A weekend that began inauspiciously for Stanford’s women’s basketball team wound up producing the desired result after all.
Needing homecourt victories over Arizona and Arizona State, both in the bottom half of the Pacific 12 Conference standings, to assure at least a share of the regular-season league championship, the Cardinal entered a Feb. 23 game against the Wildcats on an ominous note. Star senior post player Cameron Brink was unavailable while dealing with flu-like symptoms.
Still, with Arizona down to just seven players because of its own roster issues, Stanford appeared to be in good shape, especially holding a nine-point lead with less than four minutes to play. The Wildcats, though, outscored the Cardinal 19-3 the rest of the way to pull off a stunning 68-61 upset, their first victory at Stanford since 2001.
The Cardinal’s loss, just its fourth this season and third in Pac-12 play, opened the door for Oregon State and USC to potentially claim at least a share of the conference title. Alas, while Brink returned to action and Stanford rebounded Feb. 25 with an 81-67 victory over visiting Arizona State, the Beavers and Trojans stumbled. Oregon State lost 61-51 at Washington, while USC dropped a 74-68 decision to visiting Utah.
The results took some of the luster off an upcoming Feb. 29 showdown between the Cardinal and Beavers in Corvallis, Oregon, with Stanford (13-3) two games ahead of Oregon State and USC (both 11-5), with two games to play.
Already having secured at least a piece of the Pac-12 regular-season championship, its fourth in succession and the 27th in program history, the Cardinal can claim the crown outright by winning either at Oregon State or March 2 at Oregon.
“If you look right up there where it says, ‘conference championships,’ that spot is waiting for 2024,” longtime Stanford Coach Tara VanDerveer told the Maples Pavilion crowd, pointing to a banner in the rafters, after the victory over Arizona State. “And we’re not done.”
It’s already been quite a ride for the three-time NCAA champion Cardinal, what with Ms. VanDerveer on Jan. 21 having surpassed former Duke men’s Coach Mike Krzyzewski as the winningest bench boss in college basketball history. Ms. VanDerveer is at 1,210 victories and counting, six ahead of her contemporary, Connecticut’s Geno Auriemma.
Certainly, celebration was the order of the day during Stanford’s regular-season home finale, with Brink and sharpshooting guard Hannah Jump being honored on senior day. The only downer was the absence of sophomore point guard and floor general Talana Lepolo, who sat out because of a lingering knee injury. She is expected to return to action this week.
It was quite a Maples Pavilion send-off for the Pac-12, what with the Cardinal and Bay Area rival California set to join the Atlantic Coast Conference next season as part of massive realignment that dealt a death knell to the Pac-12.
“I want to enjoy this ride,” Ms. VanDerveer told reporters after Stanford’s home finale. “I’m not even going to think about anything else.”
The Cardinal’s success this season has surprised some, considering much lower external preseason expectations than usual. Both Pac-12 coaches and a panel of media members who cover the league picked Stanford to finish third in the conference, behind Utah and UCLA, while the Cardinal stood just 15th in the preseason Associated Press national rankings.
Powered by the twin inside presence of the 6-foot-4 Brink and 6-3 breakout junior forward Kiki Iriafen, each of whom is likely headed for All-America honors, Stanford is 24-4 overall and fourth in this week’s AP poll.
Iriafen turned in a monster 22-point, 20-rebound effort against Arizona State. Brink contributed 14 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, and five blocked shots while shaking off the effects of illness.
With one more victory, the Cardinal will also secure the top seed for the March 6-10 Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas. After that, of course, will come the main event, the NCAA Tournament. Stanford is one of four projected No. 1 seeds there, as well, according to the Feb. 15 “reveal” by the tournament selection committee, and despite the loss to Arizona, a good bet to maintain that spot. A second “reveal” is set for Feb. 29.
While the final regular-season games and Pac-12 Tournament results will obviously play into it, USC and UCLA are also in position to gain favorable NCAA Tournament seeds. The Trojans, 21-5 overall, are seventh in this week’s AP national poll. The Bruins, ranked eighth, were 21-5 overall and 10-5 in the Pac-12 before a Feb. 26 home game against Colorado that would leave the winner in a three-way tie for second place.
With Oregon State (22-5 overall), Colorado (20-6, 10-5 Pac-12 before the game at UCLA), and Utah (20-8, 10-6) also virtual locks to receive NCAA Tournament berths, there might not be room for further Pac-12 representation.
To reach the big dance, Arizona (16-12, 8-8), Washington State (17-12, 6-10), Cal (16-12, 6-10), and Washington (15-12, 5-11) likely need extremely deep Pac-12 Tournament runs, if not a tournament championship that would secure the conference’s automatic NCAA berth.
