First ACC Win
Fans who missed Stanford's ACC Home Opener against Florida State University missed an encouraging and exciting game that ended with Stanford's first ACC victory! The 8-6 Cardinal returned from a road trip that was both disappointing and encouraging -- with close losses to SMU and Clemson. Before that trip this column wondered if the young Cardinal team had grown up enough to be truly competitive this year. Against FSU the answer was a resounding yes.
The revised starting line-up with Chloe Clardy and Shay Ijiwoye replacing Tess Heal and Jzaniya Harriel led a high energy team capable of competing! This line-up was first used in Stanford's overtime loss to Clemson, a game not available on TV (due to the CW replacing it with a religious broadcast and a paid eyecare infomercial). The change was foreshadowed by the energy surge those players provided in the closing quarter of the SMU game -- turning a game that had been almost painful to watch into a winnable game.
On paper FSU looked like a sure winner. They were 13-2 and undefeated in the ACC and ranked 22nd in the NET. But Stanford led from just before the 6-minute mark when the CARD went up by one on the first of Brooke Demetre's five three-pointers. They CARD held national scoring leader and national player-of-the-year candidate Ta'Niya Latson under her scoring average. Stanford senior Demetre (24 pts on 9/15) matched Latson's offensive output (24 pts on 8-22) on much more efficient shooting. Overall, Stanford's offense was more efficient than FSU's. The CARD shot over 50% from the floor and 40% from three while holding FSU below 39% overall and below 29% from three.
Demetre's 24-point mark was a career high for her. She was joined in double figures by Elena Bosgana (21 pts), Nunu Agara (17 pts) and Tess Heal (14 pts). Bosgana had a double-double before half-time, finishing with 21 points, 15 rebounds, six assists, two steals, and a block. An impressive stat line. As a team, Stanford out rebounded FSU by 17 (52 to 35). That was important because the CARD also committed 12 more turnovers (18 to 6) than FSU - a testament to FSU's aggressive defense. That aggressive defense resulted in FSU being called for eight more fouls than Stanford (23 to 15) -- an impressive difference since the ACC officials appear to be slow to use their whistles.
Sparkplug freshman Shay Ijiwoye had seven points and could have been in double figures had she hit more than three of her eight free throws. Going forward Shay will need to further improve her 37.5% free throw shooting as it almost appeared that FSU was employing a "hack-a-Shay" tactic in the last minutes of the game. They fouled Shay four times in the last four minutes, twice in the last minute. Nonetheless, Shay's speed, energy, and quick hands were a huge factor in Stanford's victory. The most indelible image from the game was Ijiwoye's leaping interception of FSU's inbounds pass at the end of the game with Stanford clinging to a four-point lead! Shay's exuberant leaping dribble as the clock ticked down perfectly embodied the excited energy she brings to the team.
The Changing World of Women's Basketball
The Stanford model has always been recruiting talented student-athletes who value a Stanford degree and develop their skills over four years. Freshmen almost never started at the beginning of the season and some standout seniors didn't really get their shot until their senior season. Recruitment was essentially over once the student athlete had formally "committed" to a program. Coaches could comfortably assume that the effort they put into developing a player with potential would translate to the win column in future.
The transfer portal and the rise of direct recruiting by booster "collectives" has changed that. Coaches are piecing together teams from the transfer portal -- in some cases adding a missing piece in others replacing the team that transferred out. Florida State had ZERO freshmen on its roster and nearly half of their players were transfers. Stanford has two transfers -- Tess Heal and Mary Ashly Stevenson. Four players -- Kiki Iriafen, Agnes Emma-Nnopu, Indya Nivar, and Laureen Betts -- who spent at least one season at Stanford are now playing on other nationally ranked teams.
Although some transfers are due to players (or their parents) being unhappy with the player's amount of playing time or failure to be "featured" in the team's offense -- others are about the money being offered. In this new world even students who have "committed" to a program can change their mind and go elsewhere. Some estimate that if Stanford wants to actually enroll the five outstanding recruits who have committed to Stanford, it will take over a million dollars for NIL money. It will also take money to ensure that talented players on this year's team stick around.
Stanford's response is Lifetime Cardinal -- the Stanford NIL collective. In future columns and website stories, we will be talking more about LIFETIME CARDINAL and how we Stanford Women's Basketball fans can support it. Stay tuned.
Questions
1. Will the Maples Magic Last?
Stanford has a bizarre "perfect record" this season -- undefeated at home and without a win on the road. The first question is, will the Maples Magic help the CARD get another big win on Sunday when NC State -- the team that ended Stanford's season last year -- comes to Maples. We can at least be sure that the three-point line will be both correct and consistent -- something that wasn't true in last year's Regional Tournament games.
2. Has the team "left it too late?"
It looks like this team has started to find its footing. But it will probably take at least 19 or 20 wins to make the NCAA tournament. Stanford, at 9-6, has 14 regular season games remaining -- five of them against teams ranked in the top 25 including road games against Notre Dame and Duke. This team can do it -- but it will not be easy.
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