Spokane Is Not a Post-Season Lock

A lot of us have been assuming that Stanford would play the first and second rounds of the post-season in Spokane. That's a casual assumption based on a couple of trips to Spokane for regional games in recent years. Who can forget beating Maryland there in 2008? Or the tough opposition of first, North Carolina, and then Gonzaga and Courtney Vandersloot last year? Lots of Spokane memories.

But those were regional games, 2nd- and 3rd-rounds, or Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games, if you prefer.

This year the games in Spokane are 1st- and 2nd-rounds, and they aren't at the arena but rather hosted by Gonzaga. That's why ESPN analyst Charlie Creme doesn't think Stanford will play there. What he says will make more sense if you first look at this full 2012 bracket with its sites (speculatively) filled in. The locations for the games are set, but which first-round site feeds to which regional is Creme's speculation.

... The Cardinal have grown accustomed to having a West Coast spot, often their home gym, to open the tournament. But this year, they are going to have to really travel and might be disadvantaged in the second round... The only way for the Cardinal to remain within two time zones of home would be Spokane, but that could possibly mean a rematch of both the 2011 NCAA tournament and this year's regular season with Gonzaga. Both are prospects the committee tries to avoid.

Everything Charlie Creme says is speculation. He's trying to second-guess the notoriously opaque decision process of the NCAA selection committee, always a tricky thing.

Bottom line? Stock up on black "Fear the Tree" shirts, in case (as Creme speculates) we end up at an arena full of crimson-clad Sooners. Don't book any travel until after Selection Day. And then buy tickets through Stanford, so as to sit with other fans.

Order Cal Tix by Phone

Stanford plays at Cal on Sunday March 4th at 6pm. At a recent "Behind the Bench," Eileen Roche said there would be a booster bus, but that there were no plans for buying a block of tickets for fans.

It is possible to order Haas Pavilion tickets online from the Cal online boxoffice...

However! — as two recent buyers have found, the best seats the online sales form can offer are in sections 4 and higher. Section 1 is behind the visitor bench. Section 17 is directly across from it. (And anyone who's gone to one of these games remembers that the Haas ushers are quite strict about where you sit.)

If you call the Cal ticket office directly at (800) GO BEARS (800-462-3277) you can ask for reserved-seat tickets in section 1, 2, or 17—and at least as of today, you can get them.

New Year’s Eve in Westwood

By Wally Mersereau

A fast-paced 77-50 win over UCLA was a nice way to end the year and set the stage for a romp to Stanford’s first Pac-12 conference title. Especially because the Bruins had picked off Cal two days earlier 60-55 in the same venue.

Because Pauley Pavilion is being reconstructed, the game was played in the adjacent Wooden Center on the UCLA campus. The UCLA ticket office had told me all seating was general admission, but this was incorrect and half of seating along one side of the court was reserved, apparently for Bruin season ticket holders. Wooden has a capacity of only 1,800. Seating is on all four sides of the court in benches that go eight rows high. There is a single concession stand.

I arrived at 12:50 pm to find a long line of well over a hundred waiting for the doors to open at 1:00 pm. By the time I got inside all of the top row seats which let you lean back against the wall were taken so I took an aisle seat on one of the plastic-topped benches. The benches are slightly contoured, making them a little more comfortable than the upper level benches in Maples.

For once, my estimate of actual attendance and the official count closely agreed. I guessed there were about 1,500 there and the official attendance is 1,426. There were at least 100 Stanford fans present, twice as many as at the Thursday night USC game.

Only 9 Bruins were suited up to play, with 5 injured players on the UCLA bench. Unlike USC, there was no band and only a scratchy recording of the UCLA fight song was played when that team took the floor. One encouraging sight was Mikaela jogging across the floor before the game to get practice balls indicating some mending of her injured foot.

Wooden shows only the score with no display of player numbers or points. The announcer gave the count of personal fouls when these occurred, but no report of cumulative points scored by individuals.

As a suggestion that the game was not going to go UCLA’s way were three Bruin fouls in the first 90 seconds. And, unlike the USC game where the Trojans kept narrowing Stanford’s lead in both halves, this game provided a steadily expanding Cardinal lead. With 11:30 remaining in the first half, Stanford was up by 3, with 5:30 left in the half up by 8 and at the half the score was 40-23.

The second half was more of the same as the Stanford lead grew to 19, then 25, then 32 with 4 minutes left in the game. All Stanford players got on the court and 10 players had more than 11 minutes each.

