Sweet but not Elite

 

Cameron and Hannah have played their last game for Stanford. (Stanford Athletics)

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.

Unfortunately, the best of times was the end of the first half when the Stanford women’s basketball team had a 10-point lead, 37-27, over North Carolina State in a Sweet 16 matchup in Portland on March 29.

However, the worst of times came at the final buzzer as the Cardinal lost to the Wolfpack 67-77 to end the season.

Stanford was hurt by foul trouble by its two best players. Junior forward Kiki Iriafen did her best with 26 points and 10 rebounds despite playing only 22 minutes while accumulating four fouls.

Senior forward Cameron Brink ended her Stanford career by fouling out early in the fourth quarter after scoring 13 points, collecting nine rebounds and making all seven of the team’s blocks.

Playing all 40 minutes, grad guard Hannah Jump also ended her Stanford career with 13 points, helped by three 3’s. Junior forward Brooke Demetre and Cam each had one 3.

The team had 24 assists but 14 turnovers to NC State’s seven.

The game saw five lead changes and three ties.

Going into the game, assistant coach Erica “Bird” McCall was named a WBCA Thirty Under 30 honoree for the season.

Now it’s back to campus for the start of spring quarter classes April 1.

The team will be honored at the annual banquet April 10 as Cam awaits the WNBA draft April 15, when she is expected to be a high pick.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dancing shoes ready for the Portland regional

Freshman forward Nunu Agara and  Kiki celebrate during the Iowa State game. 

Is there a cardiologist in the house?

That could have been the cry in Maples on March 24 when the two-seeded Stanford women’s basketball team won a thrilling 87-81 victory over seven-seeded Iowa State in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

Thus the team erased the bad taste left by its second-round upset loss to Ole Miss last year.

Perhaps the band knew something this year as it played ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” before the game started. Yes, the team keeps on dancing as it advances to the Sweet 16 regional in Portland, where it will play three-seeded North Carolina State at 4:30 p.m. March 29.

But it wasn’t easy. Twelve ties and 18 lead changes kept the crowd of more than 5,800 in suspense until the final seconds of overtime.

Late in the first quarter, Stanford held a 4-point lead as the crowd often booed calls against the Cardinal, but the Cyclones led by 7 points at the buzzer. They led by 2 points at the half. The third ended in a 50-50 tie, as did the fourth, 66-66.

Kiki helped to defeat Iowa State. 

Kiki leads the way

The heroine of the game was junior forward Kiki Iriafen, who finished with 41 points and 16 rebounds. The last time a Stanford player posted a similar double-double in an NCAA tournament was Jayne Appel, ’10, who had 16 rebounds and 46 points against none other than Iowa State in 2009, Stanford Athletics reported. Kiki also had four assists, three blocks and a steal.

Playing in her final game at Stanford, grad guard Hannah Jump was the only other Cardinal in double figures with 15 points, thanks in part to her three 3’s.

Also contributing to Stanford’s eight 3’s were sophomore guard Talana Lepolo and junior forward Brooke Demetre with two each, while redshirt sophomore guard Jzaniya Harriel had one.

On the other hand, Iowa State hoisted 12 3’s. It also had more rebounds, 42-36, but Stanford had more assists, more blocks and fewer turnovers.

Also playing in her final Maples game, senior forward Cameron Brink had five blocks but an unusually low 8 points and eight rebounds because fouls limited her playing time to just 22 minutes. She fouled out late in the fourth quarter.

Like the rest of the game, the overtime was a nail-biter as Stanford mostly held a 2-point lead until the final 18.4 seconds. That’s when Brooke hit a clutch 3 and then made two free throws with under 12 seconds left to virtually ice the win. Kiki added some insurance with two more free throws.

One of the big concerns going into this game was how to contain Iowa State’s freshman center Audi Crooks. She had 40 points and 12 rebounds in Iowa State’s 93-86 win over 10-seeded Maryland in the first-round.

Stanford succeeded on that front, limiting her to 10 points before she fouled out early in the overtime. However, guard Emily Ryan broke loose for 36 points, helped by her six 3’s.

Players on the bench react to a Stanford score against Norfolk State. 

Elena helps lead the team over Norfolk State

In the team’s first-round 79-50 victory over Norfolk State on March 22, junior guard Elena Bosgana opened the scoring with a 3-pointer.

The team stayed ahead for the rest of the game, expanding its margin from 3 points after the first quarter to 13 at the half, 21 after the third and 29 at the final buzzer.

Elena’s opening 3 was the first of her four. Hannah also had four, and freshman forward Courtney Ogden topped it off with one.

Everyone was available, and everyone played.

Elena led the team in scoring with a career-high 18 points. Kiki and Cam were right behind her with 17 each. Cam also had team highs of 15 rebounds and six blocks. Kiki was close to a double-double with nine rebounds. Hannah had 13 points. Three other players scored.

Cam’s time was limited by fouls. She collected her second slightly past the halfway mark of the second quarter and added a third early in the third quarter.

Although Norfolk’s players were shorter than Stanford’s, the Spartans’ disruptive defense contributed to Stanford’s 14 turnovers, in part the result of 10 steals.

