University of Washington
Oregon
Gritty Huskies Nearly Spoil Mac Court Finale
January 08, 2011 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 8, 2011
EUGENE, Ore. - Following a hard-fought, but ultimately bitter loss to Oregon, Tia Jackson gathered her team in the visiting locker room and delivered a brief message.
"Don't hang your heads," the Huskies coach said, repeating the phrase over and over again for emphasis. "Be proud of your effort."
Washington showed tremendous poise in the face of a vociferous crowd and its high-flying opposition, nearly spoiling the McArthur Court swan song. The 84-year-old court showcased its final game - a 68-64 win by Oregon on Saturday afternoon - as the Ducks plan to move a few blocks across campus to Matthew Knight Arena.
Kristi Kingma led the Huskies with 21 points while matching a career-high with six 3-pointers. But the biggest takeaway for the Huskies was the emergence of freshman Marjorie Heard, who muscled her way for 18 points and 12 rebounds, both personal bests. The power forward was a mirror image of her idol and fellow Snohomish native Jon Brockman, setting a physical tone from the onset.
Her teammates matched her effort, limiting the Ducks - who lead the Pac-10 in scoring - to a season-low 68 points. UW also controlled the glass, with Regina Rogers pulling down nine rebounds in just 15 minutes of action. Rogers also added 12 points and provide a much-needed physical presence for the Dawgs.
If only the Huskies had a simpler answer for the Ducks' press, a trapping full-court scheme that forced a season-high 25 turnovers from the Dawgs. The Huskies weren't helped either by UO's 36-to-17 advantage in attempted free throws, along with a 27-to-16 discrepancy in personal fouls.
"Obviously (the Ducks) was fired up coming into her last game here," Kingma said. "And we knew the fans would be rowdy."
The Ducks rode the throaty roars to a 17-point first-half lead, using the full-court press to suffocate the Huskies. But Washington shook off the run, and quickly erased the deficit thanks to Kingma, who knocked down one open 3-pointer after another. Oregon made another strong run in the second half, only to have the Huskies answer and tie the game at 54-54 with 6:11 remaining.
The Huskies had opportunities late at the free throw line, but missed the front end of 1-and-1's and failed to convert potential three-point plays.
"The game was still ours. Free throws were the most important key for us. That's something we can control," Jackson said.
Still, the Huskies (6-7, 1-3) are bringing a valuable Pac-10 road split with them back to Seattle. And the team continues to mend injuries as well. Mollie Williams made her return to the lineup after missing the past three games with a concussion, scoring two points in seven minutes.
Oregon improved to 11-4 overall, 2-2 in the conference. Seattle native Nia Jackson led the Ducks with a game-high 22 points to go along with seven assists. The Huskies did hold Amanda Johnson, who leads the Pac-10 in scoring, to just four points, another evidence of a complete defensive effort.
"We were in it," Heard said. "We came back from a 17-point deficit and we were sticking together ... We had an energy. It was five of us sticking together."
