Larry Enjoys Oregon Homecoming

Andre Larry didn’t want to leave Oregon. Which is why he so badly wanted to return as a member of the Cal State Northridge basketball team.

Of five members of the Matadors with ties to Oregon--including Coach Bobby Braswell, a former Duck assistant--Larry entered Saturday’s nonconference game at Oregon’s McArthur Court the most determined.

He emerged the most satisfied.

“I can’t put it into words right now,” Larry said. “I’ll probably go back to the hotel and cry, or something.”

Larry scored a game-high 23 points, including the winning basket with 10 seconds to play, as the Matadors shocked Oregon, 79-77, before 7,418 boisterous fans. Larry, a 6-foot-9 forward, played sparingly for two seasons with the Ducks, then opted to transfer after Coach Jerry Green left for Tennessee.

*

Evidently, basketball players were smaller in 1926, when ancient McArthur Court was built. Brian Heinle learned that the hard way.

The oldest Division I arena in the country, “The Pit,” as the Ducks’ home is affectionately known, bears a resemblance to Boston Garden with its four-story, ivy-covered pavilion and dank locker rooms located in the basement.

Heinle, a 6-9 Northridge center, suffered a gash in his scalp after hitting an overhead heating duct outside the Matadors’ locker room after the game. The wound required three stitches, administered by the Oregon team doctor.

Forget to duck, Brian?

“No comment,” Heinle said with a sheepish smile. “I’m tall. Let’s just leave it at that.”