Over-hyped?

OSU has quality players on the roster now.
Rueck is a GREAT coach.
Pivec plays basketball with a passion and drive to win that elevates her team.  AND she is one heck of a player that can score from almost anywhere.  AND if there is a rebound to be grabbed you will see her trying to grab it.
Aleah Goodman and Kat Tudor are both sharp shooters that can light it up from 3 (they have struggled a bit recently, but can go off at any moment).

Basketball is a team sport built on momentum, passion and execution.  OSU is a good enough to beat ANY team.

All of that contributes to on-going success by Rueck to recruit players to a winning OSU program.

We have a system and recruit to it. We develop talent. Show me the rankings of the starting 5 players that made the final 4. Pretty sure there is not 1 McDonalds all-American on it. Common opponents make me laugh in basketball. There are so many more factors. If we play a great game we can win. If we play bad and they play great we get smoked.

Personally do not put much credence into recruiting rankings. I am more performance based in my assessments. In other words, who cares what some recruiting service says, how did the recruit(s) actually turn out/play!

In those terms I see SR and KG being very close in recruiting... as taking players and developing them in terms of what a coach wants within his system is the only thing that matters. Recruiting rankings... transfers out... outside noise be damned. Which players are in the program and how are they performing?

I do think that KG has the edge this year as I think the ucks are more talented in terms of how they play their style. I think they are a bit deeper in terms of getting key contributions. But, it is not a huge gap. Anytime a team counts on two Frosh starters the inexperience playing against Pac12 level competition is going to be a factor. OSU's three-point offense isn't as effective because teams just do not respect the inside game. OSU shooter are in a rush as they are being crowded at the three point line and spacing isn't as good as it normally is.

uck's incoming recruiting class for 2020 is "rated" very high, BUT until they actually have to play vs high level competition without an experienced floor leader(s) it is all a crap shoot. 

In the end it is about making shots and the other team missing them. It is why you play the game and the "paper" doesn't matter... not to the players anyway. The negativity about these two games from Beaver faithful is based on poor shooting. It can disappear if OSU shoots anywhere near what they typically do.

My opinion isn't really negative. I just see this as the best team ucks will ever assemble vs a OSU team struggling with an overall inexperienced group. Two starting Frosh and really only one sub with any big time experience/history of consistent contribution. I think Graves (and others the rest of the season) will be physical in closing down the 3 pt line and make the inexperienced players be the ones to beat them. That said... I think MP, DS are carrying too much of the overall load trying to make up for the slack in others shooting the ball. Aleah and Kat are pressing... each has shown more negative body language this season than I've seen in all their play here.

The Furd start was nice, but worrisome as SR teams are even keel throughout and I saw the emotion of players go too sky high as if they were relieved to finally see shots falling versus a quiet confidence that they'd been here done that. Obviously the Beavers need shots to fall, but they need an even keeled, methodical approach. This team is workmanlike, not all glory and gushing high fives 5 minutes into the 1st quarter.

OSU can win. Why? Cuz they've done it before. And, that is the key... play within yourself, trust each other... been here, done this!

Making SI have to score really worked out well for Stanford. She scored a career high and 'Furd got smoked.

If Ionescu shoots 9/25 again from the field like she did the last time the two teams played, I like our chances. It will be very important to keep her off the free throw line, especially in Eugene where she typically benefits from the borderline contact calls.

Ionescu rarely gets into foul trouble, a testament to her basketball IQ and the fact that she is protected in their defensive schemes. If you see her isolated against Pivec or Slocum tonight, that likely won't happen often.

I expect one game could get away, and another will be very close. I would be very surprised if it's two blowouts.

The problem for OSU is the scoring droughts. UO has too much offense to have similar droughts, OSU will need to find more offense then they have to keep up. They generally have stepped up vs. better competition, so it may happen. But I do not expect OSU to be able struggling on offense and relying on lock-down defense to stay in the games this weekend.

I did like seeing Slocum generally step up vs. Stanford, and we need her to continue doing that when we otherwise can't find a bucket. But much better if we get back to our ability for everybody to contribute efficiently.

Also, I think everybody within the program knew this team was not playing Top 5, maybe even Top 10 ball for much of the season... the problem was that nobody else was either. However, other teams are rounding into shape better now and OSU is still finding it's footing... so I see it as less of being overhyped, but rather just trending relatively down.

So teams weren't playing D on the perimeter against Tudor and Goodman the previous 2-3 years? Really?

I don't see any way to spin it other than both are in a slump. You're gonna have a defender in your area w/ a hand in your face sometimes. You still gotta hit shots. Not to mention I'm certain I've seen both miss plenty of open looks.