Fans enjoy timeout antics

For the more than 4,500 fans’ enjoyment during timeouts there were, among others, a Sock Toss, Great Hair Cam and, in the fourth quarter, the Mascot Dance-off between the Tree and the agile Mr. Spartan, who wowed the crowd with splits.

In earning the right to face Stanford, seven-seeded Iowa State defeated 10-seeded Maryland 93-86 in the day’s earlier game.

During that game, head coach Tara VanDerveer and assistant coaches Erica “Bird” McCall and Tempie Brown scouted at a table along the east courtside while the team, assistant coach Katy Steding, associate head coach Kate Paye and other staffers watched from the lower southeast section.

Cardinal players, coaches honored

Before the tournament began, Stanford finished the regular season ranked #5 by AP and raked in several honors: Cam was named a first team AP All-American and an ESPN All-American, and Kiki was an honorable mention AP All-American.

Kate was named WBCA Assistant Coach of the Year, and Tempie was part of the A Step Up Assistant Coaches Hall of Fame Class of 2024.

The team has a break from classes after the winter quarter exams ended March 22. Spring quarter classes start April 1. 

Photos by Stanford Athletics

Pac-12 tournament title evades team

 

Backed by teammates and the band, Cam and Hannah are interviewed after the OSU win. (Stanford Athletics)

Entering the last-ever Pac-12 tournament on March 10, the Stanford women’s basketball team had hoped for another championship, but it wasn’t to be.

Leading up to the final game in Las Vegas, top seed Stanford had defeated Cal 71-57 on March 7 and Oregon State 66-57 on March 8. In both games, the Cardinal had to come from behind.

They couldn’t do it again against second seed USC, losing 61-74, even though USC had survived a grueling double overtime win against UCLA in the semi-finals. USC also beat Stanford 58-67 on Feb. 2.

Except for the third quarter, when both teams scored 13 points, USC outscored Stanford the rest of the way.

Aside from the final score, one glaring difference was rebounds, an area in which Stanford usually excels. USC had 48, Stanford 28. Free throws also favored USC, which made 11 of 12 to Stanford’s four of seven.

Senior forward Cameron Brink led the team with 19 points, 10 rebounds and all six of the team’s blocks. Junior forward Kiki Iriafen was right behind her with 18 points and seven rebounds.

No other Cardinal was in double figures, but junior guard Elena Bosgana was close with 9 points. Five other players scored.

USC had nine 3’s to Stanford’s seven. Cam had three of them, while Elena, grad guard Hannah Jump, junior forward Brooke Demetre and sophomore guard Talana Lepolo each had one.

After the game, Cam and Kiki were among the five players named to the All- Tournament Team.

The tournament loss dropped Stanford to No. 4 from No. 2 in AP’s March 11 national poll.

Here’s how the first two tournament games unfolded;

Stanford wins final Pac-12 Battle of the Bay

Cal had Stanford on its heels throughout the first half of the quarter-final game before the Cardinal pulled out the 71-57 win on March 7.

Seeded No. 8, Cal had defeated ninth seed Washington State 65-44 the previous day, while No. 1 seed Stanford had the bye.

The Bears looked as if they might continue in the victory column as they led 36-28 at the half. During that half they launched a hail of 3’s and seemingly pulled down more rebounds.

Returning after the break, Stanford outscored Cal in each of the next two quarters to win. The Cardinal also had more rebounds for the game (50-44) and fewer fouls (10-18). All those fouls by Cal led to an 11-point Stanford advantage at the free-throw line.

Kiki led the way with 28 points, 18 rebounds and five assists for her 15^th double-double of the season. She was the first Stanford player with at least 25 points and 15 rebounds in a tournament game since Chiney Ogwumike, ’14, against USC in the 2014 semi-finals.

Elena tied her career high with 16 points and contributed eight rebounds and four assists.

Cameron was right behind her with 15 points, 14 rebounds and the team’s only block. Her playing time was limited to 27 minutes because she was in foul trouble with a total of four. The first one was early in the first quarter when Cal was ahead 7-1.

Talana, the only other Cardinal to score, had 12 points.

Elena with four and Talana with three were the only Cardinal players to make 3’s. Usually sharp-shooting Hannah was held scoreless.

Stanford wins season awards

Earlier in the week Stanford dominated Pac-12 season awards. In a vote by the head coaches, Cam was named Player and Defensive Player of the year. Kiki was named Most Improved Player. Head coach Tara VanDerveer was named John R. Wooden Pac-12 Coach of the Year.

Both Cam and Kiki were all Pac-12 for the third year, while Hannah and Talana received honorable mention. Cam was named to the conference’s all-defensive team. Forwards Nunu Agara and Courtney Ogden received honorable mention for the all-freshman team.

On top of that, Cam was named the national Player of the Week on March. 5.

Brooke and Hannah celebrate during the OSU game. (Stanford Athletics)

Same slow start, same victorious outcome

It was déjà vu in the first half of the semi-final game against fourth-seeded Oregon State on March 8, and it was déjà vu in the second half as Stanford surged ahead to win 66-57.

