First ACC Road Trip in the books

What A Difference a (CLAR)Day Makes

         

         Stanford returns from its first ACC road trip of the year winning one of two, a 28-point loss to unranked NC State and a six-point overtime win against 16th ranked UNC Chapel Hill! Anybody who wonders how important Chloe Clardy is to this year's Cardinal team only needs to look at those two games.  Against NC State Chloe was not on the bench due to concussion protocol. Against UNC Clardy, as usual, didn't start the game but, also as usual, she was on the floor at the end of the game. Chloe is the team's leader in steals, second in scoring and assists, and leads the team in average minutes-per-game. As ESPN analyst Debbie Antonelli pointed out Sunday, the difference between games was partly due to the difference between the defensive style of NC State and UNC -- but there is no denying that Clardy's absence or presence was a major factor. 

 

Stanford's Junior A-O-C

            In the political world AOC refers to a firebrand female politician. For Stanford AOC is Agara-Ogden-Clardy, the Cardinal's trio of junior firebrand stars. Everybody knows that Nunu Agara is a star. She was a pre-season ACC All Conference pick. Nunu led Stanford's scoring last season and is currently the scoring leader this year. She led the CARD's scoring against NC State with 16.  But Agara struggled against UNC, picking up several early fouls, including several offensive fouls. Courtney Ogden continued the star performance she began against CAL on this trip, scoring 12 against NC State and a game high 21 against UNC.  Courtney was the team leader in +/- among all Stanford players with more than 10 minutes per game for the road trip. (Although against NC State that simply meant her negative was lower.)  Ogden was Stanford's highest ranked recruit coming in her freshman year and is showing it now. Against UNC her three-pointer as the shot clock ran down in the last minute of the third quarter was one of the biggest in the game. Her 16 points in the second half were critical for the CARD. The "C" stands for Clardy whose value to the CARD has already been mentioned.  Against UNC Chloe scored 12 points and just missed a double-double with 9 rebounds.  

 

The Trio of Freshmen Stars

            Stanford's highly regarded freshman class included three five-star, McDonald's All Americans.  Two, Lara Somfai and Hailee Swain have been starters all season and they have not disappointed. Lara, a three-time ACC freshman of the week, only scored 6 points against NC State but pulled down a game high 16 rebounds along with two steals and a block! Hailee Swain hit some big shots on the road trip, showing her quickness and skill. Hailee is also doing things that don't show up on the stat sheet but absolutely matter.  For example, in the final four minutes against UNC, Hailee gave up her body going for a rebound -- her effort allowed Chloe to pull down the critical board. The third of Stanford's freshman five-star recruits, Alex Eschmeyer gave us a glimpse of her future against UNC -- scoring 10 points and grabbing 2 rebounds in a little over 7 minutes of play. That's more than a point a minute.  The freshman trio accounted for 30 of Stanford's 77 points. 

 

You Don't Need to Be Tall

            While this year's Stanford team has a lot of height, the two shortest players on the team make big contributions. Talana Lepolo, the 5'7" senior had a seven assist-one turnover game against UNC.  She continued to be perfect for the season from the free throw line, hitting four in the last seconds of overtime against UNC to seal the CARD's win.  Shay Ijwoye, at 5'6" was the shortest player on the floor (by an inch) but with her quickness and energy she managed five key rebounds against UNC.  Beyond that, Shay's presence on the floor was important. 

 

This Team is Resilient 

            Stanford got beaten badly by NC State on Thursday.  Some teams would have hung their heads against a ranked team on Sunday.  But the coaching staff had this team with their heads up. The CARD took the lead in the first quarter then lost it, as they did against NC State. But against UNC, the CARD kept it close all game and tied the game in the 4th quarter. Agara fouled out with about six minutes to play -- but Stanford didn't fold. Eschmeyer stepped up with seven points. Ijwoye pulled down critical rebounds. Stanford finally took the lead early in the overtime period and never trailed (although UNC did tie the game at the two minute mark). Now the CARD heads home with their second win over a ranked team under their belt.  

Questions

1.  Can Stanford avoid the up and down, shoot-yourself-in-the-foot performances for the rest of the year?

Because of their last season's record, Stanford opened the year out of the national conversation and out of the Top 25 rankings.  But the CARD's early play had the team edging back into that conversation.  Then came the Florida Gulf Coast debacle closely followed by the 30-turnover loss to Tennessee.  Stanford had almost worked its way back into the conversation before the blowout loss to NC State - but it was followed by the road win over UNC.  Can Stanford hold on against Wake Forrest and Duke?

2. Can Courtney Ogden continue to show her five-star talent?

Ogden's double digit scoring and heads up play continue? Ogden leads the Cardinal in shooting percentage (over 58%) among players with more than 20 attempts.  So, the real question is will Courtney listen to her coaches and keep shooting.

New Year -- the REAL Season begins

            As the year winds down it is a good time to step back take stock of the Stanford Women's Basketball team.  First term classes, grades (and final exams) are in the books, the preseason is over and ACC conference play is about to start in earnest.  It begins with a tough road trip to play North Carolina State and North Carolina on their home floors.   

            The Cardinal currently sits at 12 -2, with wins over Washington, Oregon, and conference foe Cal on the resume.  The two losses were, in their own ways, both embarrassing and instructive. They serve as a reminder that it isn't how you start the season; it's how you finish it.  In Candice Wiggins' senior year the CARD took on UCON in a Thanksgiving tournament and was beaten badly.  That same CARD team defeated UCON in the National Semi-finals. That team had learned what they needed to do to defeat a top team -- and they did it.

            This season’s first loss was a four-point loss to a not terribly good Florida Gulf Coast team the day after Thanksgiving.  That game was marked by both a lack of intensity and unusually bad officiating.  The lessons to be learned were that one can't take any team lightly and one can't be thrown off by bad calls -- excuses don't erase losses.  The second loss was to a good, nationally ranked Tennessee team where despite committing THIRTY turnovers, Stanford led at the start of the fourth quarter and was tied 62-62 with eleven seconds left in the game. The lessons from that game were about the need to finish strong in the face of defensive intensity and to TAKE CARE OF THE BALL.  Stanford coaches report that in the wake of the Tennessee game the team and coaches reviewed the game tape and found only three turnovers that had been the result of Tennessee "took the ball" -- the rest were the result of unforced errors or mistakes like dribbling into crowds. 

