Next up: On the road to Oregon

The Cardinal travels to Oregon this week for games against:

• The University of Oregon in Eugene on Friday night at 6:00.
• Oregon State in Corvallis on Sunday afternoon at 2:00

Both games will be televised by the Pac-12 Networks (with Ros Gold-Onwude as the analyst for the Oregon game and perhaps for the Oregon State game) and broadcast by KZSU.

How many Beavers does it take to stop Chiney?

For fans that are travelling to Oregon: A reminder to meet for dinner before the Oregon game at the Bridge Bar & Grill at about 4:00, and to meet for brunch and a chat before the Oregon State game at the home of Ed & Mary Jennings between 11:00 am and 1:00 pm.

  Oregon Ducks

The Oregon Ducks are having a very difficult season.

They lost four of last seasons's top five top players – Amanda Johnson, Nia Jackson and Jasmin Holliday graduated; junior forward Deanna Weaver, who injured her foot last March and had not played yet this season, left the team last week. Between them, they accounted for 55% of the Ducks' points and 45% of their rebounds last season.

Then early this season, senior guard Laura Stanilus and sophomore forward Lexi Petersen, both starters, suffered season-ending knee injuries.

That leaves fourth-year head coach Paul Westhead with just three bench players who average more than six minutes per game. He's not having much success with his trademark up-tempo style of play.

The Ducks' main problem is that they put up a lot of shots, but they don't make many. They take more shots than any other Pac-12 team, but have the poorest field goal percentage. On average, the Ducks score 13 fewer points than their opponents.

They also turn the ball over more than any other Pac-12 team – about 21 times per game, which is seven more than their opponents.

Fortunately, they lead the Pac-12 in rebounding, but just barely – they snag only two more per game than their opponents.

The probable starters for Oregon are:

• #14, 6'3" freshman forward Jillian Alleyne has been a bright spot for the Ducks. She gets down the floor faster than most post players and leads the team in scoring, rebounding and shot-blocking. She scores almost 25% of the Ducks' points – 14.0 per game at a rate of 44.8%. She accounts for almost 30% of the Ducks' rebounds and leads the Pac-12 in both total rebounds (12.9, which is third-best in the nation) and offensive rebounds (4.8). She's posted seven double-doubles this season. She'll be of even more value to her team when she learns to control her play. She's played only about 30 minutes per game – limited, at least partly, by foul trouble . She averages three fouls per game and has fouled out three times.


• #22, 5'9" junior guard Ariel Thomas runs the point for the Ducks. She averages about five assists per game and turns the ball over a bit less, for an assist/turnover ratio of 1.16. She averages 10.4 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.


• #15, 6'1" sophomore forward Liz Brenner is a multi-sport standout who joined the team in December after the volleyball season ended, as she also did last season. She averages 8.2 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.


• #2, 6'2" junior forward Danielle Love averages 8.2 points and 4.0 rebounds per game.


• #5, 5'9" sophomore guard Jordan Loera averages 6.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.

The three reserves who get significant playing time are:

• #21, 5'7" sophomore guard Amanda Delgado is the Ducks' most productive 3-point shooter (makes 2.7 per game) and second-best scorer. (10.7 ppg)


• #4, 5'8" freshman guard Devyn Galland averages 6.9 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.


• #40, 6'4" sophomore center Megan Carpenter started every game for the Ducks before Liz Brenner joined the team. She averages 4.6 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.

Oregon's win-loss record (3-17 overall, 1-7 conference) places them last in the Pac-12, their RPI (274) places them last, and their strength of schedule rank (107) places them ninth.

Here are Oregon's 2012-13 statistics and roster.

  Oregon State Beavers

It's been a difficult year for the Oregon State Beavers too.

After two good seasons under head coach Scott Rueck, 2012-13 held the promise of even more improvement. The Beavers were returning four starters from the team that went 20-13 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the WNIT, and they had added a highly-regarded freshman class.

The promise faded before the season started when senior guard and team leader Sage Indendi suffered a season-ending ankle injury and senior center Thais Pinto suffered a knee injury that has kept her off the court, with no timetable set for her return.

The Beavers struggled in non-conference play, but have steadily improved since the beginning of the season. They're doing better than their win-loss record indicates. Four of their five conference losses have been by very narrow margins — one point vs USC (56-55), four points vs UCLA (68-64), and in overtime by four points to Washington (81-77) and three points to WSU (76-73). Their top five scorers are averaging 20.5 more points per game in conference play than they did in non-conference play.

The Beavers are a balanced and slow-paced team that sometimes struggles to score. They average the second-fewest points in the Pac-12 and have just one player who scores in double digits. They're hurt by having a high turnover rate – four more than their opponents.

The Beavers' strength is their defense. Six of the players in the regular rotation are good rebounders, averaging from 4.3 to 6.5 rebounds per game. The team leads the Pac-12 in shot-blocking with just over six per game. They hold their opponents to just 33.5% shooting — the second-best in the Pac-12 and 11th in the nation.

The probable starters for Oregon State are:

• #15, 5' 10" freshman guard Jamie Weisner leads the Beavers in scoring with 12.5 points per game. Her scoring has improved from 10.4 ppg in non-conference games to 15.5 in conference games. She's the most productive 3-point shooter – she takes 40% of her shots from beyond the arc and makes 1.5 of them per game. She's the second-best rebounder with 5.7 per game. Unfortunately she has the most turnovers – almost three per game.


• #14, 5'11" sophomore guard Ali Gibson tallies 9.1 points, 2.1 steals, 2.3 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game.


• #24, 6'0" junior guard Alyssa Martin tallies 8.8 points, 2.3 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game.


• #23, 6'2" senior forward ShaKiana Edwards-Teasley averages 1.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game.


• #32, 6'3" freshman forward Deven Hunter leads the Beavers in rebounding with 6.5 per game and scores 5.0 points per game.

Oregon State uses an eight- or nine-player rotation. The reserves who get significant playing time are:

• #20, 6'4" senior forward/center Patricia Bright leads the Beavers in blocked shots. She averages just a bit less than two per game, which is second-best in the Pac-12. She also averages 8.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.


• #40, 6'6" freshman center Ruth Hamblin averages 5.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. She's the Beavers' most efficient scorer, making 56% of her shots. She commits the fewest turnovers and stays out of foul trouble — just one per game.


• #30, 5'6" senior guard Mollee Schwegler averages 5.0 points, 1.9 assists and 1.4 rebounds per game.


• #5, 6'3" freshman forward Samantha Siegner averages 4.2 points and 2.9 rebounds per game. Her scoring has improved from 1.8 ppg in non-conference games to 7.5 in conference games.

Oregon State's win-loss record (9-11 overall, 3-5 conference) places them 9th in the Pac-12, their RPI (200) places them 11th, and their strength of schedule rank (134) places them 10th.

Here are Oregon State's 2012-13 statistics and roster.