OSU outscored Stanford 24-12 in the first quarter, but Stanford had the edge in the second, leading to an 8-point deficit at the half. Stanford then had a huge third quarter, scoring 23 points to OSU’s 8. The Cardinal also prevailed in the fourth quarter to advance.

In a turnaround from the previous game, Hannah broke loose, leading her team with 20 points, thanks in large part to her four 3’s.

Cam almost had a triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists. Kiki was close behind with 14 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Both were in foul trouble with four each.

Completing the list of those in double figures, Brooke had 10 points.

Unlike the previous game, in which only four players scored, this time seven players added points.

One notable stat: Stanford had 25 assists and only seven turnovers, surpassing OSU in both categories.

Besides Hannah’s four 3’s, the team’s other three 3’s came from Brooke with two and Cam with one.

After the game, Cam and Hannah were interviewed by a TV crew while their jubilant teammates, the band, cheerleaders, Tree and Dollies celebrated.

Now the team awaits the announcement of NCAA tournament seedings on March 17. Stanford is expected to be a top four seed with the chance to host the two first rounds starting March 22.

Before that, the players can focus on academics along with basketball. Winter quarter finals are March 18-22. Spring quarter classes start April 1.

 

Team returns from Oregon with two more wins

 

Playing OSU, Cam snared 24 rebounds, tying a record set by Chiney Ogwumike in 2013. (Stanford Athletics photo)

The Stanford women’s basketball team ended its last-ever regular season Pac-12 road trip by sweeping the Oregon schools. These two wins elevated Stanford to No. 2 from No. 3 in the March 4 AP poll. Senior forward Cameron Brink's dominant performance in both games led to her being named Pac-12 Player of the Week for the fifth time this season and 12th time in her career.

The trip started with a 67-63 win over Oregon State on Feb. 29 and a 76-56 win over Oregon on March 2.

In the Oregon game, the Cardinal were without the services of starting sophomore point guard Talana Lepolo, who reportedly was held out with leg issues. She was replaced by redshirt sophomore guard Jzaniya Harriel, who filled in nicely with 6 points and four assists.

The crowd of nearly 7,000 saw senior forward Cameron Brink lead the team with 18 points, 17 rebounds, five assists and three blocks despite amassing four fouls that limited her playing time.

Junior forward Kiki Iriafen was right behind her with 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists.

Grad guard Hannah Jump had 12 points in her 161^st game, a program record.

Junior forward Brooke Demetre also was in double figures with 11 points.

Nine 3’s helped to boost the score with three by Brooke, two each by Hannah and Jzaniya, and one each by junior guard Elena Bosgana and freshman forward Courtney Ogden.

During halftime of the Pac-12 Networks' Mary Murphy announced her season awards. Among them were Cam for Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year and Kiki for Most Improved Player.

Stanford stands alone as Pac-12 season champs

Playing in front of a highly partisan crowd of more than 8,100 in Corvallis, the team pulled out its 67-63 victory over Oregon State on Feb. 29, thereby assuring its claim to sole possession of the final Pac-12 season championship. At the time, Stanford was No. 4 in the AP national poll. Oregon State was No. 11.

“We’re greedy. We want it (the championship) all to ourselves,” Cam said in an interview immediately after the game. The team had assured itself of at least a share of the championship by defeating Arizona State on Feb. 25.

In the OSU game, Stanford was vastly aided by Cam’s 25 points and career-high 24 rebounds. Those rebounds tied the single game record set by Chiney Ogwumike, ’14, on Feb. 23, 2013, against Oregon.

Kiki was the only other Cardinal in double figures with 14 points. However, nine of the 10 players who got into the game added points.

Four of them had 3’s: Elena, Talana, Courtney and freshman forward Nunu Agara, each with one.

OSU’s only lead came when it scored the game’s first basket. After that, Stanford forged ahead to a 15-7 first-quarter lead that could have been greater except for some missed bunnies.

Cam collected her fourth foul in the fourth quarter and left the game for about a minute and a half. When she returned to action, the crowd booed.

The final three minutes were nail-biters. Stanford was nursing a 2-point lead at the three-minute mark and held the same advantage, 64-62, with less than a minute to go. That’s when Cam snared her 24th rebound.

Several seconds later, Talana made two crucial free throws to expand the lead to 66-62.

However, Cam fouled out with about seven seconds left, but OSU made only one of its two free throws, leading to a 66-63 score. Two seconds later, Kiki made one of two free throws to ice the win.

Now it’s on to the final Pac-12 tournament March 6-10 in Las Vegas. Because it has a first-round bye, Stanford will play its first game at 2:30 p.m. March 7 against the winner of the game between the eighth and ninth seeds on March 6.

If Stanford wins that one, it will play at 5 p.m. March 8. The championship game is at 2 p.m. March 10.

Selection Sunday for the NCAA tournament is at 5 p.m. March 17. Assuming Stanford gets a 1, 2, 3 or 4 seed, it will host the first two rounds of the tournament, playing either March 22 or 23, with the second round either March 24 or 25.