WE MADE IT!!!!
Monday, Sept. 1, 2008
The Oregon women's basketball team safely arrived in Milan at about 12:30 p.m. on Monday afternoon. It was a long travel day for the Ducks, who began their journey 18 hours prior in front of the Casanova Center at 9 a.m. on Sunday.
After departing PDX, Oregon spent nearly 12 hours in the air before a quick layover in Frankfurt. Taylor Lilley, Micaela Cocks, Rita Kollo and Nicole Canepa passed the time away on the computer.
After getting to Milan the team had a 45-minute stay to refresh before the tour bus came to pick us up - headed for the Milan city center. Taylor Lilley and Micaela Cocks took the free time to work on their hacky sack skills.
While still agile and quick as always, lets just say I wouldn't recommend either one of them quitting their day jobs.
After boarding the bus, the ladies headed to the Milan city center to see the first of many breathtaking venues planned for the next 10 days. First on the list was The Duomo, a cathedral that was completed in 1813 after taking over 100 years to build. I'd like to take this time to congratulate Victoria Kenyon, Nicole Canepa, Velaida Harris, Jessica Wilson and Tori Noda, who each had the guts and endurance left to make the staircase climb to the top of the roof.
Trust me, it was no small task, but the reward - a gorgeous view of the entire city - was definitely worth some burning quad muscles.
Before we left Milan, Nic & Vic, as we like to call the unbreakable duo, made some new friends with some members of the local law enforcement unit.
After the city center it was a bus ride to Lake Como, where we will be staying the next two nights.
I think the picture speaks for itself.
We ended the evening with a lovely Italian dinner, and now its time for some shuteye, checking in at 10:54 p.m. Italy time...1:54 p.m. Eugene time.
Friday 29, 2008
An early morning wake-up call had Taylor Lilley on the radio airwaves at 8 a.m. this morning. The junior guard visited the trio of Dennis Nakata, Terry Jonz and Mandy Beemer on the STAR 102.3 morning show.
Taylor prepped the morning show team on all things Italian, talking about the team's 12-hour flight and stopover in Germany, her packing secrets, and of course the cuisine.
After her radio stint, it was off to Mac Court for practice. The Ducks will enjoy Saturday's football opener, before heading to Europe on Sunday.
Taylor and STAR 102.3 plan to stay in contact while the team is in Italy, so be sure to listen in next week when we call Dennis, Terry and Mandy from Italy.
The trio did have requests of us before we left the building; gifts and a picture with Pope Benedict XVI. We'll try our best!
Also, rumor is Micaela Cocks will be arriving in Eugene some time today. Can't wait!!!
SAY CHEESE!!!
Monday August 25, 2008
It may only be the last week of August, but that means that the season is just around the corner. Today the players got their head shots taken for use in the annual media guide as well as the website.
Check out Ellie Manou's big grin!
Photographer Eric Evans spent his time photographing players and staff members, and you wouldn't think head shots would need such an elaborate set up, but Mr. Evans in the ultimate professional. I don't know what we would do without him and all of his hard work.
The Oregon players also did a test shot for the 2008-09 media guide cover (which is top secret information).
When the rest of the team arrives in September, they'll work on the final look.
The ladies also turned in some information for the media guide, and while the FUN FACTS will be available on www.GoDucks.com soon, the following is one of the funniest answers of the day from junior guard Taylor Lilley:
If I could have any superpower it would be..."To have the ability to listen to music in my ears at all times and a song would come on according to my mood."
International Transition
Sunday August 24, 2008
The two-hour session emphasized on
The team also had a new three-point
line mapped out to match the length of the FIBA line, which will be the
standard during the team’s stay in
Junior guard Taylor Lilley had no
problem adjusting to the new distance draining three treys during scrimmage
drills throughout today’s practice.
Even Ellie Manou got in the three-point
action hitting a long-distance shot from the baseline, as did Victoria Kenyon,
who lined one up from the wing.
