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Oregon Ducks Men's basketball Exhibition opener's tailor-made for redshirt Longmire

By Bob Clark

The Register-Guard

Published: Wednesday, November 1, 2006

Oregon will open its men's basketball season tonight, using a player who probably won't play later in the season and minus up to five Ducks who could be expected to be contributors this winter.

Is there any clearer indication it's an exhibition game for Oregon? It is exactly that as the Ducks tip off against Lewis & Clark at 7 p.m. in McArthur Court.

Expected to play tonight is freshman LeKendric Longmire, though a redshirt season is planned for the 6-foot-5 wing player. The revised NCAA rules allow a player to participate in games that don't count on a team's record, such as tonight.

"That's what these (exhibitions) are there for," UO coach Ernie Kent said. "You can do some evaluating of kids who are redshirting and in a game, not just practice ... I was one of the advocates who pushed for the rule."

The plan to redshirt Longmire was based on Oregon having great depth on the perimeter, though that isn't quite the case yet.

Among the Ducks out tonight are two of the wings Longmire would normally be behind, Malik Hairston and Churchill Odia. Neither is expected to play in the second exhibition game on Monday, and both are highly questionable for the counting opener on Nov. 10.

Hairston, Oregon's leading scorer last season, is being eased back into action as he recovers from a strained groin. The same injury hampered him in the past, and recurred in preseason conditioning workouts.

The 6-6 Odia, who sat out last after transferring from Xavier, had follow-up knee surgery in September and is still limited to rehabilitation drills.

Asked when either might play, Kent said "they've got to practice first before they play in any games," and thus far neither has been cleared by the trainer for full participation in workouts.

Joevan Catron, another freshman, is probably closer to playing status after summer hip surgery. While expanding his participation in drills, the 6-6 Catron still hasn't been involved in scrimmage situations.

"He's begging to do everything, but we're holding him off," Kent said. "We've got time to get him ready, so we'll take the time. We're not rushing him back."

The other two Ducks listed on the roster who won't play tonight are senior Jordan Kent, a wide receiver with the football team, and transfer Frantz Dorsainvil, a native of Haiti who still hasn't cleared immigration hurdles to be allowed into the United States.

That leaves Oregon with 11 players expected to suit up tonight, including two walk-ons.

The newcomer who will be on the court and is expected to play a significant role from here on is 5-6 freshman Tajuan Porter. Because senior Aaron Brooks will be suspended for the counting opener as part of his penalty for being ejected from a game last season, Porter needs to be prepared for a starting role in that Nov. 10 game against Lehigh.

Kent said the Ducks will "work on some different things" on offense and defense tonight.

"The biggest thing is to work on playing hard, sharing the basketball and then just being accountable on defense," Kent said.

Lewis & Clark plays at the NCAA Division III level and was 12-13 last season. The Portland school played Oregon State in an exhibition game last season, losing 110-63.