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| After posting a triple double against Oregon, Cameron (left) is congratulated by Brooke, who was 3-3 on 3-pointers. (Paul Kurada/special to SF Chronicle) |
Two wins over the visiting Oregon teams moved the
Stanford women’s basketball team up from AP’s No. 3 to No. 2, the spot it had
occupied for most of the season.
Oregon State fell first, 63-60 on Jan. 27, followed
by Oregon falling 62-54 on Jan. 29.
Speaking after the Oregon game, head coach Tara
VanDerveer said it was “a good weekend for us.”
Cameron
posts triple-double with blocks, points, rebounds
Junior forward Cameron Brink was the headliner
against Oregon, racking up a triple double, thanks to a team- and game-leading
16 points, 11 rebounds and 10 of the team’s 13 blocks. Thus she was named Pac-12 Player of the Week for the third time this season.
Senior guard Hannah Jump was the only other player
in double figures with 14 points, while senior guard Haley Jones had 16
rebounds.
Eleven players got into the game, and eight scored.
Most notably, the bench added 16 points.
The team had eight 3’s, thanks in large part to
sophomore forward Brooke Demetre, who was 3-3 from behind the arc for 9 points in her eight minutes on the court.
Also chipping in 3’s was Hannah with two. Junior
guard Agnes Emma-Nnopu, sophomore guard Elena Bosgana and freshman guard Talana
Lepolo had one each. This was Talana’s second game back after missing both
games the previous weekend with an ankle injury.
Stanford led most of the way. Its largest lead was
16 points late in the fourth quarter.
Attendance
totals 5,133
Game attendance was 5,133, bolstered by the groups
invited to celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day. They enjoyed
activities set up by Stanford women’s teams in the concourses.
The video board showed the 49ers vs. Eagles
conference championship game until about 30 minutes before tipoff. Many people
in the stands kept up with the score, which ended in a 31-7 loss for the Niners
and the end of their season.
After the game, Jeanette Pohlen, ’11, opened the
Behind the Bench joined by Clare Bodensteiner, ’07, and Krista Rappahahn Birnie, ’06.
They were among several alums at the game who had met for dinner the night
before.
Joining them, Tara praised the contributions from a number of players,
including Cameron.
“We are more of a gritty team this year,” she said, noting that different
players step up at different games.
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| Haley goes for a mid-range jumper against OSU. (Stanford Athletics) |
Oregon
State proves tough
With 21 points from Cameron and 17 from Haley, the
team eked out a 63-60 win over Oregon State on Jan. 27.
Attended by 3,890, it was a hard-fought game with
numerous ties and lead changes. With the final seconds ticking down and
Stanford clinging to a 62-60 lead, Haley made one of two free throws for the final winning score.
The drama didn’t end there, though. OSU had the ball
with 18.7 seconds to go but couldn’t get off a tying shot. With 2.5 seconds to
go, Stanford fouled, giving OSU the ball out of bounds and perhaps another
chance. Instead, Talana stole the ball when it was inbounded, thus ending OSU’s
hopes.
Besides 21 points, Cameron came up with 13 of the
team’s 39 rebounds and six of its eight blocks.
In all, seven of the 13 players who got into the
game scored. Several of those who didn’t score contributed in other ways with
rebounds and defensive efforts.
Perimeter shooting came up short with two 3’s by
Agnes and one each by Hannah and Brooke.
Free-throw shooting was crucial as the team made 15
of 18 shots, while OSU made 2 of 2, a difference of 13 points.
The first quarter ended 22-18 in Stanford’s favor.
The Cardinal had a one-point lead, 33-32 at the half, followed by a 49-49 tie
after the third quarter.
Stanford’s largest lead was 7 points early in the
second quarter. OSU’s was 4 points about halfway through the first.
The team will be on the road for the next two
weekends, visiting the Washington teams Feb. 3 and 5 and the Arizona teams
Feb. 9 and 12.
The Washington State game is at 7 p.m. Feb. 3,
followed by the Washington game at noon Feb. 5. Pac-12 Bay Area will air both
games.
