Co-Champs

Coming Up Short In Utah

            It is a testament to how "classy" Stanford's coach is that, in commenting on the Cardinal's loss at Utah, Tara simply said that Utah was the better team in the game.  She didn't point to the insane schedule the CARD had endured -- 3 ranked teams in six days (4 in eight), two plane trips (including one with a multiple hour delay), and a 43-hour turnaround after winning a double overtime game -- 43 hours that included that multi-hour travel delay.  If the CARD had pulled off a win against a highly motivated Utah team seeking a share of the Pac-12 title for the first time on the Utah home court, it would be time to start passing out Superhero capes.  Even with all that adversity, the CARD kept it close, trailing by only one point with less than two-and-a-half minutes to go in the 4th.

 

            The effect of fatigue on Stanford players was evident -- usually sure handed players had difficulty holding on to the ball, great shooters missed layups, and players moved a step too slow on defense.  Utah won the turnover battle, turning the ball over only 10 times while the CARD turned the ball over 21 times! But, in the final analysis, Utah won the game at the free-throw line, hitting 26 of their 33 free-throws while the CARD hit only 11 of 17.  The huge disparity in free-throws taken belies the fact that Stanford was only called for five more fouls (28 to 23).  To admittedly partisan eyes, it seemed that in some cases Utah players were ruled "in the act of shooting" when they were merely "on their way to the basket," while Stanford players getting knocked down while shooting didn't get an "and-one."

 

            Of course, Stanford players and coaches won't make any excuses for the loss.  They will simply learn what there is to be learned (mostly get a good night's sleep before a big game) and use it as motivation should they meet Utah in the Pac-12 Tournament Finals as they will if seeding holds. However, we certainly hope that the NCAA Committee takes that adversity into account.  Winning the Pac-12 Tournament would resolve that issue.

 

Bright Spots

            Perhaps the brightest spot is the fight that Stanford demonstrated.  After the gauntlet Stanford had faced, just showing up and jumping out to a 9-0 lead and battling back time and again -- pulling to within one, two-, or three-points numerous times after going down by more ten points -- is impressive. This team has heart!

 

            Another bright spot was the continued prowess of Cameron Brink at the free-throw line.  She only missed one free-throw for the ENTIRE MONTH OF FEBRUARY.  Cam hit 8 of 8 against Utah, 15 of 15 against UCLA, 4 of 4 against Arizona, 5 of 6 against Arizona State, 4 of 4 against Washington, and 2 of 2 against Washington State (she did not go to the line against Colorado). Impressive for a player whose FT average was in the 60% range in her first two years! It was also a positive to see Hannah Jump score 24 points, including 6 threes. Those threes may put her back into the top 5 nationally. (Hannah is currently 7th nationally.)

 

            This game, coming at the end of a grueling stretch, also gave Stanford a chance to employ its depth.  Many of the players who have had fewer minutes during the Pac-12 season got a chance to show what they can do, and they all contributed. Stanford's bench contributed 24 points compared to Utah's 15.  

 

Questions

 

1. What will be the first upset of the Pac-12 Tournament?

Reflecting the conference's strength, the Pac-12 tournament regularly sees upsets. With the conclusion of the final regular season games, the tournament bracket is set -- but we can expect that the seeding will not hold perfectly.  Stanford is the #1 seed while Co-Champion Utah is the #2 seed. Stanford's first game, scheduled for 2:30 on Thursday, will be against the winner of Wednesday's game between Washington and Oregon. If that is Washington it would give the CARD the chance to avenge one of its three Pac-12 losses. Who knows what comes next.

Miracle in the Mountains!

 Never quit on the CARD 'cause they don't quit!

Stanford 73 -- Colorado 62

 

            Things looked dark for Stanford down by one with six seconds left in the game and Colorado's Jaylyn Sherrod going to the free throw line for two shots. Sherrod, a 75% free throw shooter, missed both.  Fran Belibi grabbed the rebound.  With three seconds left, Lauren Betts was fouled while shooting from deep in the paint. She made one of the resulting free throws, sending the game into a second OT. Despite the fatigue one would expect for a team playing at altitude against their third ranked team in less than a week, Stanford outscored Colorado 13 to 2 in the final five minutes of this 50-minute game! 

 

            When Pac-12 Player-of-the-Year candidate Cameron Brink fouled out early in the first OT, All American Haley Jones stepped up! She was directly involved in seven of Stanford's points in the final OT (four points and an amazing assist on a Hannah Jump three-pointer), while playing the point and -- even more -- being the team's leader.  Haley played every minute of the game, scoring seven points in the first OT to help keep the CARD in the game.

 

            Stanford reserve stars from Colorado -- senior Fran Belibi and freshman Lauren Betts -- were key players in this victory, partly due to Brink's foul problems!  Both played roughly 20 minutes over their season average.  Between the two, they accounted for 20 of the team's 73 points, 5 of the team's 10 blocks, 6 of the team's 16 assists, and 16 of the team's 53 rebounds.  Fran also had a critical steal.  She reminded us why we will miss her, and Lauren showed us how dominant she is going to become!

 

HARD TRIP!

            Trips to the mountains are always hard due to the need to play at altitude after plane rides.  This trip also has the difficulty of coming at 2 pm after a Monday night game, that was followed by an emotional Senior Night ceremony.  Stanford didn't even take the normal morning shoot-around.  That may have contributed to Stanford's slow start -- the CARD didn't score their first points until Haley Jones hit two free throws with 74 SECONDS remaining in the first quarter and didn't hit their first basket until 12 seconds left in the quarter! Stanford's defense kept the CARD in the game.  Despite Stanford's poor shooting, the CARD was only down by eight at the end of the first quarter.