 

BREAKING FOR EXAMS

            After taking a break for first quarter exams, the CARD returned to the floor for a trio of games against former PAC-12 teams.  First up was CAL -- the PAC-12 team that joined Stanford in traveling to the ACC. The CAL game could be headlined as the Courtney Ogden coming out party.  Ogden, a five-star talent, has struggled with injuries and confidence during her first years at Stanford. But this season she is beginning to have a Kiki Iriafen like "junior-year-coming-into-her-own." Against CAL Courtney scored 25 points on 10 of 12 shooting (and four of five free throws). Since that game Ogden has scored in double figures in every game -- she leads the team in shooting percentage among all players with more than ten shot attempts (meaning everybody except Carly Amborn, the Kate Starbird like shooter who is 7 of 8 from 3 and 2 0f two from inside the arc for the season). Courtney has a team high 58.7% shooting percentage -- and the enviable position of having her coaches urging her to shoot more.  Ogden's pull up jumper is a thing of beauty.  Of course, the CAL game wasn't just the Ogden show -- three other players were doble digit scorers and Lara Somfai had a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds.  Even better, the CARD had only six turnovers.  In fact, the CARD has not lost the turnover battle since they lost to Tennessee.

BEATING A RANKED TEAM

            Next up was University of Washington.  Playing without Nunu Agara, the CARD started slowly.  The team was down at the end of the first quarter, tied at the half, and down by nine at with just under six minutes to play in the third. At that point Stanford came alive, scoring 25 points.  It was a tense back-and-forth affair -- but the CARD showed that they had learned the lesson of how to close out a game, ultimately winning by 5 after a 25 point fourth quarter. The freshmen came up big in this game with Somfai leading the CARD in scoring while Hailee Swain joined Ogden and Clardy in double figure scoring.

ANOTHER GAME THE PUNDITS THOUGHT THE CARD WOULD LOSE

            Then it was time for Oregon -in a game played at Chase Center.  Arenas can be hard for college players.  But this year's Stanford team played like the pros they hope to be one day.  Stanford led almost the entire game, winning by nine.  Although turnovers were even (16), the CARD had more assists, steals and paint points. Ogden led the team in scoring with 20, while Agara and Somfai both pulled down 11 rebounds. Somfai, Clardy, and Swain scored in double figures with Somfai picking up another double-double. 

            After the holiday break Stanford had a chance to get the rust off before heading out on the road in a game against a solidly over matched Cornell team. The CARD stole the ball a remarkable 17 times in this game -- including three by Shay Ijwoye whose high energy races to breakaway layups excited the crowd and the team.  Those layups helped Shay to a career high 12 points.  She joined Agara (19pts), Ogden (15 pts) and Swain (12 pts) in double figures.  Lara Somfai pulled down a season high 18 rebounds but just missed another double-double with nine points. Carly Amborn proved that she is human, going one-for-two from three and missing her two point attempt during her five plus minutes of play.  

 

WHAT DO WE KNOW?

            Going into the full conference schedule, we know that Stanford's freshman class is "as advertised" -- which is to say very good. Lara Somfai is one of the top freshmen in the country -- as evidenced by her three ACC Rookie of the Week honors.  Her five double-doubles rank her among the top freshmen in the country in that stat. Her 18 rebounds against Cornell are also tied for the most rebounds in a game by a freshman this year.  Hailee Swain is quick, talented and learning the ropes of being a college guard. Both she and Somfai are working on better shot selection -- as the shots that were there in high school aren't always the best choices in the college game.  But, they are coachable and learning, Swain's three assists against Cornell were a big step up.  Alex Eschmeyer is on her way to being a force in the paint.  She has a sweet shot and smooth moves but will be even better when she gets stronger.  Carly Amborn looks like another three-point star and Nora Ezike, although slowed by injuries early, looks to be another solid player.

            We also know that Stanford's returning players have picked up where they left off.  Nunu Agara is the team's leading scorer and a leader on the floor.  Chloe Clardy is the team leader in steals and second in scoring and assists -- remarkable for a player who comes off the bench! As noted earlier, Courtney Ogden is showing the five-star talent she displayed in high school. Shay Ijwoye, finally getting minutes on the court is still the high energy speedster she was last year -- but armed with greater maturity. Mary Ashly Stevenson has played solid minutes -- a steady player. Talana Lepolo, the senior point guard, is again a steadying force on the floor -- a real coach out there although as the younger players gain experience her role may become more limited -- especially against quicker teams.

            We know this team is good enough to get back into the NCAA Tournament.  What we don't know is how good it is -- and how good it will be by year's end when the freshmen aren't really freshmen anymore. There are questions yet to be answered. The upcoming games in North Carolina will begin to provide some answers.

Turkey Hangover or Reason to Worry

Escaping Las Vegas

 

            When the 7-0 Cardinal arrived in Las Vegas Wednesday the team was riding high -- Lara Somfai had just been named National Freshman-of-the-Week and Nunu Agara, having been named ACC Player-of-the-Week was runner-up for National Player of the week.  Looming a week away was a nationally televised game against #14 Tennessee at Maples.  But first there was the Resorts World Classic with games against the 1-2 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles followed by a showdown with the undefeated Colorado State Rams.  

 

 

Turkey Hangover

            On paper the Florida Gulf Coast game looked to be a blowout.  The Eagles had won one game, a blowout over Ava Maria, and lost by big margins to Davidson and George Mason.  Unfortunately, games aren't decided on paper.  Stanford began by scoring the first four points.  But in the next four minutes, the CARD were called for three fouls and scored zero points.  The first quarter ended with Stanford up by one point -15 to 14.  The second quarter was a disjointed low scoring affair.  Stanford scored ten points on four baskets and two free throws. The Eagles scored 14 again.  The Cardinal went into half-time trailing by three, 28 to 25.  Cardinal fans expected the team to come out from half-time with intensity.  But if anything, it was the Eagles that came out with fire. By three minutes gone in the 3rd, Stanford was down by seven points and had only scored four.  As the 3rd quarter wound down, FGCU was up by 11, 52-41!  At that point it seemed to dawn on the CARD players that they might actually lose the game and their intensity, which had been lacking, ramped up. Stanford outscored FGCU seven to two in the last minute and thirty-five seconds of the quarter. FGCU responded with their own burst of intensity and Stanford did not score again until almost four minutes were gone in the fourth quarter and the CARD was down by 11 again!  Once again Stanford ramped it up and outscored the Eagles but could not get closer than three points. Chloe Clardy made two layups and a three-pointer in the last 22 seconds of the game, but the Eagles hit enough of their free throws to win the game by four points.

 

            It is hard to know how much the outcome of the game was due to the Cardinal's lack of intensity.  However, the quickness of the small FGCU players did expose some defensive weaknesses in the Cardinal lineup. Help wasn't always there when it seems likely it was supposed to be.  Although some of FGCU's threes were good shooters making contested shots, too many FGCU players got free easy three-point opportunities. For the game Stanford had nearly twice as many turnovers (18) as assists (10). It was also a low scoring affair with over 60% of Stanford's scoring coming from Nunu (22 pts, nine rebounds) and Chloe (16 points, 5 steals).  Hailee Swain was the next highest scorer with 7 points on an inefficient 2-of-12 shooting night. Lara Somfai was limited by foul trouble, only scoring 6 points and collecting 8 rebounds. Overall the Cardinal looked disjointed.

