UW women eye Oregon win

During Monday's news conference to announce Washington senior Kayla Burt's retirement from competitive basketball, UW coach June Daugherty was asked how the Huskies would handle Burt's loss.

As Daugherty opened her mouth to respond, Burt piped up from the seat next to her, "They'll be fine."

"There's your answer," Daugherty said with a shrug. "She's already getting into her coaching role and answering for me."

With Burt looking on from the bench, the Huskies were very fine Thursday night in a 70-53 Pac-10 romp over Oregon State in Corvallis.

The next test is expected to be tougher as the Huskies (13-4, 6-2 Pac-10) roll down Interstate 5 to face the Oregon Ducks (11-6, 2-5) tonight at venerable McArthur Court in Eugene.

Washington is one of just two Pac-10 teams with a winning record in conference road games, sporting a 3-1 mark away from Edmundson Pavilion.

Oregon counters with the second-largest average home attendance in the conference. That crowd, which averages more than 3,000, is expected to swell thanks to the rivalry between the schools.

"They have some pretty intense fans," Washington junior forward Maggie O'Hara said. "And they're sitting right on top of you."

Despite a losing record overall in Pac-10 play, the Ducks at Mac Court pasted a strong California team, 70-41, earlier this month. On Thursday they bounced back from a pair of losses in Arizona with a 54-50 home win over Washington State.

"I know our players are very proud of Mac Court and they love to defend it with passion and pride," Oregon coach Bev Smith said. "It's a big lift for us coming home."

Washington, five days after struggling in a home loss to USC, overwhelmed Oregon State on Thursday with its swarming defense to win its third straight on the road. The Huskies forced 18 first-half turnovers while racing to a 39-15 lead at intermission, and forced 28 turnovers on the night.

Sophomore post Andrea Plouffe, who managed just four points and no rebounds in 22 minutes against USC, responded with a career-high 19 points and six rebounds to lead UW against the Beavers.

Junior Cheri Craddock and senior Nicole Castro teamed up to fill the void left by Burt, who retired after her internal heart defibrillator fired to stop a cardiac arrhythmia during a win Jan. 12 over UCLA.

Craddock had a season-high eight points, and Castro had three assists against no turnovers while scoring two points.

"We've been watching in practice to see who's stepping up, who's able to give us the different attributes we need in place of Kayla and her minutes on the floor," Daugherty said this week. "I'm confident we have some good, talented players who have been waiting in the wings, and I hope they'll take advantage of this opportunity."

Tonight's game will be the first between the schools since Oregon ended the Huskies' season with a 64-50 win in the second round of last year's Pac-10 tournament in San Jose, Calif.

With a win, the Huskies would equal last season's victory total (14-16).