 

            Once the Stanford offense got warmed up, the CARD outscored Colorado by two in the second quarter and 12 in the third quarter.  Fatigue may have caught up with Stanford in the 4th quarter when a motivated and well coached Buffalo team outscored the CARD by six to even the game at the end of regulation.  Having survived what looked like almost certain defeat in the first overtime, Stanford came out with new determination in the second OT.  They showed the heart of champions, scoring 13 points while holding Colorado to only two points over the final five minutes.

 

SNAKE BIT!

            Colorado star Jaylyn Sherrod must be feeling a little snake bit as this is at least the third time Stanford has turned what appeared to be a Colorado victory into a loss.  First it was Ashton Prechtel hitting a catch and shoot basket with only seconds to go four years ago.  Then it was Kianna Williams scoring six points in less than16 seconds to steal another win.  In this game Sherrod gave it more than her all but may have nightmares about those missed free-throws at the end of the first OT.  It is a tribute to J.R. Payne's coaching that Colorado is always one of the toughest challenges Stanford faces every year.

 

First Goal Accomplished!!!

            With the win Stanford wraps up at least a share of the Pac-12 title and the #1 seed in the Pac-12 Tournament next week.  (If Stanford and Utah end the season with equal 15-3 Conference records, Stanford wins the tie-breaker with the Utes.) That meets the team's first goal. Beating Utah to take sole possession would be sweet!  Then it's on to the Pac-12 Tournament with goal number two being winning that tournament.  

 

Questions

 

1.  Did Tara see something nobody else saw?

At the start of the season Pac-12 coaches were polled on who would win the Conference.  The rule is you can't pick your own team.  Stanford got 11 votes, Utah got one...so we know who voted for them.  The coaches picked Oregon second, Arizona third, UCLA fourth, and Utah fifth! Tara claimed her vote was purely based on Utah's second place finish in last year's Pac-12 tournament.  But one wonders if she saw something other's missed.

 

2.  Are the CARD getting ready to "gel?"

Stanford clearly has all the pieces of a championship team.  But a lot of those pieces are very young players.  And, the one problem with having so many fabulous pieces is getting the team to gel.  This team has great chemistry among the players but isn't playing like a well-oiled machine (yet). There have been flashes -- but not 40 consecutive minutes. If the CARD can bring all the pieces together for full game (and it is looking more likely), they will be lifting three trophies before April 3...

Funky Four Go Out With A Win

Senior Night

 

            Senior night is always interesting - especially when it marks the regular season home finale for four amazing seniors.  Everybody wants a send-off victory, although according to Haley Jones, the players try to put that out of their mind and stay within the game.  

 

            In the first half, it looked like the game was going to be easy. Stanford had an eight-point lead after one quarter and a 13-point lead at the half.  Unfortunately, the third quarter was not easy. UCLA came out on fire and Stanford did not.  Going into the 4th quarter, Stanford was down by one.  But the team stepped up to win by five.  The CARD was led by their All-Americans Jones and Brink, who scored 19 of Stanford's 21 points in the final ten minutes.  But lots of players made important contributions in that final quarter.  Seniors Fran Belibi and Hannah both had key steals and rebounds.  Freshman point guard Lepolo added a rebound, an assist, and scored the other two points on critical free throws giving Stanford a four-point lead with 13 seconds left in the game. 

 

            It was an interesting game statistically. Stanford was out rebounded 36 to 33, with an even greater disparity on the offensive boards. UCLA took 15 more shots than Stanford, but only had one more made basket.  The Bruins also took 14 more three-pointers than Stanford, hitting 7-25 while Stanford was 4 of 11.  The stats say that points-in-the-paint were even at 28 apiece but that stat doesn't include the 17 made free throws by Stanford "bigs" Betts and Brink. Stanford won this game at the charity stripe, going 23 of 25 while UCLA made 13 of 18. Cameron Brink was perfect from the line, hitting a Stanford record 15-straight free throws. 

 

Interesting Improvements

 

            It is exciting to see the improvements players have made.  In this game we saw again the gains that Lauren Betts has made. She looked confident in her 15 minutes on the floor, scoring 12 points, collecting six rebounds, and getting an assist on a great pass out of a triple team. Both Nivar and Lepolo also showed that they should no longer be considered freshmen. 

 

Saying Good Bye (sort of) to the Funky Four

            

            The hardest thing about the night was realizing that this was the last "official" home game for the four Stanford seniors who came in as the #2 recruiting class in the country.  Of course, their senior year is not really over.  There are two more regular season games, the Pac-12 tournament in Las Vegas, and the NCAA tournament.  Stanford will certainly be a top 16 seed (probably a Regional #1), so there will be tournament games scheduled at Maples -- but this was the last regular season home game.  They have been a joy to watch -- but more of that later when the season is closer to being truly over. 

 

First Goal: Winning the Pac-12 Regular Season Title

 

            With the win against UCLA, Stanford moves within one victory of clinching a share of the Pac-12 regular season title and the #1 seed for the Pac-12 tournament. Tara's team is heading to the mountains intent on grabbing two more victories.  Those wins would properly build the Cardinal's momentum for the Pac-12 tournament. 

Questions

1. Did you miss my column?

I was away in New Zealand and wasn’t able to watch any games after the Oregon sweep until I returned home.  Who knew that New Zealand would show the Super Bowel but not Stanford Women’s Basketball?!! Since returning, I have bing-watched all the games.  I will update this column with some comments.

2. How much will we miss watching the four seniors at Maples?

Of course, the four plus Agnes and Cameron all have Covid years….just saying.