Charles Fischer Administrator No. 1 Share Posted January 14, 2021 Ryan Thorburn of the Eugene Register-Guard has done some terrific basketball articles of both genders, but this one I thought would be good to share going into the big "Tussle-in-Tucson." This article is available by subscription and I am not reprinting it, but simply passing along some key observations from it. Kylee Watson is COMING ON STRONG... Due to Sedona Prince being out, the 6' 4" Watson (No. 22 below) has had the opportunity for more minutes and had a big game at Cal with 12 points (6-8 shooting!) three rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Coach Graves commented how, "She's practicing better. She getting in the gym, getting some time, and it's paying off. I think she's a really good player. We've given her the opportunity a bit more in the last couple of weeks and she's making the most of it. And guess how you get more time? You get more time by producing and playing well. I love what I see. She is so aggressive and I just felt we needed that." Te-Hina in Transition? Coach Kelly Graves wants more tempo and is happy with the progression of Te-Hina Paopao in pushing the team to 20 fast-break points against Cal. Graves explained her progress.... "We've become too tentative. We run our lanes and than our point guard kind of waits for some kind of drag screen and it's too slow. We've worked since Christmas on trying to probe in transition, push it, get inside the defense, make the defense shrink. That's when you're going to have open kick-outs to really good shooters. I'm glad (Paopao) is a quick learner, and she's a really good heady point guard." Taylors' Return Makes a Big Difference Seeing junior guard Taylor Chavez (No. 3 below) come back and score 13 points against Cal was big for the team, with some assists going to Taylor Mikesell who is coming out of her shooting slump. The Ducks need all players available for the big game against No. 7 Arizona and shooting well. No Pullman Patsies... Washington State was picked to be last in preseason polls by both the coaches and media, yet they just broke into the top 25 (25th) for the first time Cougar Womens Basketball history. The struggle the Oregon Women had in Pullman to win was justified by the WSU win over No. 7 Arizona last weekend. In fact the only loss the Cougars have is to....the Ducks as WSU is 7-1 and in second place in the conference standings. Coach Graves had some choice words about this subject.... "For all those people who kind of pooh-poohed our close win at Washington State, what are we all saying now? I told you that's a good team. So that win looks better and better doesn't it?" Whew! Now onto the national stage with an ESPN audience at 4:00 PM Thursday... Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
30Duck Moderator No. 2 Share Posted January 14, 2021 I have become a big fan of Kylee Watson. She plays with an aggressiveness that will only become more of an asset as she becomes more experienced. Hopefully a lot of her practice time is at the free throw line. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Author Administrator No. 3 Share Posted January 14, 2021 This was my first post where I designed it almost like an article with pictures throughout. The process is cumbersome compared to creating an article on FishDuck, but I am pleased with a "first-effort," especially since I am not tech-intuitive. But I thought some of those Kelly Graves quotes were something everyone would want to see. Thorburn is great, and I appreciate his work. 1 Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDucksFan No. 4 Share Posted January 14, 2021 The bottom line - - Woman's BB is running on "Hot" but not hot enough to beat UCLA or Stanford. - - - - - (yet) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
nogerO No. 5 Share Posted January 14, 2021 Some random thoughts. Paopao is going to be an all-American before she goes to the WNBA. Kelly Graves is giving all his ladies a chance to get minutes and develop their game. This will be crucial a little farther down the road as he will have 10 players who can function together no matter who is on the court. We don’t need specific rotations right now as they need to learn each other’s game. I have been critical of Boley in the past but she has stepped up her game to the point where she still positively contributes even when she’s having a rough game shooting as streak shooters tend to have every so often. One of the areas of improvement that I’ve noticed which will really start to show soon is the attacking on transition to shrink the defense for kick outs to our bevy of excellent bomb throwers. Dugalic and Watson are doing this much better lately as they develop and benefit from our coaches amazing knowledge. The biggest thing I see is our defense. It is really coming around especially knowing your assignments in different types of defenses and especially defending the perimeter and communicating on pick and rolls. This bunch realizes as KG does that suffocating defense will get you by in games where your offense is struggling. I see this team advancing to the Great 8 and whatever they’re paying Mr G is a bargain. Oregon WILL best UCLA next time and give Stanford all they can handle. The future of Oregon basketball is very bright as the G.O.A.T., Sab told us! Go Ducks! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
30Duck Moderator No. 6 Share Posted January 14, 2021 3 hours ago, NogerO said: I have been critical of Boley in the past but she has stepped up her game to the point where she still positively contributes even when she’s having a rough game shooting as streak shooters tend to have every so often. Great point about Boley's game. What is even more impressive, is that, by design, it's so much different from her role last season, which was to stand at the 3 point line. That she is able to do so well at so many things this season is truly impressive. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