The Big Three of Nneka, Chiney and Toni led the way with a combined total of 44 points. Both Nneka and Chiney had double-doubles with 18 points and 10 rebounds for Nneka and 15 points and 11 rebounds for Chiney. Stanford’s free throw shooting improved from 59% at USC to 70% today. But Cardinal 3-point shooting was dismal, connecting on only 2 of 13 attempts for 15%, with Toni and Sara getting one apiece.

UCLA played aggressive defense, occasionally pressing and trapping, but it could not contain Stanford. Stanford topped UCLA in rebounds 49 to 27. The Cardinal had 19 assists to 14 turnovers, while UCLA ended with a mere 5 assists to 11 turnovers. This game was Stanford all the way, ending with a decisive win that puts Stanford at 2-0 in conference play.

USC Plays Tough at Home

By Wally Mersereau

It was a sloppy, hard-fought battle at the Galen Center on Thursday night with Stanford able to prevail in the last 8 minutes. Up to that point the game could have gone either way.

Stanford built a 12-point lead in the first half only to have USC cut it to 3 points at the half, 33-30. USC held close for most of the second half, achieving a 41-41 tie with 12 minutes left, then taking a small lead. With 8 minutes left Stanford was up only 46-44. Stanford then went on a 8-0 run to get the score to 54-44 with 4 ½ minutes left. In the ending minutes USC outscored Stanford 9 to 7, but it wasn’t enough for the Women of Troy, with Stanford hanging on for a final score of 61-53.

Senior point guard Ashley Corral had a great game for USC, ending with 21 points. Christina Marinacci had 12 points and 9 rebounds, Briana Gilbreath had 7 points and 12 rebounds. USC made 71% of its free throws. Stanford made an embarrassing 59% at the line with Chiney reverting to her free throw funk, making only 4 of 9. Nneka did well at the line with 7 of 8.

Tara used 10 players, but only 6 had more than 10 minutes—the starters plus Bonnie. Bonnie made her first two 3-point shots, but then missed her next 3. She contributed respectable defense, including a block.

Stanford was led by Nneka with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Stanford could not have won without her. Toni continued her stellar play with 15 points and 3 steals. Chiney achieved a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds.

This was a thrilling game, but it didn’t bring out USC fans. My guess at total attendance is 1,000, including about 50 or so Stanford fans. All seating was general admission and the most expensive ticket was $7. Parking in the adjacent garage was $10.

The LA Times continues to give almost no coverage to women’s college basketball. Today the Times gave a preview of the USC and UCLA men’s games that were played in the Bay Area, but gave only one line to the local USC and UCLA women’s games with nary a comment. In contrast, the New York Times devoted more than half a page to the Texas A&M women today.

Cindy and John Pohlen attended. Lisa Leslie had a front row mid-court seat. Ros Gold-Onwude was doing the KZSU commentary and went over for a half-time chat with Lisa. Several former Stanford players were there, including Krista Rappahahn.

So Stanford is 1-0 in Pac-12 play, but it was a worrisome win, as road games often are.

Good seats at University of Oregon

Thanks to our helpful rep Jason at OU, we have a commitment that our block of seats at Matt Knight Arena will be in section 102, behind the visiting bench. Here's the floor plan.

Three people have signed up so far; keep it comin'!

OU Brunch and Ticket Buy

Fan Brunch Before OU Game

The Cardinal play Oregon in Eugene at 2pm, Saturday February 18th

Prior to that game, Andrew Nelson and others of the Eugene alumni group will host a brunch for visiting fans at a local restaurant convenient to Knight Arena. No booking or prepayment is needed for this, but we would like an idea of how many are coming -- see below!

Group Ticket Buy

We will pre-purchase a block of seats for this OU game. (For the OSU game of Thursday evening, 2/16, buy at the door.)

To participate in the ticket buy, please request your seats by email to travel (at) stanfordfbc.org soon, but at any rate no later than the Washington game of January 21st. Whether or not you want tickets, use the same email address to say if you plan to attend the pregame brunch in Eugene.

Hopefully we'll have tickets to hand out at the "Behind the Bench" after the UCLA game of February 12th.

11s no jinx in Texas

By Wally Mersereau

On the 11th day of the 11th month of 2011 the Stanford women, with the eyes of Texas upon them, won their first official game of the season in Austin. They won it without Nneka who was out with some kind of “upper body injury”. They did it with important contributions from two of the freshmen. And they did it with Tara using 12 players, including 5 freshmen. It was not a pretty win, but it was a clear and important W.

