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| 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 161st
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.
