A few Cardinal fans may gather for pre-game beer and snacks at Don Pepe Taqueria at 4950 North Woodrow Avenue. It's just across the street from the Savemart Center:
Time, about 4pm, leaving plenty of time to get to the 6pm game.
By the way, Google maps thinks it is a 2:47 drive from Palo Alto to Fresno.
The team was on my Friday morning flight from San Francisco. Austin was not visitor-friendly, weather-wise, on this Stanford road trip. It was cold and wet--not fit for man or beast. Rain was falling as we arrived at the AUS terminal and the gloomy skies did not brighten then or later. The weatherperson on the TV news stressed it was unusual to have a high temperature below 40 on November 23. The good news was no flooding.
Kate used the wait at baggage claim to take Amber aside for some one-to-one coaching tips. Amber listened impassively. The advice must have been helpful because Amber had another great game with 13 points, 8 rebounds and 5 steals in 32 minutes.
The official attendance at the Frank Erwin Center was 3,900, but the actual crowd appeared to be no more than 2,000. Those wearing Texas brown stood before the game with right hands extended in the Longhorn salute as the 60-member band played “The Eyes of Texas” and continued to stand until their team scored. The Texas fans next to me said second-year coach Karen Asten is a big improvement over Gail Goestenkors because of more effective recruiting. Three of Stanford’s starters are from Texas: Chiney, Amber and Lili.
Discretionary Stanford starters were Lili and Karlie. Chiney lost the tip to the Texas 6-7 center. Mikaela scored 6 early points to keep Stanford in the game in what could have been a Texas runaway.
Sara had her best game so far, showing the hustle that has been missing until now. Her defense was effective and she scored two threes in the first half. Not stepping up in the first half was Chiney who had only 4 points at the half when Stanford trailed 30-37. Texas blocked at least two of her first-half attempts.
Texas is an excellent free-throw shooting team and I thought for a while this edge could win the game for the Longhorns. At game-end, free throws were 18 of 24 or 75% for Texas and 15 of 25, or 60% for the Cardinal. This game was the first of the season in which Stanford faced multiple attempts to press, none of which were successful.
Sara started the second half, apparently in recognition of her high level of play in the first half of the game. Six minutes into the second half Stanford still trailed 37-40. That was when Stanford began its pull-away, going from down 3 to up 8 in the next 6 minutes. Chiney came to life, scoring 14 points in the second half. After that Stanford held the lead to the end of the hard-fought game. The final score was 63-54.
Tara shrunk the rotation to seven players with 16 minutes or more on the court. Sara played 18 minutes, was 2 of 5 from 3 and had 4 assists and no turnovers. Mikaela had the only double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, but was a pitiful 3 of 8 from the line. Karlie played 30 minutes. Bonnie did not play. Chiney fouled out with two minutes to play having made 18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks.
I had a dry walk back to my hotel under dark gray skies. I listened to the Stanford-Cal football game on KZSU as I wrote this report.
Fall weather is well established in Boston with a forecast high for Saturday of 48 degrees under a hazy sky, but no dramatic foliage change has occurred yet, at least not in Boston. One of four branches of the westbound Green Line trolleys ends at Boston College. From there it’s about a 15-minute stroll to Conte Forum. Tip-off was at 1 p.m.
Boston College holds its own among Boston’s academic elite. Founded by Jesuits in 1863 it began to expand to a full university in the 1920s. Last year there were 34,000 applications for the 2,250 spots in the freshman class. Enrollment is 14,400, with 9,100 undergraduates. U. S. News & World Report ranks BC #31 and Forbes puts it at #35 on its America’s Best Colleges list.
When I called the BC ticket office a few weeks ago I was told all seats are general admission for women’s games so I bought my ticket at the door. There I was told all seats along both sides of the court are reserved. With my mind set on general admission, I paid $7 and got a GA seat at the end of the court behind the Stanford bench just across the aisle from the reserved section with the most Stanford fans. Official attendance was 1,628, but looked less than that—I thought more like 1,200.
The national anthem was sung by a 2010 BC women’s basketball alum who has apparently rocketed to country music stardom, but who was unknown to me. She sang slowly in her best country style.
Bonnie and Sara were off the injured list, but neither started. The starting five were Chiney, Amber, Mikaela, Alex and Kailee. Sara was first off the bench, replacing Alex after an early foul.
