WHAT’S ON TAP . . . Oregon opens the exhibition season by hosting Lewis & Clark College on Wednesday, Nov. 1, at 7 p.m. at McArthur Court (9,087). The Ducks’ second exhibition comes five days later versus Southern Oregon, and the regular season gets underway just nine days after the Lewis & Clark game.

RADIO . . . KUGN 590 AM in Eugene only.

SHORT BENCH . . . Five players on the 2006-07 roster will not be in uniform for the first exhibition game. Junior forward Malik Hairston (groin) and freshman Joevan Catron (hip) will sit out Wednesday’s game, but are close to returning to action. Sophomore Churchill Odia will be out a while longer, still recovering from a knee injury. Senior guard Jordan Kent will not join the basketball team until after the football season. Junior forward Frantz Dorsainvil has not yet cleared up issues regarding his visa, delaying his arrival in Eugene.

LOOK FOR LeKENDRIC . . . On the flip side, the short bench means that freshman guard LeKendric Longmire, who is planning on redshirting the 2006-07 season, will see action in the two exhibition games. Longmire will be the first native of the state of Mississippi to put on a basketball uniform for the Ducks. Current assistant coach Kenny Payne is also a native of Mississippi. A recent rule change by the NCAA allows freshmen to play in exhibition games without jeopardizing their redshirt status.

ABOUT LEWIS & CLARK . . . Lewis & Clark is an NCAA Division III member and competes in the Northwest Conference. The Pioneers were 12-13 last season. Sophomore guard Dave Berggren is Lewis & Clark’s top returning scorer at 13.6 points per game. The Pioneers played Oregon State in an exhibition in 2005-06, losing 110-63.