 

Another Close Call

            Stanford's second game in Las Vegas was expected to be a battle. Instead of a matchup between two undefeated teams it was a game between the seven-and-one Cardinal and the seven-and-zero CSU Rams.  This was another low scoring game.  The Stanford led 14 to 10 at the end of the first quarter but was behind 23 to 25 at the half. The deficit would have been even greater, but Carly Amborn hit a three with forty-one seconds left in the half to pull the CARD within two. 

 

            The Cardinal players appeared to be thinking too much and trying too hard not to make a mistake.  The ball moved well but players kept passing up decent shots, going deep into the shot clock before throwing up a less than good shot or, on several occasions committing a shot clock violation! Stanford managed to tie the game several times during the 3rd quarter, but never was able to take the lead. The 4th quarter was much the same with CSU going up by eight points by the middle of the 4th.  Then the CARD got going.  Mary Ashley hit two free throws to cut the lead to six, followed by a block by Chloe.  Courtney Ogden did a mini-game take-over scoring the next seven points facilitated by a Clardy steal, a Somfai rebound, and an Agara assist.  It was as if the CARD decided to play instead of thinking about playing.  Ogden's three pointer with 3:10 to play gave the CARD its first lead of the second half, 54 to 53.  Somfai and Clardy added to that lead with layups, putting the Cardinal ahead by five with 1:38 to play.  But CSU wasn't done.  They tied the game at 60 with seven seconds remaining.  Following a time out to advance the ball, Stanford inbounded the ball to Clardy who drove to the basket for a game winning layup with .2 seconds left on the clock.  

 

 

Not the Play We Expected

 

            Stanford players played well -- just not as well as we expected. For the two games Nunu was her usual impressive self, scoring 40 points (22 and 18). Somfai was limited by foul trouble against FGCU but pulled down 16 rebounds to go with 9 points, an assist, and two blocks against CSU. Courtney Ogden only scored five points (on 2 of 4 shooting) against FGCU, but her 15 against CSU were game changing. Carly Amborn continued to be perfect from the floor with a made three and a running flip shot against CSU -- although she proved that she is human when she missed her two free throws.  Chloe Clardy's 16 points against FGCU made her the Cardinals' second leading scorer.  Chloe also had five assists and only one turnover in the two games. Against CSU she only hit 3 of her 10 shot attempts but none was bigger than her game winning layup.  

 

            While CSU is no slouch and a win is a win, overall Stanford's play in this Las Vegas event was not up to the standard the Cardinal had set in the first seven games of the season.  The officiating in the FGCU game didn't help.  Several calls against Stanford were charges that appeared, at least to this biased observer, to be blocking fouls. The venue also didn't help.  Games were played in a tent on a floor laid over carpet. Players and coaches sat on banquet chairs, spectators across the floor on banquet chairs placed on risers.  The marginally adequate setting may have contributed to the players' tentativeness.  However, it appeared that they were over-thinking their moves, playing not to make a mistake rather than the joyful "going for it" mood of other Stanford games.  It's important to remember that the goal of "running offense" is to score, not just "run offense." Stanford will be playing Tennessee on Wednesday night.  The Volunteers will be coming in motivated as they lost to UCLA by 22 points on Sunday.  A loss to us might even knock Tennessee out of the top 25! A win for us, despite the disappointing loss to FGCU, would probably put Stanford back in the top 25. 

 

Questions:

1. Will the comfortable confines of Maples allow the CARD to get back to playing to win instead of playing not to make a mistake?  

There is no need to worry about Stanford's intensity against Tennessee, but the tentativeness and overthinking the team demonstrated against CSU would be deadly against Tennessee.  

 

2. How much will the loss to the now 2 and 4 FGCU team hurt the CARD in the eyes of the pollsters? 

Stanford was on the cusp of breaking into the top 25 before that loss. Will the win over CSU redeem the CARD or will we still be "outside looking in?"

SEVEN and 0!!!

Back in the Conversation

 

            When the 7-0 Stanford Women's Basketball team takes the floor against Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) in Las Vegas on Friday, the starting lineup will almost certainly include the newly minted ACC Player-of-the-Week, Nunu Agara.  This honor was clearly deserved.  Despite battling a cold, Nunu scored 40 points and grabbed 21 rebounds in Stanford's two games.  Against UC Davis Nunu was Stanford's leading scorer (16) and leading rebounder (16).  Against Lehigh Nunu's 24 points led all scorers, and she was prefect from the floor and the charity stripe!  For the week Agara shot 75% from the floor and over 90% at the free throw line!  Those are gaudy stats!  Of course, the entire team recorded an impressive stat line -- especially against Lehigh where the Cardinal shot 66.7 % from the floor, including 53.8 % from three while hitting 100% of their 15 free throws!  

 

            What is, perhaps, the most exciting aspect of Agara's earning Stanford's first ACC Player-of-the-Week honor is that it suggests that Stanford is beginning to be "back in the conversation." The consequence of Stanford's disappointing season last year was that, despite having the 3rd ranked recruiting class in the country and returning a strong collection of experienced upperclassmen, Stanford was not ranked in any of the preseason polls. The CARD was also predicted to finish 6th in the ACC by the ACC coaches' poll. Stanford is still not nationally ranked, although they are at the top of the "others receiving votes" list in the newest AP Poll. Despite being undefeated the CARD is not mentioned at all in the National Coaches Poll. What is missing from Stanford's current resume is a "signature win." The Cardinal's 55-point blow-out win over Lehigh comes close, but it wasn't against a ranked team.  Stanford's first chance for a statement win will come against Tennessee on Dec. 3.  That game at Maples has a 6:15 tip-off. Be there!

 

The Good and The Better

 

            For Stanford a game against UC Davis is almost like practice -- only better.  Both teams run basically the same offense - the UC Davis coaches taught it to Stanford!  Playing Davis gave Stanford's freshmen a chance to learn Stanford's offense in a new way -- by playing against it!  The biggest difference is that Stanford has the better athletes. The game was never close.  Stanford had a seven-point lead by the end of the first quarter and never looked back. The CARD had a bit of a lapse in the fourth quarter, only out scoring Davis by two points.  However, that was also the quarter when Coach Kate emptied the bench.  Freshman standout Lara Somfai joined Agara in recording a double-double (14pts, 12 rebounds).  Unfortunately, after hitting her first two three-pointers, Lara appeared to have fallen-in-love with distances shots and put up five additional threes without success.  Chloe Clardy continued her impressive play, scoring in double figures yet again. Clardy is averaging over 12 points a game. Just as impressive, in seven games Chloe has 21 assists, 13 steals, and two blocks against only 6 turnovers! Davis had come into Palo Alto as a hot shooting club -- but the Cardinal held them to below 25% on field goals and three-pointers.