Stanford was off to a slow, almost bumbling, start. Kailee, a standout at the exhibition game, looked very much a freshman today. She was perfect at the free throw line in the Vanguard game, but missed all of her free throws today, including four in the first few minutes. Stanford’s defense was good in the early going, but the score was 7-7 after 4 minutes. Erica McCall made the first free throw for the Cardinal.
With 11:20 to go in the first half, Stanford trailed 13-18 and the game had become worrisome. Then Stanford took off on 28-0 run with BC stuck at 18 points for 10 minutes. Stanford led at the half 44-24. Boston College reached the 10-foul mark quite early and Stanford had only 5 fouls in the first half. Things were looking up and I celebrated with an ice cream bar.
Stanford built its lead to 57-32 in the first four minutes of the second half and my ice cream bar still tasted good. But the Eagles were determined not to fold and they did not. They cut the lead to 17 after 8 minutes. Stanford pushed it back to 20 after 10 minutes. With 7 minutes to go Stanford led by18. Kailee continued to struggle, and was pulled when she got her fourth foul and zero points. Stanford got the lead back to 20 with 4 minutes left. BC still would not fold and cut the lead to 16 at the 2-minute mark and to 12 at the end. The final score was 83-71.
It was a good thing Stanford was not playing UConn today. The Cardinal was outscored by 8 points in the second half by scrappy Boston College. And in the second half it was Stanford who got in foul trouble. The Eagles scored in lots of ways, primarily from 3-pointers, from drives to the basket and from the free throw line. Stanford will have to do much better on Monday to avoid a blowout at Storrs.
Individually, four Stanford players had a great game. Chiney had 30 points, with 11 of 12 shooting and 8 of 10 free throws, plus 14 rebounds in 37 minutes. Amber came close to a triple-double, with 19 points, including two early 3s, 9 rebounds and 10 assists with one turnover in 32 minutes. Bonnie scored 15 points, including 3 of 7 3-pointers and 4 of 4 free throws in 21 minutes. Mikaela scored 9 points and was a vital contributor for the win, battling effectively all game long on offense and defense, playing 32 minutes. But she made only 2 of 8 free throws. Sara was scoreless.
As a team, Stanford out-rebounded 44 to 26, but made only 17 of 31 free throws, for 54.8%, and 6 of 19 3-point attempts, for 31.6%.
I don’t know what Tara and the team can do to boost the overall level of play before Monday night, but a lot will be needed. Chiney, Amber and Bonnie will need to continue their fine play against a much stronger opponent. Mikaela will need to score more and make her free throws. And from somewhere on the roster a few others will need to greatly improve in the next two days and dazzle us all.
Are you planning to go to the games in L.A. this season? Stanford plays at USC on Friday, Feb. 21st, and at UCLA on Sunday the 23rd.
UCLA is sending out this link to former purchasers, offering an early shot at reserved seats before the official sale of single-game tickets begins on Oct. 1st.
Select the game and click "Find Tickets". The ensuing "Interactive Seat Map" will require you to enter an offer code; the code is EARLYBRUIN. Section 101 is behind the visitor bench and is already half-sold.
The Cardinal plays in the "Hardwood Tournament of Hope" (official press release) from Tuesday November 26th through Thursday November 28th (Thanksgiving day). Not actually a tournament but more a round-robin series, the event is a benefit for a metabolic condition, Urea Cycle Disorder. Games will be played in the rather magnificent Puerto Vallarta Convention Center.
General tournament info is scarce at this point. The official tournament schedule is up. It matches the dates and times we already had for Stanford games in our schedule page. We have verified that Stanford will only play on the listed dates, the 26th, 27th and 28th.
The organizing body, PlanBC3, has announced tour packages for the tournament; click here for the details. In summary, you can buy a hotel package in a large beach resort that looks rather splendid (it is also the team hotel). The package includes resort lodging, ground transportation, game tickets and "unlimited food and beverages" including alcohol.
If you make your own hotel choice from 150 different ones (click for booking.com list), game tickets are $300.
There are no nonstop flights to PVR from SJC. Alaska has one nonstop from SFO. All other flights change planes somewhere, usually LAX.
Stanford's first road trip of the 2013-14 season will be in the second week of November—less than 10 weeks a month from now!
Update 10/8: Wally M. reports that "All Boston College tickets are general admission. Doors open one hour before game time. The ticket office is inside Gate B at Conte Forum."