Rita Kollo looks to be a strong
addition for the Ducks, especially on the offensive end, creating opportunities
of the dribble for herself and her teammates. Sophomore Tatianna Thomas also
looks more confident this year, especially in transition and running the floor.
In addition to the distance of the
three-point line, listed below are some other differences between the
international game and NCAA rules.
Duration of Game
NCAA: Two 20-minute halves
FIBA: Four, 10-minute periods
Length of Halftime
NCAA: 15 minutes
FIBA: 15 minutes, 2 minutes between
each period
Size of Lane
NCAA: 12’ x ‘19
FIBA: Trapezoid: 19’8 (Baseline) &
11’10’’ (free throw line) x 19’ (baseline to free throw line)
Three-point FG Distance
NCAA: 19’9”
FIBA: 20’6”
Shot Clock
NCAA: 30 seconds
FIBA: 24 seconds
Back Court Violation
NCAA: No rule
FIBA: 8 seconds
Bonus Free Throw
NCAA: 7th foul per half (one-and-one);
10th foul per half (two FTs)
FIBA: 5th foul per period
(two FTs)
Number of Players Permitted on
NCAA: 6 (four defensive, two offensive)
FIBA: 5 (three defensive, two
offensive)
Timeouts Called By
NCAA: Player in game or head coach from
court
FIBA: Coach only from scorer’s table
Insider Insight
Friday August 22, 2008
Today www.GoDucks.com has a special guest on its blog, current Oregon women’s basketball team manager Cody Johnson. The Idaho native is entering his second season with the program, and since returning from his summer vacation to get back to work, www.GoDucks.com has caught up with busiest sophomore in Eugene. Cody was more than happy to dish the dirt on the coaching staff and the players.
GoDucks.com: So what does it feel like to get back to work after two months off?
Cody Johnson: Well, I wouldn’t really call it work. I look at work as something I don’t enjoy doing. I enjoy my time with the basketball team and doing the “work” that is involved. However, it really was a great vacation and I enjoyed being with my family, and of course I’m going to miss them.
GD: Tell us a little bit about your responsibilities as a team manager? Take us through a typical practice day for you from morning until night?
CJ: Well, I’m not too excited about the two-a-days this week we’re doing to prepare for Italy...they begin at 6 a.m! Typically, I will get to Mac about 30 minutes before practice and set up the clock, mark the floor with tape, get the water and Gatorade ready, set up the balls, cones and other equipment. During practice, I make sure the players’ thirst is quenched constantly via filled-up cups and water bottles. Other than that, I am basically the coaches’ and players’ butler, attending to all their needs (Coach White is particularly needy).
GD: How about a gameday?
CJ: Gameday typically involves a bit more work than a regular practice day. I usually arrive at Mac Court one-to-two hours before the game (depending on how I feel that day) and start setting up. This includes Gatorade, water, ice, medicinal supplies, and towels for our bench as well as the visitor’s bench. On top of that, I set up water, ice, and towels in our meeting room, the visitor’s locker room, and the referee’s locker room. Then I have to get a stat sheet for Coach White (or else experience Willette Wrath, as I like to call it), as well as getting drinks, like bottled water and Gatorade, for our coaches and the visiting coaches, and carefully placing one whiteboard under each coaches’ seat. Then I put my stylish suit on, bring up T-shirts for the players to sign, and take my seat at the end of the bench. During the game is where it heats up. I am always running back and forth from the water and Gatorade to the bench, making sure the players coming out of the game are always refreshed and rejuvenated. I’m pretty sure I sweat more that half the players on the team!
GD: Be honest, who would you say on the team or the coaching staff has the most peculiar habit?
CJ: Well I wouldn’t really call it a habit, but Velaida would always ask for one orange-flavored stick of gum and one mint-flavored stick of gum, so she could chew them together for an enhanced gum-chewing experience. The funny thing is, she would always say “I think I’ll try one of each today,” as if she never mixed them, but she would do it every time!