 

            Stanford's biggest margin of victory thus far came in the game against Lehigh, an East Coast school the CARD had never played before.  It was basically a rout.  Stanford scored 98 points while holding Lehigh to 43! Five Cardinals scored in double figures including freshman Carly Amborn with 10 points in seven minutes!  Amborn, who reminds some longtime fans of Kate Starbird, continued to be perfect!  She has scored 21 points in 17 minutes of play -- hitting 5 of 5 from three and six of six from the free throw line! In general, the play of the freshmen was extremely encouraging.  Hailee Swain and Lara Somfai both scored in double figures on highly efficient 6 of 8 shooting.  Unlike some earlier games where it appeared that only their significant talent got them past not knowing the offense, against Lehigh these freshmen executed offense smoothly!  Needless to say, Stanford's defense was impressive against Lehigh, holding them to just over 30% shooting overall and just under 20% from three. 

 

Questions:

1.  How will Stanford do on a neutral court?

The two games with the lowest margins of victory were Stanford's two away games.  Gonzaga is a notoriously difficult arena for visiting teams and, not surprisingly, the freshmen struggled a bit.  How will the team do in a truly neutral arena?  Will the freshmen continue to display comfort in the Stanford offense or will it become a bit harder.  These are two games the CARD should win -- let's hope they do.

 

 

Ugly can be Good!

First Road Trip Yields 2 Wins!

 

            After finishing their three-game season opening home stand with a blowout win 35-point win over Cal Poly Pomona, the CARD traveled to Eastern Washington for two road games.  During the first three games at home Stanford and the team’s highly touted freshmen dominated.  Although it was clear that the star freshmen were still learning the plays and adjusting to the college game, their talent was more than enough. But, not surprisingly, a team starting two freshmen faced challenges on its first road trip against two teams with tournament aspirations.

 

Defense In the Luggage

 

            Coach Paye has frequently said that she wants this team to hang its hat on defense and luckily that defense got included in the luggage for the team’s first trip. Both games were grind-it-out defensive battles, and the CARD had the better defense. Stanford held Washington State to 30.2% from the floor and Gonzaga to 37.5%.  The was the good news.  The bad news was that Stanford apparently failed to pack a lot of the CARD's offense, especially their three-point shooting.  The CARDINAL shot only 40.7% against the Cougars, upping that to a slightly more respectable 44.6% against Gonzaga.  However, Stanford went two-of-eighteen (11.2%) from three against Washington State and an only slightly better two-of-ten (20%) against Gonzaga. 

 

Washington State

            In Pulman the Stanford team never ran away with the game. Washington St. was behind by at least two scores virtually the entire game, but never by more than 13 points. Most of the game Stanford's lead was in the 5-to-7-point range - ahead but not really comfortably ahead.  One had the feeling that it might have been even closer if WSU's 6'6 junior center Alex Covill had been on the floor and not on the bench wearing a boot. Without her the Cougars only lost the rebounding battle by 3 -- 37 to 34.  It was basically an ugly game.  Both teams had more turnovers than assists.  Stanford had 11 assists and 15 turnovers while WSU recorded only 6 assists to go with their 16 turnovers. Hailee Swain led Stanford's scoring with 10 points.  Agara scored 9 while Somfai and Clardy both added 8.  Courtney Ogden continued to show the talent we have long know her to possess, scoring five points and grabbing five rebounds to go with an assist, a steal and a block.  

 

Gonzaga

            If the WSU game was ugly, it is hard to come up with a word to describe the opening quarter of Stanford's game against Gonzaga.  Stanford scored the game's first basket and then didn't score again for over three minutes, when Stevenson hit one of two free throws to make the score 11-3. Gonzaga outscored Stanford by nine in the quarter. That was the only quarter the ZAGs won -- but it took a while for Stanford to overcome that 9 point deficit. For most of the first half the game was consisted of a push from the CARD and a response from the ZAGS. Stanford finally pulled to within one point (33-31) on a three-pointer from Clardy in the waning seconds of the first half.  Courtney Ogden was particularly impressive during Stanford's second quarter play.  She is one of the Cardinal's players who can create her own offensive and she did.  

 

            Stanford won the third and fourth quarters by 8 and 7 points. The CARD tied the game in the opening minute of the third and took their first lead after just over a minute of play. Gonzaga kept it close, but the CARD never trailed again.  Stanford's junior class were the story of the game.  Clardy (20), Agara (16), and Ogden (14) all scored in double figures. Stanford’s fourth junior, transfer Stevenson scored four points but also pulled down six rebounds as did fellow junior Ogden.  Nunu Agara's team high 11 rebounds gave her another double-double.  

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The Game has Changed

 

            During the WSU game one of the ESPN announcers noted that it is hard for coaches to plan appropriate schedules because they never know what players they will have "next year." The days of recruiting a team and being able to count on watching those players develop over four years are gone.  She went on to say, now it's all about having the money to pay them.  That's how teams get players and how they keep them.  People may not like it, but that's the name of the game. 

 

            The current Stanford team is exciting.  The thought of having these freshmen around for four years AND having the strong junior class back as seniors next year -- along with Shay and Kennedy is enough get me starting to think about National Championship banners.  But keeping those players and recruiting more requires money -- and that means that Stanford fans need to step up.  I'll be talking about this more in future blogs.  But, for now, as you think about your end-of-year giving -- don't forget the CARDINAL.

 

Questions:

1.  How will the freshmen respond to a return to Maples?

Our star freshman played like freshmen in Eastern Washington. Even Hailee Swain, who was the high scorer for Stanford against WSU was only 3 of 14 against Gonzaga.  Learning to be an efficient scorer will be important for all of the freshmen.  Will the fab five return to their star ways in Maples?

Now it's for real!

 

 

The Season Has Begun!

         

            The Stanford Cardinal began the official 2025-26 season with two games in the first full week of November.  The first game was against a University of North Carolina, Greensboro team that went 25-7 last year, ending their season in NCAA tournament, but lost most of their players to graduation and transfer. The second was against a fellow Bay Area team Santa Clara, a team with a new coach and a talented lineup that is expected to do well this season. The Stanford Women won both; defeating UNCG by 45 points and Santa Clara by 21.  The first game was a romp, the second game was close until Stanford blew it open late in the 3rd quarter. As with the exhibition game the prior week, these games opened both a new season and a new era.