Seven players had 21 or more minutes, including freshmen Taylor with 29 and Amber with 25. Taylor started the game, showing that her start against Vanguard was not just an exhibition oddity.

The first 6 minutes of the game were essentially a tie. Stanford took the lead and kept it with 8 minutes left in the first half. At the half it was Stanford up 35-30. Mikaela played for the first time this season—a total of 9 minutes.

Texas really stepped up its defensive pressure in the second half and maintained it to the end of the game. Stanford withstood the pressure well, although its lead shrank to 4 points with 13:30 left in the game. After that Stanford pulled itself together and kept control of the game, ending with a final score of 72-59.

On this Veterans Day, important veteran playing came from Chiney, Joslyn, Toni, Lindy and Sarah. Two outstanding freshman performances were provided by Taylor and Amber.

Chiney had a double-double in her 26 minutes, despite early foul trouble. She was high scorer with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Amber with 25 minutes and Joslyn with 23 minutes each scored 14 points and had 6 rebounds. Joslyn finished the game with 4 fouls. Toni scored 10 points and had 2 rebounds in 25 minutes. Taylor had 9 points and 2 rebounds in 29 minutes. Lindy’s stats were not impressive, but her play was. Sarah scored 6 points and had 6 rebounds in 21 minutes.

This was a hard-fought game with the outcome not certain until the last 5 minutes. Texas is a strong team and deserves its #24 ranking. Interesting comments from Texas fans seated behind me were that Chiney was the best player on the floor and that Tara is not afraid to substitute.

What were some of the lessons learned? Not having Nneka makes a big difference, but not a fatal one. Chiney is a leader and was able to rise above her early foul trouble to finish strong. Joslyn is truly much improved this season. Lindy and Toni can come through under pressure. Taylor and Amber both are excellent all-around players who did exceptionally well in their first real tests.

Tara substituted more freely than she usually does. She used eleven players in the first half.

Improvement is needed in rebounding and free-throw shooting, along with Nneka’s return to health.

Official attendance was 4,700, but my estimate was 3,500. Somewhere between 35 and 50 Stanford fans were there, including Taylor’s parents and an enthusiastic group of Amber’s family members. The win was satisfying and the trip to Austin worthwhile. This Stanford team needs lots of improving, but it is a good one--and this should be an enjoyable season.

Texas Pre-game Party Finalizing

Austin-based Stanford Alum Sam Chang and the Stanford Club of Austin are finalizing the headcount for a pre-game dinner party near the game site, the afternoon of the Cardinal's game at Texas. Email Sam (spamchang@gmail.com) to get on the list if you haven't already.

Also be aware that if you stay in Austin through Saturday, you needn't miss watching the Stanford-Oregon football game. The same organization is planning a game-watching party and all are welcome; email Sam for details.

Tickets for UCONN and UCLA

UConn Tickets from Stanford

If you plan to attend the pre-Thanksgiving game at UConn, you can order tickets right now for $22 from our Women's Basket office. Call the office (723-0284) or email Eileen Roche (eroche@stanford.edu) with your request.

UCLA Seating Is All G.A.

As noted in the preceding post, UCLA is playing in an 1,800-seat venue this year, and no single-game tix for Stanford's New Year's Eve game at UCLA will be sold. If you have clicked-through to buy a "Mini-Plan" at the UCLA ticket sale site, you may have noted that it appear to be selling you specific seats by row and number. Not so! Wally Mersereau talked to the UCLA ticket folks and:

The ticket office rep told me the row and seat numbers are meaningless and are just a quirk of the computer system. I was told that no one, including season ticket holders, have reserved seats. I was told the doors at the Wooden Center will open one hour before game time. If you are there when the doors open and are fleet of foot you can sit in the seat of your choice wherever it may be.

Waiting in line to pick up will-call tickets might make you a loser in this foot-race. Do as Wally did; call the UCLA central ticket office at 310/825-2101 and order your tickets to be mailed to you.

Limited Seating at UCLA

Wally Mersereau has been shopping ahead for away-game tickets and reports:

The UCLA women's basketball team will not play in Pauley Pavilion this season because it is being rebuilt. The team will play in the John Wooden Center, a student recreation facility that is diagonally opposite Pauley, on top of the underground parking garage that is entered from Sunset Boulevard at Westwood Plaza. The Wooden Center has limited seating.

