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| Hailee (left) and Nunu battle for the ball. (Getty Images) |
The Stanford women’s basketball team’s hopes for an
extended ACC tournament run were dashed in the first round when Miami prevailed
83-76 in overtime on March 4 in Duluth, Ga.
The game opened on a promising note when freshman
guard Hailee Swain hit a 3-pointer, followed by a basket by junior forward Nunu
Agara.
Subsequent cold shooting left the Cardinal in the cold
at the end of the first quarter, down 19-10 for its lowest first-quarter score
of the season, according to the TV announcers.
Quarter two went better with the team shooting off
three 3’s right away, making a total of seven 3’s in the quarter and ending
with a 2-point lead.
Quarter three was a different story as Miami’s tough
defense helped it to a 13-point lead.
Stanford outscored Miami by 13 points in the fourth
quarter to tie the game and force overtime.
However, Stanford ran out of fire power in OT and was
outscored by 7 points, leading to the final 83-76 score.
For the game, Stanford shot 42 percent, Miami 50.8
percent.
Overall, the game had nine lead changes and five ties.
Miami snared more rebounds, 46-30, but had more
turnovers, 17-15.
Three-point shooting helped the Cardinal with a total
of 12. Hailee and junior Courtney Ogden had four each. Freshman forward Lara
Somfai had three, and freshman forward Alex Eschmeyer had one.
Courtney led four players in double figures with 22
points. Hailee followed with 17, Lara had 12, and Nunu had 11.
The crowd seemed sparse but undoubtedly included
family and friends of Hailee and Courtney, who both are from Georgia. The Tree,
band, cheerleaders and Dollies also were there to cheer.
And as the regular ACC season ended, Hailee and Lara
were named to the all-freshman team, and Nunu was named to the ACC second team.
Stanford finished with a 19-13 record so far, besting its
16-15 of last season.
Now the team is back on campus awaiting the next step.
A berth in the NCAA tournament seems like a long shot, so the WNIT is more
likely. The NCAA bracket will be announced March 15, followed by the WNIT
bracket on March 16.
In the meantime, classes are on the agenda. The
last day of winter quarter classes is March 13, followed by finals March 16-20.