 

The New Era

         For the first time in a quarter of a century the opening lineup for Stanford Women's Basketball included two freshmen, Hailee Swain and Lara Somfai. None of the current Cardinal players had been born when freshmen Nicole Powell and Susan King (now King Borchardt) took the court as starters for the 2000-2001 season opener.  Although the presence of two freshmen in the opening lineup is in part a reflection of the Cardinal's hugely talented freshman class, it is also a reflection of the new realities in college hoops. Young players in search of social media followers and NIL money want the opportunity to learn in the game not just in practice.  Some may be able to recognize that their development will be facilitated by the opportunity to work their way into the college game, but many including the most experienced want to play now. It is worth noting that the last time Stanford brought in a freshman class with this much talent, three players transferred to other schools after the season. Those three players were all playing in last year's NCAA Sweet 16.

 

            It is hard to say how much Stanford's starting lineup reflects Coach Kate's awareness of the new world in college basketball and how much it simply reflects how darn good these freshmen are!  Lara Somfai led the team in scoring against UNCG with 15 and collected 8 rebounds.  She followed that up with her first career double-double against Santa Clara; scoring 15 points along with 13 rebounds. Our other freshman starter, Hailee Swain scored 12 in the season opener and 13 against Santa Clara. Hailee also led the team in "Plus/Minus" metric against UNCG.  Fellow freshman Alex Eschmeyer also impressed in the two opening games. She scored 13 points against UNCG (along with 5 rebound, 2 assists, 1 steal and ZERO turnovers), then followed that up with her first career double-double against Santa Clara.  In addition to her 11 points and 12 rebounds, Alex contributed 4 blocks, 1 steal and again had ZERO turnovers! At this point the question is less, "why is Stanford starting two freshmen" and more "how long will it be before Stanford is starting three freshmen?" Of course, despite their obvious talent, it is clear that these three star freshmen are still learning the Stanford system.  There have been a number of moments when the offense wasn't flowing like it can and players didn't quite know where they were supposed to be. But at this level of competition, talent can make up for what they don't know.  Hopefully by the time that isn't true the youngsters will know where they need to be.

 

The "returners" are ready

            As impressive as Stanford's freshmen are, the returning players are demonstrating that they worked hard over the summer.  Last year's breakout player Nunu Agara scored double-digit points in both games. Nunu also flirted with double-digit rebounds and is doing a great job of taking care of the ball. Last year's offensive surprise, Chloe Clardy scored 12 points in each of the games, hitting 55% from three for the two games.  Chloe also has an impressive 3.5/1 assist-to-turnover-ratio.  Telana Lepolo IS BACK after missing almost all of last season with complications from her knee surgery from the prior year.  Telana looks like she really hit the gym.  Her assist-to-turnover ratio is a team high 4-1.  Especially impressive was Telana's willingness to shoot when the team needed it.  Against Santa Clara she went 4 of 6 from three-point land, helping to break open a tight game in the second half.  

 

            Mary Ashley Stevenson, Shay Ijwoye, and Courtney Ogden have had less time on the court but each has shown some positive moments.  Kennedy Umeh has been injured and unable to play in the official games. Freshman Nora Ezike is also nursing an injury.  Nora and fellow freshman Carly Amborn are both clearly still leaning the Stanford playbook -- a challenge for any newcomer. It is likely that eight or ten players will get the bulk of the minutes in anything like a close game. It's a long season and ultimately the CARD's success will likely depend on how well the entire team practices and plays -- basketball is, after all, a team sport. 

 

Questions:

1.  Stanford is looking great now, will the CARD still be undefeated when they play Tennessee Dec. 3?

Although in basketball any team can lose if they have a truly off night.  However, this schedule, like many pre-season schedules gets harder as it goes along.  The three games from Dec. 3 to Dec. 19 will be a real gauntlet and a real test of this year's squad.  Tennessee is currently ranked in the top 10, CAL is our rival, and Washington is ranked 26 in the AP with 79 points to Stanford's 3....Although pre-season polls have a strong resemblance to tea-leaf reading, it does suggest that those games in December may be rough. 

 

2.  Which statistic will come down first -- Stanford's gaudy shooting percentages or Stanford's turnover numbers?

Through the first two games the CARD are shooting just over 49% from the floor and just under 49% from the three-point line.  They are also turning the ball over an average of 13.5 times per game.  Which number will come down first -- the shooting percentages or the number of turnovers?  

Ready, Set, Go!

A New Year -- A New ERA

 

A NEW YEAR!

 

            Stanford Women's Basketball got the 2025-26 season started with an exhibition against CAL State Los Angeles, the same team the CARD opened against last season.  Like last year, the game resulted in a Stanford win.  However, unlike last year, this game never felt close -- mostly because it wasn't.  Starting two freshmen - Swain and Somfai, two juniors - Agara and Ogden, and a senior - Lepolo,  Stanford opened up with a six point lead on three baskets from the freshmen.  By the end of the 1st Quarter, Stanford was up by 12. The Cardinal never led by less than 9 points the rest of the game. By the end of the first half the lead was 16. Stanford was ahead 31 points after three quarters and continued to outscore CAL State LA even with emptying the bench in the fourth quarter.     

 

            Coach Paye substituted freely, with the first three subs (Clardy, Stevenson, and Eschmeyer) coming in after three minutes.  The next round of subs came in after a bit less than three minutes. It appeared that Kate is committed to playing at a fast pace with subs being the key to keeping fresh legs on the floor.  Stanford's  (and the game's) two leading scorers, Chloe Clardy (20 pts) and Nunu Agara (17 pts) also had the most playing time with Chloe putting in a little over 28 minutes and Nunu paying a bit over 25.  All in all, nine Cardinal players had double digit minutes (the five starters plus Clardy, Eschmeyer, Stevenson, and Ijwoye) and four (Clardy, Agara, Swain, and Somfai) scored in double figures.  Every player got time on the floor and nobody got injured except Lauren Green -- and her injury did not appear to be serious.     

 

Problems Fixed

            Some of last year's weaknesses appear to be rectified. Point guard, a position that was iffy now appears well covered.  Telana Lepolo is back and appears healthy.  Chloe Clardy took up just where she left off with defense, scoring, and good decision making. Shay Ijiwoye still has hops and Hailee Swain, the highest rated recruit in the incoming class, is speedy and smooth.  Swain had an immediate impact Wednesday night, scoring Stanford's first two baskets and snagging an impressive steal during the opening quarter.  All four players can handle the point guard duties, giving Stanford tremendous versatility.  The lack of size that troubled Stanford last year appears to be solved by the addition of 6'5" Alex Eschmeyer and 6'3" Lara Somfai. Additionally, unlike last year when none of the returning players had previously been frontline starters, this year's team has multiple players who have been team leaders -- especially Agara, Clardy, and Lepolo. Nunu has been named to several preseason watch lists including the Wade trophy list.

