When I was a little kid, maybe five years old, my family went to a fair. The fair had an event call the "Barnyard Scramble" where young kids go inside a ring and a gate would open releasing chickens, pigs, rabbits and other animals. Kids chased the animals around and if they were able to catch one in the allotted time, they got to keep it. I begged my parents to let me join and they did under the assumption I was far too small, slow, timid, etc to actually get near anything.
Their assumption was fairly accurate as I spent the majority of the scramble chasing a rabbit to no avail. Just as I was about to throw in the towel, I turned around and there was a duck just standing there. I scooped it up and held on until the timer expired. As you can imagine, I was pretty excited about my new pet duck while my parents were less enthused. I was quickly told I wasn't allowed to keep it, but for reasons I don't remember, we couldn't give it back. Instead, my mom told me I could only keep it until we got back home and took it to a pond to release it.
The car ride back was great times, just me and Donald hanging out in the back seat. Me, feeling arguably the greatest sense of accomplishment in my life, Donald crapping all over the cardboard carrier they gave us. We get to the lake and I grab good old Donald to walk him to the water.. As I'm saying my last goodbyes, Donald bites my arm then flies off. Two hours of great memories ruined in the end by the duck.
If the 5-year-old me only knew that experience would symbolize basically every WSU-Oregon men's basketball game. Whether it's Aaron Brooks and Tajaun Porter banking in threes, a bench incident I will not detail, or E.J. Singler and Garrett Sim catching fire in the last six minutes like Saturday. It always starts out promising only to see that damn duck bite you in the arm in the end.
Craig's recap after the game can be found here with official stats here. More recaps from the men's and women's losses to Oregon are after the jump.
Men's Basketball
Cougars Topped by Ducks, 78-69 - The Washington State University Official Athletic Site
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) - E.J. Singler scored 23 points, Oregon made a season-high 11 3-pointers, and the Ducks held on to defeat Washington State 78-69 on Saturday.
Postgame Notes - Washington State vs. Oregon - The Washington State University Official Athletic Site
Washington State Notes: Mike Ladd finished with 13 points...he tied his WSU personal-best of 13 which he did in his debut at Gonzaga (Nov. 14)...has reached double-figures in two of the last three games.
The game that was: Oregon 78, WSU 69 - SportsLink - Spokesman.com - Feb. 11, 2012
FROM EUGENE — WSU tried everything it could to prevent the Ducks from shooting the lights out again. And again, nothing worked. But the Cougars played considerably better today than they have on the road this season, and can head home with a sense of progress. Read on for our game in review.
Oregon pulls away to beat Washington State - Spokesman.com - Feb. 11, 2012
EUGENE, Ore. – A different kind of frustration was felt outside Washington State’s locker room at Matthew Knight Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Cougar Basketball | Hot-shooting Oregon hands Washington State 78-69 loss | Seattle Times Newspaper
EUGENE, Ore. — His team needed a stop, and at the other end of the court, a good five feet out on the floor Washington State coach Ken Bone, his knees bent, his hands up, almost was playing the possession with his players.
Women's Basketball
Cougars Drop Contest To Oregon, 67-62 - The Washington State University Official Athletic Site
PULLMAN, Wash. - Washington State University had five players score in double-figures but could not hold off a late comeback by University of Oregon and dropped a 67-62 Pac-12 Conference matchup Saturday evening.
Cougar Basketball | Hot-shooting Oregon hands Washington State 78-69 loss | Seattle Times Newspaper
EUGENE, Ore. — His team needed a stop, and at the other end of the court, a good five feet out on the floor Washington State coach Ken Bone, his knees bent, his hands up, almost was playing the possession with his players.
Oregon women rally to beat Washington State 67-62 - seattlepi.com
PULLMAN, Wash. (AP) — Amanda Johnson scored 18 of her 23 points in the second half, helping Oregon rally for a 67-62 victory over Washington State on Saturday night.