Oregon Faces Former Coach Ernie Kent in Pullman Thursday

The Oregon Ducks will hit the road this week for the first time in over a month. Home cooking has been good to Oregon in December and January as the team has won eight of nine games at Matthew Knight Arena, their lone loss to then ranked #3 Arizona. The Ducks face the Washington schools this week and Washington State is up first on Thursday night.

Oregon has beaten the Cougars seven straight times, but this team is different. It is led by Ernie Kent, who was the former coach for Oregon before Dana Altman took over. Outside of a neutral site this will be the Ducks first road test this season. Kent would like nothing more than to beat Oregon in Pullman in Pac-12 play, but several players will help tell the tale, including Joseph Young.

Young is the leader of the the team this season, but has had his struggles hitting shots. He is a threat on any night to come close to the thirty point mark, but has been held by bad shots and decent defensive efforts this season. On the Defensive End Freshman Jordan Bell now holds the single season record for blocked shots with sixty, just a few weeks into the Pac-12 season.

Bell has quietly climbed the record book this season. The Ducks enter the game on Thursday night ranked thirtieth in points per game and in the top twenty in rebounds and assists per game.

The Cougars enter at 8-7 on the season, 2-1 in the Pac 12. Washington State is led by Senior DeVonte Lacy and Josh Hawkinson who are averaging seventeen and fifteen points per game respectively. Tipoff is set for 8pm Pacific Time on Pac-12 Networks.