 

            Bottom line, this team looked fun and exciting.  The defense appeared solid except for one brief stretch in the second quarter, holding CAL State to under 27% shooting (21.4% from three) for the game.  Agara and Clardy continued to be "stat stuffers," recording numbers in virtually every category from blocks to steals, while newcomer Somfai recorded a double-double on 13 points and 10 rebounds.  Rebounding was another strength for the Cardinal, especially in the second half.  Stanford out rebounded the Golden Eagles 60 to 30 with the Cardinal collecting 10 more rebounds than LA in both the 3rd and 4th quarters.  There were a decent number of assists - 17 on 32 made baskets (53%) - and some of them were highlight worthy.  

 

Remaining Concerns

            There are some areas of concern.  Stanford's three-point shooting was nearly absent - 3 of 18 for 16.6%!!!  Of course, given the size mismatch Stanford had with LA it is easy to understand scoring 50 points in the paint (to LA's 12) and only nine from the three-point line.  But Stanford will want to find its three-point stroke for nights when the other team has players with height. There were also too many turnovers, that will matter against better opponents.  The best news is that a team with three freshmen playing almost 20 minutes each is only going to get better as the season continues. There will undoubtedly be some growing pains but come March this team should be "back in the conversation." 

 

 

A NEW ERA

 

            This season also marks a significant point in the transition from amateur student athletes to professional/semi-professional athletes who also attend college.  With the approval of a settlement in the legal challenge against the NCAA brought by former college players, schools are allowed/required to pay their athletes.  Adding school payments to the world of transfer portals, N(ame)-I(mage)-L(ikeness) payments and the social media landscape where players earn money and endorsements from "likes" and "followers" blasts away the remnants of the amateur illusion. The House vs NCAA settlement will likely help set some limits on NIL recruitment/poaching efforts. A commission has been set up to evaluate all payments over $600.  This may reign in the activities of wealthy donors like the men from Texas Tech who (successfully) offered softball player NiJaree Canady over a million dollars to leave Stanford as there is some expectation that NIL money will be limited to "market value" for players.  That raises some questions about whether this will be good news for women athletes and all athletes in minor sports as the players "market value" may be considered lower than the value for football players and mem's basketball players. Many schools have indicated that most of the money they can pay directly to athletes will go to football and men's basketball. Regardless of what it means for women, these new rules should bring some stability to the college sports world.  The same can be said for the changes in the transfer portal rules.  The time of the portal's opening will be shorter, and athletes will again have to sit out a year it they transfer more than once.  Finally, although many of us "old timers" yearn for a return to the "old" conferences, it appears that the "musical chairs" of conference realignment is mostly over for now.

 

            How all these changes will play out at Stanford remains to be seen.  After several years of foot dragging, Stanford has embraced the need to pay players and raise NIL money.  The benefits of that decision can be seen in the team's ability to recruit top talent and hold on to all eligible players except transfer Tess Heal.  Going forward Stanford will only be able to hold onto top players and recruit top talent if women's basketball fans step up and contribute to the various funds (particularly the Home of Champions Fund and the Women's Basketball Fund) that support women's basketball.  More on that in future blogs.

 

            At this point Stanford appears less ready than other top programs to fully embrace the transfer portal.  The university still places limits on upper class transfers and grad transfers have issues in being accepted for highly competitive Stanford graduate programs.  One can hope that Stanford doesn't continue to experience talented players like Kiki Iriafen and DiJonai Carrington leaving Stanford for their last year and promising freshmen leaving after one year of development for other schools.  It may be that Stanford can expect a few players to depart for their senior years when it becomes clear that they won't ever be Stanford stars or even starters -- particularly if they are able to earn their Stanford degrees before leaving. But Stanford can't hope to be a top program if it can't hold on to its star players, or at least most of them.  The requirement that players sit out a year after a second transfer may slow down the college player free agency game.  However, we also wonder how long it will be before the WNBA starts allowing players to come into the league without the current required college stint.  That change may come as soon as the WNBA salaries reach a level that makes them desirable options for college players.  After all, a number of European players have entered the WNBA at 18 or 19 and acquitted themselves nicely. 

 

            We don't know what the future will hold for the women's basketball landscape.  What we do know is that this year's Cardinal, despite being overlooked by the national pundits, will be fun and entertaining.  Last year there were plenty of people surprised by Stanford's performance in a less than great way -- this year we suspect the surprise may go the other way.

 

 Editors Note:

Thank you for reading. It is a pleasure to begin blogging again.  My break was do to some personal health issues that hopefully will not interfere with future efforts.

 

Close Only Counts in Horse Shoes

An Encouraging Disappointment

 

            Kate Paye says there are no moral victories -- perhaps because losses no matter how close don't get you seeding in the NCAA tournament.  But Stanford's loss to 15th ranked North Carolina was close, a close score and as close as it comes to a moral victory.  The considerable improvement of Stanford's young players was on full display. Despite going down by as many as 15 points midway through the 3rd quarter, Stanford had the ball out-of-bounds on their sideline down by only two points with seven seconds to go in the game.  Unfortunately, the tying basket attempt didn't go in.  

 

                  This game also reflected another adage, basketball is a game of runs.  North Carolina used runs to pull out to double digit leads. But this year's Cardinal team did not give up. At times they "chipped" away at the lead and other times Stanford made its own runs.  In the 4th quarter Stanford used a nine-point run to tie the game at 62 but was unable to take the lead.  

 

                  Many of statistics were as close as the final score.  Stanford's first quarter was sloppy with multiple turnovers -- roughly as many in the first quarter as the CARD committed for the rest of the game -- but the CARD only lost the turnover battle by 4.  North Carolina shot 40.3% to Stanford's 41.1%, North Carolina won the rebounding battle by one (37 to 36).  However, Stanford's three-point percentage was a dismal 21.4%, disappointing for a team that has consistently been among the nation's leaders in three-point percentage. North Carolina hit an impressive 52.9%. Interestingly, despite the Tar Heels having a renown post duo, Stanford won the points-in-the-paint battle by 4, 32 to 28.  In addition to the aforementioned three-point percentage difference, the biggest statistical discrepancy was in free throws where Stanford hit 18 of 19 (94.7%) while North Carolina hit only fifty percent of their four freebies. 

 

                  This was another game where all nine of the Cardinal players who stepped onto the court made positive contributions even if they didn't show in the box score. Nunu Agara was impressive as usual, a double-double with 22 points, 14 rebounds, an assist and a block.  Chloe Clardy scored an efficient 15 points with three steals, two rebounds, and two assists in her second consecutive 40-minute game.  For the last three games Chloe has played all but 22 seconds after playing 36 minutes 54 seconds against Duke! 

