Scott Rueck and the OSU women got their first conference win of the 2010-11 season on Saturday with a 51-46 victory over the Washington Huskies in Seattle.CORVALLIS -- Last Saturday afternoon was a long time coming when the OSU women finally snapped a 10-game losing streak in conference play and scored their first Pac-10 win of the season, a 51-46 victory over Washington in Seattle.
I walked into the women's basketball office early Monday morning before practice and asked what Saturday was like, and OSU assistant coach Eric Ely looked at me, smiled big and said, "It was like the we won the NCAA tournament."
Head coach Scott Rueck said it wasn't QUITE like winning the NCAA tournament -- and he would probably know, considering he has a ring from the 2009 D3 title -- but did say the team was in pretty good spirits after the win, and took a picture on the Huskies' court to commemorate the event. (You can see the picture on radio guy Ron Callan's
.)
Practice Monday morning didn't seem to be any different than usual, though all the players laughed and nodded with confidence when I asked them, "So, does the 2-game winning streak start on Thursday?"
The Beavers host USC on Thursday, who beat OSU 53-45 just a couple weeks ago in LA.
After the Women of Troy comes UCLA, one of the best defensive units in the country and currently ranked No. 10 in the nation. Rueck talked for a few minutes about UCLA's press Monday morning, reminding his team to "stay away from danger zones."
But Monday was mostly about the Beavers, who are riding high after finally getting a much-needed confidence boost with a win (and on the road, no less). Lots of situational stuff at the end with players
in practice. In a season that's been full of "morale victories," can you blame them?
I have always been amazed by Rueck's attitude in practice, both at OSU and George Fox, where he coached for 14 seasons. He seems to be pretty carefree and loose, and his players always look like they're having fun. On Monday walk-on Jenna Dixon was running around pumping her fist and talking a little smack, surely excitement left over from Saturday when she
after the win.
But I don't think Saturday is going to get the only win the Beavers manage this season in Pac-10 play ... the real question is, can they get a win in front of their home crowd this week? Gametime on Thursday at 7. We'll have to wait till then to find out.
--Lindsay Schnell