The scrimmage: RED and WHITE and GREAT ALL OVER!
Fans got their first look at the 2022-23 Stanford Women's Basketball team on Saturday, Oct. 29. The team did not disappoint. It was abundantly clear that this fifteen-woman team of four seniors (the Fab Four, the Funky Four, the Finals Four -- or just four winners?), two juniors, three or four sophomores (depending on where you count last year's Redshirt Jzanyia Harriel), and a boatload of freshmen have all the pieces needed to be National Champions. All the returning players returned improved, and the freshman showed promise. The biggest disappointment was due to the wrap on Fran Belibi's hand, that injury meant she didn't play despite being the "Red" captain for the Red - White scrimmage.
Before getting into a review of the various players' performances that will likely resemble most viewers' analysis, I want to comment on one interesting aspect of the women's game. It is increasingly "position-less." Despite having two players on the watch list for the Lisa Leslie award for outstanding center (Belibi and Betts), Stanford only lists 6'7" Lauren Betts as a center. Similarly, Haley Jones is on the small forward watch list, but Stanford lists her as a guard. Many Pac-12 teams don't list any player as a center. With "bigs" like Cameron Brink running the floor like sprinters and hitting 3-point shots, the game has clearly changed.
In addition to the game changing, our coach has changed too. The video of Tara dancing (or trying to) with Cam and Haley at the Pac-12 media day leaves long-time Tara watchers smiling and almost scratching our heads. Maybe it's because the winningest coach in women's basketball is smart enough to know that you need to change when the players change, maybe it's that age has given Tara the wisdom to know that life should be joyful, or maybe it's just having nothing left to prove, but Tara has definitely "loosened up." We're waiting to see what dance moves she'll bust out when it's time to celebrate the completion of this year's season.
Now to the scrimmage....
Haley Jones, the "White" captain, demonstrated the court vision, smooth moves, tenacity, enthusiasm, and leadership that should make her a serious candidate for National Player of the Year. Cameron Brink, the 2021-22 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, has only gotten better and her 3 pt. and midrange shots have become legitimate parts of her offensive repertoire. Both look to earn the All-American honors that preseason ratings have recorded.
Senior Hannah Jump had a slow day from the 3-point line but scored often with improved confidence on pull up jumpers and drives to the basket. We look to see her put all the pieces together. Her regular 3-point drill after the scrimmage (she puts up what seems like a bazillion shots from all the spots on the floor) showed that her 3-point stroke is still on target so we can expect to see it when the season starts. Her fellow senior, 6-5 Ashton Prechtel was the same solid presence in the post and reliable 3-pt shooter that she has been throughout her career. Junior Agnes Emma-Nnopo, a feisty defender last year, showed that she can make life difficult for opposing guards coming up the floor.
The Underclassmen
Last year's freshmen demonstrated the improvement that a year's experience in the college game can be expected to provide, especially Kiki Iriafen. Kiki is a candidate for Tara's designation as a player whose practice performance "is going to make me play her." We can expect her minutes to be at least more than double last year's 6.5 minutes-per-game average despite Stanford's loaded group of "bigs." A more confident Brooke Demetre showed off the scoring prowess that she flashed several times last year (remember Florida Gulf Coast?) and showed defensive improvement. However, sophomores Demetre and Bosgana may have trouble finding substantial floor time this year given the talented group of upperclassmen ahead of them.
That brings us to the five true freshman and one red-shirt freshman -- a highly anticipated group. Center Lauren Betts, the 6'7" high school player-of-the-year, played sparingly especially in the second half. When in the game she demonstrated smooth moves and a soft shooting touch. The rest of the freshman group are guards. Talana Lepolo and Indya Nivar showed skills that reassured fans who have been worried about the point-guard role. Lepolo's poise and command at the point made it hard to believe that she has not played a single official minute as a college player. She showed good "handles," facilitated well, and knocked down her three-pointers when needed. Nivar didn't show quite as much comfort at the point, but her quickness up the floor and offensive skills suggest that her future is very bright.
Now it's time for our next batch of questions!
1. Can the Cardinal stay healthy?
The tape on Fran Belibi's hand and the silence when Haley Jones headed to the locker room after a nasty fall served as a reminder that injuries can disrupt promising seasons. Sedona Prince's recent college career ending injury and the season ending injuries to UConn's Bueckers and freshman Ice Brady will undoubtedly impact the trajectories of their teams. We can expect that minor injuries and illness will result in players missing a game or two here and there -- our team has the depth to weather that. The question is can Stanford manage to avoid the catastrophic injuries that result in crazy things like a number one seed losing to a sixteen seed....? Not many teams can lose a superstar and still end up holding that National Championship trophy.
2. Can Stanford go undefeated in the Pac-12 two years in a row?
That is a hard trick to pull off even once and the Pac-12 teams have all gotten stronger. But, can anybody beat the Cardinal? By early March we will definitely have the answer.
3. How quickly will all the pieces fit together?
As good as the team looked in the Red-White scrimmage, there are still some rough spots. Will they be polished enough to give this team a win over South Carolina three weeks from now? Lauren Betts has the tools of a true center, but will Lauren be ready to play against Aliyah Boston in her 6th college game? How about the freshman point guards? Of course, November is only important because it gets a team ready for March and April...so perhaps the better question is will these early game help the team be better when it counts.
4. Will Judea Watkins accept the crowd encouragement to "come to Stanford?'
Okay, this may be a silly question while this year's team is just coming together, but it would ease the angst of fans dreading the departure of all-world Haley Jones to have the top recruit of 2022-23 available to plug the hole she will leave behind. Judea Watkins and her family were on the sidelines for the scrimmage and at one point the crowd raised a sustained chant, "Come to Stanford, JuJu." We hope she will.
