No. 8 Washington State Hosts Oregon After Taking Down Beavers

Cougars try to end 13-game losing streak to Ducks

Jan. 19, 2008

Washington State showed in its last game it can rebound from a loss. It still, however, has not proved capable of beating Oregon.

The eighth-ranked Cougars try to end a 13-game losing streak to the Ducks when the teams meet Saturday at Friel Court in a Pac-10 matchup.

After opening this season with 14 straight wins, Washington State (15-1, 3-1) tasted defeat for the first time with an 81-74 loss to then-No. 5 UCLA on Jan. 12.

Faced with the prospect of losing two straight for the first time since the 2005-06 season, the Cougars had little trouble with struggling Oregon State on Thursday as they coasted to a 69-46 victory.

Aron Baynes and Derrick Low combined for 32 points on 12-of-17 shooting, helping Washington State extend its best start since the 1916-17 team opened 15-0.

It was only the fifth time this season the Cougars played on their own court. They hosted a three-game tournament in nearby Spokane, and played another game in Seattle.

Washington State has won nine straight in Pullman, last losing on its home court on March 1, 2007.

"It feels so good to come back home and play, and have people cheering for you every single time," Low said.

The nation's stingiest defense, allowing 52.1 points per game, was back in form Thursday. Five days after giving up a season-high 81 points in their lone loss, the Cougars held an opponent under 50 points for the eighth time in 16 games.

One of the few blemishes on a successful 2006-07 season for the Cougars was getting swept by Oregon in the two-game season series.

The Ducks have won 13 straight meetings since a 63-62 loss on Feb. 15, 2001. No member of this season's Cougar team or coaching staff has defeated Oregon as part of the Washington State program.

"I want to beat them so bad," said Low, whose 15 points Thursday made him the 28th player in school history to surpass 1,000.

Low leads the Cougars with 13.6 points per game while Baynes (12.1) and Kyle Weaver (10.9) are their other double-digit scorers.

The Ducks had an impressive three-game win streak snapped Thursday with a 78-70 loss at Washington.

Maarty Leunen scored 22 points on 8-of-9 shooting for the Ducks, who beat ranked teams Arizona and Stanford during the streak. They also beat then-No. 25 Kansas State on Nov. 29, giving Oregon four consecutive wins against Top 25 teams.

Despite that success, Ducks coach Ernie Kent knows his team has a very difficult assignment Sunday.

"There's going to be a lot of things they're going to have to deal with over there," Kent said. "They've got a senior group and we've beat them 13 straight, whether it's at home or on the road, and they're not going to want to lose to us again over there in that building."

While Oregon boasts the league's best offense, that is often offset by a defense that allows a conference-worst 73.4 points per game.

Five Oregon players have double-figure scoring averages, led by Malik Hairston (18.3). Leunen adds 15.6 points and 9.7 rebounds per game, and he is among the nation's leaders with 10 double-doubles.