                    Kennedy Umeh continued to show her value in the post.  Not only did she score eight points and grab four rebounds in her twelve plus minutes, but also Kennedy's physical presence caused problems on both ends of the court for North Carolina's post players. One particularly impressive play only shows up as a negative on the stat sheet.  Kennedy had the ball near the pinch post and was surrounded by UNC players as the shot clock was nearing zero. Kennedy managed to step through enough to throw a shot at the rim. The shot didn’t go in but Nunu was under the basket, able to grab the rebound (partly because so many of the UNC players were swarming Kennedy) and score.  

 

                  Next up for the Cardinal is a road game against national #3 Notre Dame followed by a game against Louisville on their home floor.  That's a rough road trip.  But, it is also another chance to get a signature win for the program....

 

Questions:

1.  Can the CARD get enough wins to get a bye in the ACC tournament?

Stanford currently stands 13th in the conference.  The top nine teams get a bye.  (The top four get a double bye). Only the top 15 teams participate in the tournament...up four notches gets a bye....

 

2.  How many CARD fans will step up for Lifetime Cardinal?

The first $50K of Fastbreak Club donations will be matched 100%!  Let's go fans!

Strange Game - Important win

A Much Needed Win!

 

                  Stanford got a much needed win on Thursday night against one of the few ACC teams currently below the CARD in the conference standings. It was a game where a win was good but a loss would have been devastating. In one of the strangest games played at Maples in recent years, the two teams combined for 33 points in the entire first half, going 0 for 28 on three-point attempts. Stanford shot 22.8% (8/35) and Pitt hit 23.3% (7/30) with Stanford "surging" to a five-point on Elena Bosgana's driving layup as time expired. As ugly as the first half was, this was not a totally unfamiliar result for Pitt.  Earlier this season the Panthers scored only 18 points in the first half against SMU before roaring back in the second half to score 56 points in a 48-point comeback win. Pitt has scored less than 20 points in the first half multiple times this season and has rarely scored more than 60 points in a game.  

 

                  The second half looked more a "normal" game.  Both teams had shooting percentages in the mid-forty percent range and Stanford hit over 38% (5/13) on three-point shots. Pitt continued to miss all of its three-point attempts. Interestingly, while both teams were perfect from the free throw line for the first three quarters, Pitt players missed two of their six free throws in the 4th quarter while Stanford remained perfect from the line, hitting 12 of 12 for a team record perfect on 15 out of 15 free throws for the full game. That 4th quarter perfection included two free throws by Shay Ijiwoye. Her jubilant smile and bounce after hitting the second (as well as the bench reaction) showed how hard Shay has worked to improve her free throw shooting.

 

                  This was a game in which all nine of the Stanford players with time on the floor made positive contributions.  Some of those contributions barely showed on the scoreboard -- for example Mary Ashely Stevenson and Brooke Demetre only scored two points each (although Booke also had a steal and three blocks) -- but their physical defense against Khadija Faye, Pitts’ 6'4" center, was critical to Stanford's win. Freshman Kennedy Umeh also played valuable minutes against Faye. Kennedy also scored four points on perfect shooting (1/1 from the floor and 2/2 at the line). Faye was clearly frustrated by being pushed out of her preferred deep positioning in the paint.

 

                  Despite the game's low score, four Cardinal players were in double digits for the game. Nunu Agara played her usual tough defense and was clearly a focus of the Pitt defense, starting with an early play were Nunu's lip was split in a collision with a Pitt player. Nunu's 10 points came mostly from free throws. Nunu shot and made half of Stanford's 12 free throws. Chloe Clardy is beginning to look like Stanford's current version of an Ironman.  She played for full 40 minutes.  In Stanford's last three games, Chloe has been on the floor for all but three minutes of play! Some of this reflects the limited availability of other guards, but it also reflects Clardy’s continued improvement. Her 14 points were tied with Senior Elena Bosgana for Stanford's game high. Another big bright spot for the CARD was Courtney Ogden's continued emergence as a go-to player.  Courtney scored 10 points and grabbed 9 rebounds, barely missing her first career double-double.  

 

Questions:

1. How will Stanford respond to facing North Carolina's starting guard Indya Nivar?

                  Indya played her freshman season at Stanford, departing in Stanford's first multiple player transfer portal loss.  Will the coaching staff's familiarity with Nivar be of use?  How will the crowd respond to her?

 

2.  Will the improving Stanford squad be able to get its first breakthrough win against a Top 25 team?  

                  Once again Stanford will have a national TV audience.  Will the CARD be able to make a better showing at home against North Carollina than they did against Duke on the road?

This team has grit!

Running Out of Time

 

            That phrase describes both the CARD's recent game against CAL and Stanford's current season. Against CAL this still developing team showed tenacity and aggressiveness as the CARD battled back from 19 down to within two points (twice) finally losing by three.  The aggressiveness was defined by a ferocious full-court-trapping-press that forced CAL into multiple turnovers and rushed shots.  

 

                  The Cardinal scoring was led by sophomore guard Chloe Clardy's 22 points on 7-13 from the floor and 8-11 at the free throw line.  Chloe drove to the basket multiple times for two points or two free throws. A perfect response to a defense that focused on stopping the three-point shot.  Stanford's sparkplug freshman guard Shay Ijiwoye had three steals and an overall excellent game marked by speed and quickness.  Sophomore guard Courtney Ogden had two steals, three assists, and was perfect in her drives to the basket. Stanford is starting to benefit from some of Courtney's considerable talent! Nunu Agara was, as usual, Stanford's leading rebounder and scored 19 points including two clutch three-pointers to keep Stanford tantalizingly close as the fourth quarter wound down. The Cardinal actually won the fourth quarter by 10 but it wasn't quite enough to overcome a 61-42 deficit from late in the third quarter.

 

                  To some extent CAL's victory was sealed when the officials chose to call a flagrant foul on Shay Ijiwoye.  In the battle for the rebound after a missed free throw, both 5'6" Shay and CAL's 5'11" Jada Noble hit the floor.  Noble had to be helped off the floor, the officials conferenced and called the intentional foul on Shay.  Not only was that Ijiwoye's fifth foul, but also it gave CAL, up by only two points, two free throws plus the ball.  Soon CAL was back up by seven points. Still the Cardinal didn't give up, pulling back to within two points on two Nunu Agara three-pointers.  In the closing seconds with CAL up by four points, Nunu was fouled.  She hit the first free throw, pulling the CARD within three and intentionally missed the second with Chloe Clardy pulling down the rebound with 4 seconds left in the game.  Unfortunately, Stanford was not able to get a shot off before time expired.  

 

Changing of the Guard?

 

                  Although Stanford started the game with the "midseason starting five" of senior Brooke Demetre, senior Elena Bosgana, sophomore Nunu Agara, sophomore Chloe Clardy, and freshman Shay Ijiwoye, over 80% of the minutes were played by freshmen and sophomores.  Bosgana and junior transfer Tess Heal were the only upper classwomen to play double digit minutes and both played less than 20 minutes.  Chloe, Nunu, Shay, Courtney, and Mary Ashely Stevenson were in for more than 20 minutes.  Some of this was about match ups, but one wonders if this also reflects increased dependence on the talented sophomore class....