Stanford will play Boston College at 1pm EST on Saturday, November 9th. Then on Monday (Veteran's Day), they play at UConn at 7pm EST. This game will be telecast on ESPN2. (Although the UConn website currently says the location is "TBA", a televised game against a ranked school would usually be held in their larger arena in Hartford, rather than on the campus in Storrs.)
Wrongggg! Late news from UConn is that this game will be in the friendly confines of Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, CT. From the Hartford Amtrak station to Gampel Pavilion is 27 miles; here's a map.
Wally Mersereau has already started to plan his winter's travels and writes as follows:
It's not too early to book reservations if you plan to travel cross-country to attend the Boston College and UConn games. Airfares are often lower if booked more than 60 days in advance.
There are plenty of non-stop flights to Boston from SFO and SJC. Boston College is in Newton, Massachusetts, adjoining Boston on the west and served by the Green Line of the MBTA. Boston College is the terminal station on the Green B Line, easily reached from downtown Boston. The game will be played at Conte Forum, about a half-mile walk across campus from the MBTA station.
The next leg, from Boston to Hartford is a challenge if you don't have a car. There are no airline flights and Amtrak is round-about and takes 3 1/2 to 5 hours via Springfield or New Haven. For the non-driver, that leaves the bus that will get you there in about 2 1/2 hours on either Peter Pan or Greyhound. If you plan to travel by public transport on November 11 you need to check holiday schedules.
With a car, and assuming decent weather, you are looking at a reasonably pleasant 2-hour Sunday drive on I-90 (click for a map). Renting a car for only the Hartford portion of the trip requires careful attention to details such as pick-up and drop-off locations and whether these will be open on Veterans Day. My current plan is to go to Hartford by bus, but if a FBC member will be driving and has an extra seat I would like to hitch a ride.
After the UConn game on Monday night the next task is to find your way to an airport for the return flight to the Bay Area. In my case, I'm going early to Boston and staying on in New York and will fly back from JFK. I will take Amtrak from Hartford to Penn Station in New York. Others may prefer to return to Boston for the flight home.
Wally
While it ended too soon, this season’s team represented a great success by a wonderful team of players and coaches. Tara’s selection as Pac-12 Coach of the Year was recognition by her peers of her remarkable feat in teaching these young women and shaping this team. Chiney’s Pac-12 Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards honored her leadership, talent and skill-- and a huge amount of heart—as she rose from Nneka’s helper to shining star, while dazzling everyone with her enthusiasm and personality.
By making Stanford women’s basketball the highest priority in my life, and having the good fortune of both good weather and good health, I was able to attend every game played this season. The final season tally is 33 wins and 3 losses. That makes thirty-six games, plus a couple of exhibitions to get warmed up on. My longest trip was the one to South Carolina and Tennessee. That took five flights over six days.
So, was it worth it? Of course it was. It has been a privilege to support such a high-class endeavor and such wonderful people that have given me enormous pleasure year after year. I have been repaid many times over for my expenditure of time, money and emotion.
There were some great games, including picking off #1 Baylor in Hawaii. There was another Pac-12 championship and another Pac-12 Tournament victory to put in the record books. There was a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. There was the nearly perfect Michigan game. There was the consistently outstanding defense up and down the roster. How many teams would be overjoyed to do half as well?
We have seen one of the best players to ever wear a Stanford uniform and, happily, Chiney will return for another season. We have seen quiet Amber grow into a reliable, versatile and confident point guard. We have seen Sara and Mikaela bloom lately but well.
We have seen Joslyn struggle through illnesses we didn’t know she had to end her career with a dazzling performance in her final game at Maples. We have seen Bonnie broaden her contributions and provide thrills with her quick-release threes. Toni’s illness was the only major health problem. All but Jos will return next year.
In the end there were shortcomings that couldn’t be eliminated or overcome. Too much reliance on too few. Too much inconsistency by too many. And maybe a few unlucky bounces of the ball. I had hoped for another trip to the Final Four, but it was not to be. The players gave their all, but in the end it was not enough.
Losing is never fun. Especially when Stanford fans are so used to winning. The loss to Georgia hurt, but not nearly as much as the loss two years ago to Texas A&M.
It’s been a great ride. I thank Tara, Amy, Kate, Trina, Kurtis, Marcella and Eileen. I thank every player from Chiney to Denia and Kiran for their individual and collective dedication, contributions and teamwork. I thank the band and the Dollies for their constant support. I thank my fellow fans.
