Kansas wins, but U.S. discovers Ridnour

By Neil Macdonald

Just about everyone in Blaine and a copious quantity of people in Washington, Oregon, Texas and the United States were watching as ex-Borderite Luke Ridnour scored 20 points in Oregon’s 72-70 win over Texas in the NCAA Midwest Regional semifinal on March 22 in Madison, Wisconsin.

As many or more were probably watching as Kansas eliminated Oregon 104-86 in the Elite Eight phase of college basketball’s March Madness on March 24 as the Jayhawks’ big men out-played the Ducks’ big men, out-rebounding UO 63-24 and scoring 31 second-chance points.

Television color and play-by-play announcers signaled Ridnour’s elevation to national prominence in the Texas tilt as they began equating Ridnour’s skill-saturated performance to the razzle-dazzle of NBA greats Pistol Pete Maravich and Bob Cousy.

Ridnour, described by TV’s finest in the Kansas game as the engine that runs the UO offense, has also been featured in Sports Illustrated. In SI’s Feb. 11 issue, a Seth Davis article labeled “Ducks Unlimited” noted that Oregon had risen to the top of the Pacific- 10 with “a flashy guard leading a frenetic attack.” Ridnour was the guard.

Davis noted that Ridnour was Pacific-10 freshman of the year last season and was “having an even greater impact” this season. That impact included Ridnour’s lifting his ppg average from 7.4 to 15.1. Luke started bouncing a basketball when he was a three-year-old – the same age Mozart started fiddling around on the piano. Expect to read, hear and see a great deal more of Ridnour in the media. He’s that good. Reminds an old hockey fan of a skinny kid named Gretsky who could put the puck on a teammate’s stick right in the sweet spot for an instant shot on goal, could weave through traffic like a wisp of smoke and do all sorts of athletic antics..

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