Bruins, Ducks both ready for revenge, out for blood

Friday, February 6, 1998

Bruins, Ducks both ready for revenge, out for blood

WHOOPS: Teams seek to unseat each other in three-way conference
tie

By David Arnold

Daily Bruin Contributor

Last year the Oregon Ducks (11-6, 7-2) swept the series with
UCLA (12-6, 7-2), like they have three of the last four years. This
year the Bruins look to return the favor.

The two teams are currently tied with Arizona for second in the
conference, and trying to distance themselves from the pack.
Tonight at 7:30, in Pauley Pavilion, one team will get the revenge
they desire: either the Bruins for last year’s disappointments or
the Ducks for UCLA’s 80-75 win in Corvallis last month.

"Oregon’s the type of team that will make this a big revenge
factor," said Bruin head coach Kathy Olivier, "They’ll say we stole
(the last one) from them."

It’d be hard to say which team comes in with more momentum:
UCLA, who’s won 10 of their last 12 and is coming off a road sweep
of Washington; or Oregon, who has a five-game winning streak which
includes an upset of nationally ranked Arizona.

What the Bruins will be keying on will be defense and
rebounding. "They beat us in rebounding, and we feel like that’s
something we should have an advantage in," reflected Olivier, "They
really did a job on us in offensive rebounds."

Guessing what the ducks will be doing differently, Olivier said,
"Oregon wants you to make mistakes and beat yourself," recognizing
that, "We have to be ready for their post, their post is very
aggressive."

But Olivier has plenty to worry about on her own team with three
starters nursing ailments. Point guard Erica Gomez tapes her
injured thumb, forward Maylana Martin’s has had a bad back all
season, and center Janae Hubbard’s hurt her foot. "They’ll be
starting," their coach maintains, "but they’re just not 100
percent."

The team considers the injuries insignificant, and Olivier goes
as far as to say, "Janae needs to stay out of foul trouble, that’s
probably her biggest injury."

But the Ducks won’t be the only Oregonians in town this weekend.
On Sunday the Beavers of Oregon State (6-12, 1-8) will also be
looking to avenge their home loss to the Bruins.

Ranked last in the conference and only just in contention for a
.500 season, the Beavers don’t pose a great threat to UCLA’s
aspirations.

However, Olivier’s still aware of college basketball’s flair for
upsets. "In the Pac-10, if you’re not ready to go, it’ll bite you
in the butt," she warns, trying to keep her team prepared. For she
understands, "We’ll be up for the big games, but can we be up for
the lesser of the two?"

"I think the biggest key for us this weekend is that our role
players do what they need to do. But everybody needs to be ready to
play, not just two, three or four people."

Taking into consideration the Bruin’s trip to Palo Alto next
week to face conference-leading Stanford, the challenge on Sunday
ought to be to focus on the game at hand. For as Olivier said, in
what could possibly be the Bruin’s motto this season, "Our biggest
opponent is probably ourselves."