le during a scrimmage portion of practice on Saturday.Washington countered that with a few big runs of his own and believes he can be a nice complement to Murray in the Raiders backfield.We both bring different skill sets to the table, so I think it makes it a little bit harder to game plan for opposi

Oregon earned its highest ranking ever in the Associated Press poll on Monday but then started to drop on Tuesday when the fourth-ranked Ducks fell to 1-1 with a 66-49 loss at Baylor.The Ducks are back on the court at home Thursday night against Valparaiso, which went 30-7 last year, including a 73-67 loss at Oregon.Valpo won 30 games last year and I said they would do that before the season, Oregon coach Dana Altman said. I said they were going to win 30 and I hoped we were not one of them. And they are going to win 30 games again, and I hope we are not one of them.Valparaiso is 3-0 after wins over Southern Utah, Trinity Christian and Coppin State, but Oregon will present a bigger challenge.The Ducks are expected to once again be without all-conference forward Dillon Brooks, who had foot surgery in July. The Ducks are hopeful he can return next week when Oregon plays in the Maui Invitational.We did not have him in the summer or for preseason practices, so it is no excuse at all, Oregon junior forward Jordan Bell said. When he comes back, he will help us.Oregon had a lackluster start to the season. After a 91-77 win over Army, the Ducks lost by 17 at Baylor. Point guard Dylan Ennis scored 16 points as the Ducks shot just 32.8 percent against the Bears.We have a lot of work to do, and Ive been really telling the guys that for the last two or three weeks, Altman said. I liked our first couple weeks of practice and then we got stuck in gear. We had a hard time getting out of that, but I hope we can figure out a way to get it in another gear.Oregon has a veteran team, with four returning starters, and Altman said he hopes they hear his message soon.That comes from leadership within the team, he said. They have not been doing a good job listening to my warnings. I hope the guys talk about it, because it is their team. They are going to make a decision on the identity for their team. We give them some suggestions, but they are going to have to change the way they approach it.Oregon has a difficult schedule. After Valparaiso, the Ducks head next week to the Maui Invitational, where they will open against Georgetown. The Ducks are one of three teams currently ranked in the eight-team field.This is as tough of a start to the schedule as we have had here, said Altman, who is beginning his seventh season at the school.Senior forward Alec Peters is averaging 26.3 points per game for Valparaiso while senior guard Shane Hammink is scoring 18.7 per game for the Crusaders, who are averaging 82 points per game.Willy Adames Rays Jersey . After Mondays hard-fought loss, the wait seemed longer than usual. 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The Anahim Lake, B.C., native was stellar in making 39 saves in his home province and Lars Eller got credit for a bizarre short-handed winner as the Canadiens defeated the Canucks 4-1.NAPA, Calif. -- While many people around the league have questioned whether DeAndre Washington has the size to stick in the NFL, Raiders rookie running back sees his stature as a benefit instead of a hindrance.It certainly hasnt taken the 5-foot-8-inch, 205-pound Washington long to make an impact in training camp.On the second day of practice, the 5-foot-8, 205-pound running back took a handoff from quarterback Matt McGloin and cut around the left corner then broke into the open field for a long gain.Two days later, Washington bounced back after getting bowled over by linebacker Cory James during a blitz pick-up drill and left James grasping at air with a nifty move during a team scrimmage.Its that type of potential that convinced the Raiders to draft the Texas Tech standout and is why Washington is brimming with confidence in spite of what critics might be saying.Being a smaller guy works in my favor, Washington said during a break in practice. Being behind those big guys, epecially when you put those paads on, makes it kind of hard to see me. Its definitely a good feeling when I can hide and do my thing behind those guys.Washington could wind up playing a pivotal role on a running game that was up and down most of last season.Latavius Murray was second in the AFC and sixth overall with 1,066 yards but the Raiders finished 28th overall in rushing.Part of the issue stemmed from a lack of committment to the running game and also from the inability of the backups to keep the ground game going when Murray came out to rest.Thats one of the primary reasons that general manager Reggie McKenzie and coach Jack Del Rio wanted to add depth to the backfield. They experimented with Trent Richardson in training camp a year ago then went with the tandem of Taiwan Jones and Roy Helu Jr. during the regular season.Jones and Washington have been splitting reps behind Murray in practice. Helu was placed on injured reserve before camp began after having surgery on both hips.ddddddddddddMuch of the focus, though, is on Washington, a fifth-round draft pick who rushed for 1,492 yards and 14 touchdowns during his senior season in college.With the case of DeAndre and Jalen (Richard), some of the younger guys, were really learning about our younger guys, Del Rio said Monday. Were learning about these guys that are new to us. We want to make sure that were really thorough with them, that we give them an opportunity to express who they are, let them compete, and then learn. Were taking notes and were sharing the information. As a football team, we want to make sure we take advantage of the individual talents that we have.Murray looked strong in offseason workouts and made one long run up the middle during a scrimmage portion of practice on Saturday.Washington countered that with a few big runs of his own and believes he can be a nice complement to Murray in the Raiders backfield.We both bring different skill sets to the table, so I think it makes it a little bit harder to game plan for opposing teams, Washington said. Im looking forward to working with him and making plays with him.Murray welcomed Washingtons arrival in the offseason and is confident the two can help improve Oaklands ground game.We know the expectations we hold for ourselves and the talk thats been going around, but we know that right now its just talk, Murray said. The only thing that we can go out there and do is get better, come together as a team and put it all together so we can play and win on Sundays. Right now, its just on paper and heres the time where we put it together and live up to the hype.Game notesFourth-round pick Connor Cook returned after attending a funeral on Sunday. ... Left guard Kelechi Osemele also came back to practice after sitting out one day for undisclosed reasons. ' ' '