 

                  One thing is clear -- the team is playing better than it did at the start of the season.  That isn't surprising as the 2024-25 iteration of the Cardinal began the season with only one player who had averaged more than 30 minutes a game in the 23-24 season, Talana Lepolo (30.5).  Seniors Brooke Demetre and Elena Bosgana had averaged 20.9 and 18 minutes per game respectively. Nunu Agara's 13 minutes per game average was the next highest.  That's not a lot of experience -- and Talana has only played in five of Stanford's 19 games this season.  She has not dressed since failing to score or record an assist in her 22 minutes against Indiana back in November.  Transfers Tess Heal and Mary Ashley Stevenson had considerable playing time at their respective schools, more than any of Stanford's returning players except Lepolo, but they are learning a new system. Teams that have started strong with rosters made up largely of transfer portal players were full of transfer players with 30+ minute per game experience -- new teams but not lacking in game experience.  That isn't where Stanford started.  Those relatively inexperienced players are more seasoned now and it shows.

 

                  The big question is does the Stanford team have enough time to play itself back into relevance -- meaning back into the NCAA Tournament bracket?  They are currently 44th in the NET with a 10-9 record, 2-8 in the ACC, and have only one win against a "Quad -1" (highly regarded) team.  There are ten games remaining on Stanford's regular season schedule, including three with nationally ranked teams.  The good and bad news about that is that a win against one or more of those ranked teams would almost certainly earn Stanford an NCAA berth, the bad news is that a 17-12 record (which would require beating every team on the schedule NOT currently nationally ranked) probably isn't good enough to get an NCAA invitation.  Stanford can still catch fire -- the fire the team showed in the last 16 minutes of the CAL game -- but time is running out.

 

 

The New World of College Basketball

 

                  It is hard not to be a bit nostalgic for the "good ol' days" when there was no transfer portal which meant coaches could plan on developing players from rough talent into polished stars and fans could invest emotionally in players they would watch for the next four years. While it seems right that players can profit from the use of their name, image, and likeness -- being rewarded for the fame they through their play -- something feels off about the rise of "collectives" allowed to directly recruit players to their schools with offers of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Unlike professional leagues where there are rules about when and how players can move, the new world of college sports has no "tampering" rules and miniscule limits on what players are being compensated for beyond simply putting on the team's jersey.  

 

                  Stanford, which has always prided itself on "doing it right" and having student athletes who are truly students, was slow to embrace this new world.  There is now a collective -- Lifetime Cardinal -- and the school is working on making it easier to accommodate athletes through the transfer portal.  But the school is still trying to find ways to maintain both the academic side of student athlete and Stanford's status as an elite athletic institution.  The process is on-going.  So far Stanford's sophomore class hasn't lost any players to the portal and next year's incoming freshman class is loaded with top talent.  Let's hope that Stanford is able to adjust to the new day -- and that includes fans adjusting to the need to support Lifetime Cardinal.

 

Missing the PAC-12 and even the PAC-12 Network

                  In addition to the loss of familiar foes and more convenient travel, the smaller size (twelve) of the PAC-12 compared to the 18 team ACC meant the teams mostly played a true round-robin format with a chance to see teams both at home and on the road and a conference tournament that included all the teams.  With the ACC teams only play one rival (usually a traditional rival -- for Stanford that's CAL) on a home and home and the conference tournament only includes the top 15 teams.  There were never more than six PAC-12 games on any day, making it easier to schedule a greater percentage of the games on TV. With the ACC network, most of Stanford's games end up with streaming only if available at all.  That means watching on a computer and no recording.  For this column, it had been my habit to watch games more than once -- mostly not possible now.  That and the limited involvement of Stanford in the national conversation mean there is less opportunity for the analysis this column has attempted to provide.  For example, the only team statistic where Stanford is in the top fifty nationally is Stanford's third place in three-point percentage. The only Stanford player currently in the top 50 on any individual stat is Nunu Agara who is tied for 40th in double-doubles. 

Questions:

1. Will the new look team turn the corner in the win column?

Stanford outplayed CAL over the last 15 minutes of their game. Will they continue to show that same fire?

2. Will players start driving to the basket more consistently?

When Stanford players drive strongly to the basket it opens up the three point line.  Chloe, Shay, and Courtney all have shown they can get there.  Will they keep it up?  That also takes a bit of the load off of Nunu. 

Some bright spots in a loss

Maples Magic Failed!

 

                  For the first 15 plus minutes of the game it looked like Maples Magic might hold.  Stanford jumped out to a lead and held on to it through the first quarter and more than halfway through the second quarter.  Unfortunately, at the 3:58 mark in the quarter two, NC State took the lead and never let go.  The Wolfpack was up by eight with the ball as the first half ended.  But Elena Bosgana had a nifty steal at halfcourt, hitting a layup as time expired to pull the CARD within six.

 

                  NC State came out of halftime on fire, doubling their first half 34 points in the third quarter.  As Coach Paye exhorted her team to show no quit, the CARD battled back in the fourth quarter, but Stanford's +11 in the 4th wasn't enough to overcome NC State's +19 in the thrid. The loss was Stanford's fourth loss to a ranked team and their seventh overall.  The Cardinal's current 9-7 record has pundits predicting that Stanford will fail to make the NCAA tournament for the first time since Tara's first season on the Farm.  

 

                  There were some encouraging items in the game.  Nunu Agara recorded yet another double-double, her sixth of the year, scoring 14 points to go with 10 rebounds.  Fellow sophomore Chloe Clardy, making her third straight start, was the game's high scorer with 17, the same as NC State's Saniya Rivers.  Senior Elena Bosgana had another solid game with 14 points, six rebounds, four assists, and two steals.  Finally, high energy freshman Shay Ijiwoye continued to show improvement.  

 

                  Of course, the strong performances from Stanford's sophomores, especially Nunu has already attracted the attention of boosters from other schools.  They are contacting her with offers of NIL money if she will transfer.  Although coaches are not allowed to contact players until they enter the portal, nothing in the current rules prevents "Collectives" from reaching out with big money offers.  Hopefully Lifetime Cardinal can come up with the funds to help Nunu continue her Stanford career and education.  It's hard to imagine that the portal will have any athletes with Agara's skills who can meet Stanford's admission requirements.  

 

Questions:

1. Will Stanford fans answer the call and contribute the money needed to "bring 'em back" next year?

It is estimated that Stanford fans will need to raise over 1.5 million dollars to keep our current team and current recruits.  Will we do it?

 

2.  Will the team improve enough to make the tournament?

It's going to take at least 20 wins, the CARD have 9...will Stanford get there?