Here is the UCLA page. Collins Court is a gym with pull-out bleachers and a capacity of 1,808. Wally continues,

I just learned this morning that single game tickets will not be sold for the Stanford-UCLA game at the Wooden Center. To get a seat you have to buy at least a Mini-Plan ticket good for 5 games that costs $29... Single game tickets for UCLA will go on sale on October 4, but not for Stanford and some other "big" games.

According to the NCAA, UCLA in 2010 had average attendance of 1,689. The Stanford game would no doubt pull more than the average; hence, they are likely to fill this small facility. On that basis, it is probably smart to order tickets ahead.

On the other hand this game is on Saturday Dec. 31st, New Year's Eve; many students will be off-campus. And, the sight lines in a small gym are short, so it wouldn't matter much if you were in the top row corner. On the other hand, $29 isn't so much on top of the other costs of a trip to L.A. Here's where to order tickets.

2011-12 Travel Plans Forming!

Dinner meet-up in Austin

Stanford alum Sam Chang and others in the Stanford Club of Austin are planning a pre-game dinner meet before the Stanford-Texas game on Friday, November 11th.

If you are planning to make this trip and want to join in, email Sam directly (spamchang@gmail.com).

New Travel Info Posted

The FBC Travel page has been updated with fresh info for 2011-12! The general info has been refreshed (big surprise: airport parking costs $1 more than last year). Also, logistics info and travel suggestions for the first two trips (Texas, and UConn/Xavier) have been added.

That’s All, Folks!

By Wally Mersereau

South Bay, the team with Stanford players in the summer Pro-Am league at Kezar Pavilion, was short two of its Stanford players on Saturday, July 23. Taylor Greenfield was present on the bench, but not suited up. Joslyn Tinkle was not present. I do not know the reason Taylor did not play or why Joslyn was missing. Alex Green, the sixth freshman, who is recovering from an ACL injury was again sitting on the bench as she has all season, quietly supporting her teammates.

Joslyn has been the team’s dominant player, averaging about 30 points per game, while snagging rebounds, blocking shots and providing leadership. She was sorely missed on Saturday. The team had no one to replace her scoring and defensive contributions. The team was down to 7 players in this first play-off game against the San Francisco team which has several Cal players, including Natasha Vital, Talia Caldwell and Lindsay Sherbert, and the brilliant freshman Brittany Boyd. Boyd again was outstanding, doing everything well, while always displaying great confidence. She will be a real asset for the Bears.

Bonnie Samuelson was back after missing the two games last weekend. Stanford was represented on the South Bay team by Bonnie, Amber Orrange, Jasmine Camp, Erica Payne and Markisha Coleman.

It was a closely matched and excellent game. South Bay was ahead 51-47 at the half. In the second half South Bay increased its lead to 13 points with 11:00 minutes remaining, but then its lead began to shrink. South Bay led by only 3 points at the 8:00 minute mark and the game was tied with 7:15 left. South Bay trailed by 5 with 2:00 to go, but managed to battle back to end the regulation game tied at 92-92. Jessica Kellogg, formerly of San Jose State, was a great clutch player for South Bay.

With 3:00 remaining in overtime and the score 94-94, Erica fouled out, the third South Bay player to do so, leaving only four players available. Despite being short a player on the floor, South Bay still had a chance with 30 seconds left and the score 94-97. The final score was 95-100 and South Bay’s season ended.

It seems clear that if Joslyn had played South Bay would have won and moved on in the play-offs. In her absence, Bonnie had her finest game, making 6 of 7 three-pointers, including her first four attempts and ending with 30 points. Bonnie made all but one of her free throws. Amber was the second-high scorer with 14 points, all in the first half.

Amber and Jasmine are fast. Jasmine plays fast most of the time. Amber tends to amble down the floor, but she can take off like a rocket when she decides to do so. Both are fearless around the basket, undeterred by taller players. Amber had several good passes today.

Erica had a relatively poor game, troubled by fouls, but provided some excellent defense as always.

Bonnie will benefit from time in the weight room and coaching encouragement to play more aggressively, but she is an outstanding 3-point shooter, a nice specialty.

This was an above-average Kezar season for Stanford fans. There was the high number of freshmen to observe. There was the rare presence of a junior in Joslyn, who has never looked better. The quality of play by South Bay was above average and its games were fun to watch. In short, Kezar provided an interesting and encouraging preview of the incoming freshman class and of an improved Joslyn Tinkle.

Next up: the start of official practice in October.