GD: Pretty much any time I see you, I can count on you having a bag full of gum (thanks by the way). On average, how much gum does the team go through in a week?
CJ: Oh my gosh, Jessica, our nutritionist, could probably answer that question better than I can. I would say close to 500 pieces in a week, with about 90% of that going to V and Willette alone! (Seriously, those two have like 10 pieces each, per day)
GD: Was there anything that surprised you about your job last year?
CJ: Well, considering I didn’t know what to expect whatsoever coming in, just about everything surprised me. If I had to choose something, though, it would probably be how quickly the year went by. I really thought with all my classes and practice and traveling and everything else that I had to handle, that the year would go by really slow. However, it really flew by pretty quickly.
GD: I seem to remember you also being in charge of laundry on the road last season. Even washing clothes in a hotel bathtub one time when you were without laundry service. That’s some serious dedication. Care to comment?
CJ: Haha, I wouldn’t really call that dedication, and it probably won’t happen again. I already had collected the laundry before I realized it would cost $200 to wash it at the hotel. By that time, the players were already asleep, so I decided to just do it in the bathtub, instead of handing the girls back their dirty, stinky laundry to them the next morning. I will think that through a little better next time!
GD: I know one thing I wanted to ask you, during practice you were always in charge of running the scoreboard, but there always seemed to be constant confusion of what the actual score was. You can tell us the truth, were you just not paying attention or were certain coaches/players trying to manufacture an advantage for their respective teams? Be honest!
CJ: Well, first of all, Bev seems to switch the rules of the game and the scoring every single practice, so it’s pretty hard to adjust to that. On top of that, I happen to control the device (the scoreboard) which determines who runs at the end of the drill. When you combine that with some of the most competitive people out there (especially Chap) trying to weasel me into changing the score to their advantage, it creates a very intense situation, which usually leaves me and everyone else fuming! Hopefully the new manager will handle that this year.
GD: What will be your responsibilities on this excursion to Italy? What will you have to do to prepare for August 31?
CJ: Well, at first I thought it was going to be a major hassle compared to other road trips. But after talking with Tash and getting some more details about trip, it won’t be that difficult to prepare for. Basically I just need to bring extra gear and equipment (the players tend to forget things), water bottles, and towels. During the trip itself, I just have to make sure the coaches and players have everything they need during the games, help Andria, Justin, Tori, Jessica, and the coaching staff with anything they might need, and that’s basically it. I’m pretty comfortable at this point with my duties while on the road, because I have a whole year of traveling with the team behind me, so it shouldn’t be too tall of a task.
GD: Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to speak with us today.
Wake Up Call
Thursday August 21, 2008
The Oregon women's basketball team was back in action at 6 a.m. this morning, taking part in one of the team's 10 practice days until the squad departs for its tour of Italy on Sunday, Aug. 31.
First up for the ladies was the yo-yo test (formerly known as the beep test).
The Ducks' small forwards showed their endurance as Tatianna Thomas, Rita Kollo and Victoria Kenyon were the last three standing.
A passing grade is 15, and Kenyon outlasted the competition winning the contest with a score of 17.
Eight of nine returners were back at Mac Court, with Oregon missing only junior guard Micaela Cocks. The 2008 Olympian is scheduled to be back in Eugene to rejoin her teammates next week.
After getting a grasp on the team's fitness, the coaching staff broke the team into posts and guards, with Bev Smith and Phil Brown working with the trio of Nicole Canepa, Ellyce Ironmonger and Ellie Manou.
Assistant coaches Velaida Harris and Willette White worked out the guards as the players went toe-to-toe in some spirited one-on-one action.
Point guard Nia Jackson seems back to full health as her teammates struggled to shut down the clever sophomore.
Practices are open to the public, and a complete schedule is available in pdf format.
Continue to check back to www.GoDucks.com for more updates from practice during the next 10 days.