It was great while it lasted. Next season it will begin again. There will be some exciting new players.
Don’t go away. Stanford women’s basketball will return once more and the future is bright with promise. I can hardly wait.
This post is a big bucket o' good stuff to make your Tournament experience better, including on-site scouting by Wally Mersereau who spent hours checking out the Seattle Center for us last weekend!
The official bracket with teams and times is here (scroll down). Note there was a late change in times! Sometime last weekend they inverted the Friday and Saturday schedules. This is current:
Late-breaking news: The Stanford basketball office is sponsoring a get-together at The Spectator, a sports bar at 529 Queen Anne Ave., just West of Key Arena, on Friday at 4pm.
If your hotel is in downtown Seattle or close to Seattle Center, you can ride direct from SeaTac on the Sound Transit Light Rail (click for map and info). So you needn't get a rental car at all, or at least not until you want to go sightseeing Saturday morning. Wally writes:
Seattle has a good public transit system and it's a bargain. The best bargain of all is to take the light rail line from the Seattle-Tacoma airport to downtown. This costs $2.75 for most riders, but those of a certain age pay only 75 cents. 75 cents! Imagine that! The airport line ends about 30 minutes later at the Westlake Station on Pine Street, next to the Monorail that for another $2 will take you to Seattle Center. For seniors the Monorail costs $1!
There's a bit of a trick to finding the best way to get to the light rail station at Seattle-Tacoma airport. Here are the steps for ease and comfort:
Go to the ticket counter level of the airport. Go to the north end, past the United counters to the Air Canada counter. Opposite the Air Canada counter will be an escalator down to Skybridge 6 to the parking garage. Going to Skybridge 6 will keep you inside the warm airport terminal as long as possible.
Cross Skybridge 6 and follow the signs to Link Light Rail. This takes you quite a long way through an unattractive part of the garage. But it's the shortest and quickest path to the light rail station.
Buy your ticket from a vending machine on the lower level of the light rail station. There are no vending machines on the upper level platform. The machines take credit cards or bills and they give change. After getting your ticket go up the escalator to the platform from which trains leave frequently. You don't have to do anything with your ticket, just have it with you for inspection. Inspections are rare.
More on the Seattle Transit system: "Buses are $2.25 to $3, depending on length of trip and time of day. Seniors can ride any time, anywhere on the bus for 75 cents. You do need the exact fare. And if you use Seattle's public transit you don't have to pay to park. That's the greatest bargain of all."
The Seattle Center is the site of a number of interesting attractions besides the Key Arena. Click this link for a nice printable map of the center showing its various buildings and especially the location of parking. There are several other things worth noting:
The Center also has a food hall in the Armory building of which Wally writes:
The Armory name comes from the origins of this building which was constructed in 1939 as a military facility, housing artillery and tanks. It was modified into a shopping complex for the 1962 World's Fair. It was most recently spruced up in 2011.
It's a food court with a Starbucks, a Subway, a kebab place, a pizza place, a meat & veggie pie place, a couple of sandwich shops, a glazed nut stand, Seattle Fudge and some salad spots. A cursory look indicated, except for Starbuck's and Subway, it's probably no better than mediocre and the Starbucks and Subway might be below average. This is the most convenient eating location for the tournament except for concessions within Key Arena. It's the equivalent of being one block away. It is open Sun-Thurs 11 am to 6 pm and Fri-Sat 11 am to 8 pm.
Across from the monorail station and facing it is Collections Cafe in the Chihuly Glass building. It looks decent and has a modest cost menu for lunch and dinner. It also has wine. It's the most convenient place to Key Arena other than the Armory. It opens daily at 11:30 and closes at 7 pm Sunday-Thursday and at 8 pm on Friday and Saturday. It offers a very convenient location and is a bit upscale from the Armory food court.
Nearby but outside Seattle Center are many more eating places.
On Mercer between Warren and Queen Anne are: two Thai restaurants, a pizza place, Obasan--Japanese, Caffe Zingaro (coffee, tea and delectables). And the most high-end restaurant I found on my stroll: ten mercer. ten mercer is open for full dinner from 4:30 to midnight, 7 nights a week. It looked like a first class place. It's a white tablecloth restaurant. Not a bar.
