The Answer

Message Received, Response Delivered

 

            On Friday night Stanford and Utah played for the Pac-12 lead with the national #4 Cardinal and the #8 Utah Utes both coming in at 5-1 in conference play.  Last Sunday Stanford lost to a Pac-12 opponent for the first time since January 2021, going down to unranked USC.  The question for the night was, how would the CARD respond to a loss? The answer, very well, thank you.

 

            Utah came in averaging almost 87 points a game -- the 4th highest average in the country.  They left having scored only 62 points, 25 under their average -- and three of those were scored on a last second three when the game was already totally over.  Stanford's 74 points were also under their 80 plus average -- but only by 6 points, and it came in a win.

 

            The beginning of the game was a bit stressful for fans looking for reassurance after the CARD's uncharacteristically poor offensive performance in the loss to USC.  Utah jumped out to a 10-2 lead.  But even though the score wasn't comforting, the intensity of Stanford's play, full of motion and aggressive offensive play was encouraging.  That intensity was soon rewarded, with the CARD evening the score at 12-12 with 4:29 left in the first quarter.  With a minute left in the first quarter, Stanford was up by two and never trailed again.  The CARD was up by nine at the end of the first half.  

 

            The second half never turned into a rout, with the Utes pulling to within three several times.  But Stanford remained in the lead for the entire game, entering the 4th quarter with a five-point lead. Stanford stretched its lead into "almost comfortable" territory in the 4th quarter.  By the last two minutes, Stanford fans were able to relax and exhale.

 

            One of the scariest moments of the game came early in the first quarter when Talana Lepolo, our poised freshman point guard leader went down with an ankle injury.  Talana eventually reappeared, first with ice on her ankle, later in a boot, but was obviously unable to re-enter the game -- and almost certainly will not play on Sunday.  The good news was that Indya Nivar entered the game and performed admirably.  Indya's athleticism stood out on several plays, especially a beautiful lay-in against three defenders on a solo fastbreak.  Her final stat line - four points, three assists, two rebounds, a steal and no turnovers -- was a great contribution.  

 

            The "Big Three" came out firing -- with Brink and Jones both scoring 25 points as part of double-doubles.  Hannah Jump was the team's other double-digit scorer, 13 points including two three pointers.  The bad news for the CARD was that only 11 of Stanford's 74 points were scored by players not named Brink, Jones, or Jump.  Now some of the reason the Big Three were able to score was because the other players did their part.  However, it will be good to see other players stepping up their offense.  

 

Questions

 

1.  Having defeated a second highly ranked team in eight days, will the CARD suffer a letdown against Colorado?

Last week Stanford defeated ranked UCLA, then lost to unranked USC.  I'll bet against a let down -- Stanford student's rarely make the same mistake twice. But Colorado has often been a very tough game for Stanford. It may be even tougher without Lepolo's solid play at point-guard against Colorado's aggressive defense.

 

2. Who will step up as a reliable 4th scorer?

Brink and Jones are amazing players.  As I've said before, Stanford fans are privileged to get to watch these two amazing young women play.  Hannah Jump is one of the game's best 3-pt shooters and has turned herself into a well-rounded player.  But, to win a National Championship, the team needs at least one other strong scorer.  Who will it be?