers. The Moses Lake, Wash., native is averaging 7.0 points per game, and is second on the team knocking down 17 three-pointers.
RUNNING THE FLOOR
Freshman forward Lexi Petersen (Tukwila, Wash./Seattle Christian HS) won four straight conference titles at Seattle Christian HS, and was a two-time Nisqually 1A Player of the Year (2009, 2010).
In Westhead's system, Petersen's speed has been put to good use. The rookie is averaging 4.6 points per game.
A FIRST
Freshman guard Amanda Delgado (Las Vegas/Liberty HS) was named the 2011 Gatorade Nevada Girls Basketball Player of the Year after averaging 16.1 points, 3.8 assists and 2.3 steals per game as a senior.
Delgado has appeared off the bench in seven games.
UNDER THE BASKET
Freshman center Megan Carpenter (Longmont, Colo./Longmont HS) was a two-time all-4A Northern Conference selection and two-time Longmont Times Call all-area selection in 2010 and 2011. In her Oregon debut, Carpenter scored two points, blocked two shots and grabbed seven rebounds. Carpenter is averaging 4.3 rebounds per game.
RUNNING THE POINT
Junior point guard Laura Stanulis continues to handle back-up point guard duties as Ariel Thomas spends time at shooting guard. A former walk-on and now on scholarship, Stanulis is averaging a career-best 5.4 points per game, and is also second on the team with 26 assists.