Dick's is on the corner of Queen Anne and Republican west of Key Arena. It has only burgers and ice cream. Sort of a strange combination. The building looks sort of like a small Denny's. Dick's is open daily from 10:30 am to 2 am. It had a fair number of customers just before 5 pm.
On the opposite side of the Center is Tilikum Place Cafe at 407 Cedar St. with lots of Yelp raves for its "excellent" service and "inventive" menu.
There's a certain satisfaction in going to Seattle and not drinking Starbuck's coffee, and there are terrific coffee shops all around the Seattle Center. Off the NW corner, a four-block walk from the Key Arena brings you to the highly-regarded Caffe Ladro at 600 Queen Anne Ave. Slightly closer at 525 Queen Anne is Uptown Espresso "home of the velvet foam". (Both are near the restaurants Wally mentioned.)
At the opposite, SE corner of the Center, stand with your back to the Space Needle facing Broad Street and you are looking toward Forza Coffee Company at 100 4th Ave. North, again with lots of good reviews. These are only a few of the attractive-sounding places that you can find on this Google map of "coffee near Seattle Center"
Before and after games it's natural to want to sit in a pub, have a drink and talk. We asked Wally to look at a couple of candidate establishments and his vote goes to McHugh's:
"McHugh's is in the center of a diversified eating and drinking area with many other establishments within two blocks and most within one block. So anyone headed to McHugh's will have a lot of other choices. They can indulge a whim for something different after pausing at McHugh's or stop in at McHugh's after eating elsewhere."
McHugh's is about two blocks from the West side of Key Arena. Turn right for two blocks on 1st Ave. North, then left on Mercer.
Here are even more things to do on Saturday and Sunday:
And so it came to pass, in a far-off
land of rolling hills known as the Palouse: Stanford’s 2012-2013
Pac-12 Conference schedule came to a fitting end. There were few in
Beasley Coliseum to see it happen—official attendance was 656. But
on television and computer screens throughout the world committed
fans watched in living color and high definition.
And it was in Beasley today that Chiney Ogwumike continued her steady progress through the record books.
Tomorrow: A big round-up of food, drink and fun around Seattle Center!
The forecast for Puget Sound today was an 84% chance of rain. It turned out to be a Seattle-type rain, meaning a heavy overcast with an occasional drizzle. I doubt it merited a trace on the rain gauge. This afternoon I rode the monorail from downtown to Seattle Center and Key Arena to do a little scouting in advance of next week’s Pac-12 Tournament.
Alaska Airlines Arena is the new name for the long-time home of Husky basketball on the University campus. This was the first time I’ve seen this name in lights on two sides of the building. Inside are new electronic boards that provide the full range of team statistics. Next door, Husky Stadium is about 6 months away from reopening after a major renovation.
UW has two husky mascots these days: one in a dog suit who rides around on a Segway and a really beautiful genuine husky on a leash.
Susan King Borchardt and her husband Curtis talked with Tara and other coaches before the game and sat behind the Stanford bench along with Kate Starbird. 7-foot-tall Curtis is a Seattle-area native. He and Susan are now home-owners in the area. Other than player families and friends there was only a smattering of red sweatshirts scattered here and there among the roughly 2,000 fans attending the game.
Washington had only 7 players suited up as a result of a 3-player, one-game suspension for violating team rules. Neither Toni nor Aly made this trip to the Northwest.
Washington got off to a 3-9 lead at the start of the game, but, sparked by a 3-pointer by Bonnie, Stanford quickly was up 15-9 after 6 minutes of play and the lead grew steadily to the final score of 71-36. The Cardinal made lots of threes in the first half, but only one in the second half when it seemed a lid was on the basket for longer shots.
Chiney had 10 points and 9 rebounds at the half and ended with 24 points, 13 rebounds and 3 blocks in 35 minutes. Jos had 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 blocks and a steal in 33 minutes. Amber had one of her best games, handling the ball very well and racking up 12 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks, a steal and 4 assists/1 turnover in 30 minutes.
Mikaela excelled at rebounding with 13 to go along with 3 points, 2 blocks, 2 steals and 6 assists/2 turnovers in 25 minutes. Bonnie had 15 points (5 of 15 from 3), plus 2 rebounds in 24 minutes. Four of Bonnie’s threes were in the first half.
Stanford outshot Washington 40.5% to 16.9% as the Cardinal defense really locked down the Huskies. Assists/turnovers were 18/7 for Stanford and 4/9 for UW. The Cardinal had 11 blocks to zero and 6 steals to 4. Rebounds were relatively close with Stanford having the edge 54-47. The Cardinal only got to the free throw line 3 times and made 2. Washington was 8 of 10 from the line.
The Huskies were handicapped by having only 7 players with two of their better players suspended. The remaining Washington players gave it their all, but were out-classed by the Cardinal. UW will be at full 10-player strength for its game with Cal on Saturday.
For something a little different, three Stanford fans made the lengthy trek to Santa Ana Saturday night to watch a CIF Southern Section high school playoff game between Mater Dei (“back-to-back-to-back State champion” we were repeatedly reminded) and Long Beach Wilson. Starting for Mater Dei were Stanford-bound Karlie Samuelson and younger sister Katie Lou. Bonnie and family members sat behind the Mater Dei bench. Attendance was about 200. Mater Dei won 89-31.
Watching this game confirmed the younger Samuelson sisters are difference-makers. Both have Bonnie’s quick release and shooting style and primarily shoot threes. Because they left the game well before the end I’m not sure of their final point counts, but Karlie had at least 12.
Family resemblance (Karlie Samuelson)
(The team was on my flight home. I told Bonnie we went to see her sisters play last night. She was surprised and pleased. Her face lit up. She said, "They did pretty good, didn't they?" I agreed.)
Sunday afternoon was Stanford’s first visit to the newly remodeled Pauley Pavilion.
South-east corner (nearest the car park)
The renovation came in under-budget at about $130-million. In comparison, 6-year-old Galen Center, built from the ground up, cost $147-million. Pauley is larger, seating almost 14,000 in its maximum configuration. Galen seats about 10,250. Although characterized as a renovation, it’s hard to find any evidence of the original Pauley. Everything looks and even smells new.
I really like the new Pauley. Its spacious concourse gives a pleasant, open feeling—and is bright in daylight.
All seats are cushioned and with armrests, although the cushions are a tad hard. One gold seat is reserved for John Wooden in his favorite location. Pauley is almost a shrine to Wooden with several display cases devoted to him and his era.
Pauley acoustics magnified the noise of the crowd of 3,100, making it one of the noisiest places Stanford has played this season. UCLA has techniques for getting its fans aroused and keeping them fired up that are worthy of study and emulation.
This game was rough and bruising. It’s ironic that Tess was called for a flagrant foul for throwing an elbow. UCLA played so rough it merited multiple flagrant fouls. UCLA has good and skilled players. It’s unfortunate that Cori Close has them playing maul ball. I’m proud of how the Cardinal stood up to the onslaught, holding on to its lead. UCLA narrowed the lead in both halves, but could never completely close the gap. Stanford led by 5 at the half and won by 11, 68-57.
In addition to being rough, UCLA played with frantic effort for the entire game, bringing a pressing and determined defense at all times. Stanford kept its poise and withstood all the Bruins threw at it.
Chiney did not get a double-double, but she deserves the game ball for her heroic efforts in leading the team to victory. She had 26 points, 7 rebounds, 4 blocks and 2 steals and played the entire 40 minutes. Her statistics don’t do justice to all that she brought to this game. Mikaela did get a double-double, her second, with 10 points, 10 rebounds and a steal in 31 minutes. No one on the team puts forth more effort than Mikaela and she was essential for the win.
Jos fell just short of a double-double with 10 points, 9 rebounds, a block and a steal. She also played the entire 40 minutes. Amber, as usual, was multi-talented for another great stat line: 9 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists/5 turnovers and 5 steals in 38 minutes. Bonnie produced two valuable 3-pointers, plus 3 rebounds and a steal in 20 minutes. She also provided excellent defense.
As a team, Stanford was outshot by the Bruins 54.5% to 39.7% and only made 4 of 19 3-point attempts for a poor 21.1%. But in other categories the Cardinal did better, leading in rebounds 38 to 31, in steals 11 to 9 and had fewer turnovers, 15 to 21 for UCLA. And Stanford free throw shooting was excellent making 18 of 20 for 90%.
This was as rough and unlady-like a game as Stanford has encountered this season. UCLA did get a lot of fouls called against it late in the game that gave Stanford many bonus free throws and these were an important part of the win. But the mounting fouls did nothing to subdue the Bruins. The Cardinal showed today that it can deal with the most unpleasantly aggressive play and keep doing what needs to be done to come out on top. Stanford had many women warriors on the court this afternoon.
