I just came from Maples for what was a really fun day for Stanford hoops. My thoughts are below...
The Kids
Whoever said this is the loudest Maples could be all season was spot on, these kids were enthusiastic and loud all game, screaming during opposing free throws and waving their free pom poms. It created an awesome environment. When the team took the court for warmups the crowd (kids) went crazy and the Stanford players were all grinning. It is the loudest they have probably ever been cheered taking the court.
Maples capacity is 7,233. I would estimate 1,500 school aged kids (3rd-5th grade?) and 500 "regular" fans putting the area at roughly 28% capacity. Kids filled up the entire 6th man section (but where were the Stanford students?!) and the entire lower bowl behind the UoP basket (smart move) as well as 2 upper sections behind UoP's bench. In the 2nd half some of the older kids had filtered down into the lower bowl to where I was sitting (right behind UoP's bench). Sure they were a bit annoying but I always loathe how empty Maples' lower bowl is due to indifferent season ticket holders and the overly-aggressive seat enforcers.
These were all PAUSD kids (at one point the PA announcer had each school see who could cheer the loudest. It was... very loud). I saw the daughter of one of Stanford's assistant coaches sitting with her class so perhaps that was one of the connections. How many of those kids are going to go home and ask their parents to bring them back to a game? This was a huge win all the way around! More of this please!
Others in Attendance:
I saw Tara before tipoff, KN95 masked up. Some women's players sat in the corner of 6th man (hopefully the men reciprocate this evening). David Moseley was there, Joe Lacob in his usual courtside seat (I hate how those seats are always so empty, I counted 10 of the 50 "courtside" seats occupied today). Muir did his classic "stand in the corner near the exit" for the 2nd half.
The Actual Game:
This was a B/B+ performance by Stanford given Spencer Jones' absence and fending off a UoP team who got hot and nailed a ton of tough long shots in the 2nd half. Sure they didn't cover the spread but I was thrilled to see a high-impact newcomer look awesome...
Michael Jones was the story today. The guy is a total stud and odds on favorite to be team MVP (Ingram and S Jones are still close though!) He started out hot (3-4 on 3s and 9 of the first 14 points) before missing his last 5 3-pointers (all close) but still found a way to contribute, scoring his last 22 points inside and at the FT line (6-7 on 2-point shots with some and-1s). He made some nice passes and looked solid on defense (long arms and disruptive).
At one point, UoP's top player (Jordan Ivy-Curry) blew by him for a layup and I remarked to my Dad that I was surprised to see Jones guarding UoP's best and fastest guard instead of O'Connell. The next position, Harrison Ingram was on him. Let's all hope that he doesn't pull a Ziaire where his first Stanford game is his best. He was also the only player to see significant minutes with no turnover. Can we get more intel on whether Jones may come back next season? That would be great to know!
Michael O'Connell and Isa Silva appear to be status quo from last year (somewhat even minutes with O'Connell still being the starter and closer). Silva didn't impress today but we shouldn't overreact from one game. That said, it was a disappointing effort from a highly touted player we all hope makes "the leap" this season. O'Connell looked about the same - solid but not spectacular. I feel a lot safer with him on the floor.
The center platoon of Keefe and Raynaud was also interesting to watch. I believe they combine for 40 minutes and substitute exclusively for each other. Keefe started out 1-5 of free throws before nailing 2 important ones late. He was his usual self but could lose some minutes this season because...
Raynaud was fantastic, disruptive on defense and super efficient on offense. His first buckets were on putbacks before Stanford started looking for him late. He confidently nailed all of his FTs and only 3 attempt. UoP was fairly small so don't expect this sort of output in most games but it was a very impressive showing from a young guy with tons of upside. Also noteworthy that Haase kept him in late when UoP was pressing and fouling. That's often when coaches will favor ball handling but Silva remained on the bench. He also led the team in rebounds and blocks.
This was a forgettable game for Harrison Ingram but I'm not concerned. I think we'll see games all season where Jones, Jones or Ingram takes center stage as the scorer. He brought the ball up a few times and was very involved as a distributor. He missed some close 3 pointers and had a few uncharacteristic turnovers. Overall, I think the fast pace of the game and Stanford's ability to get looks inside and clean 3s from other players made Ingram less of a focal point of the offense, which is fine. With 1:33 left, Haase ran a set play out of a timeout for Ingram but UoP fouled him (and he converted 1-2 FTs).
Branden Angel had a very efficient outing and should have played more if not for foul trouble. Max Murrell didn't do much (zero shot attempts) but filled in admirably on defense late when Angel sat with 4 fouls.
Ryan Agarwal was a surprising presence in the first half (where he missed two 3s but at least took confident shots). I don't expect we'll see much of him in close games with a fully healthy team but perhaps that is my wishful thinking that Haase will tighten the rotation to the top 8 guys. As an aside, there were plenty of South Asian students in the crowd today and it's awesome for them to have some representation on the court.
Jarvis Moss also got some good run, his 2 misses from outside didn't look as good as Agarwal's but he flashed some serious athleticism on a rebound and looked ok. But again, not someone I want to see getting meaningful minutes this season.
Turnovers were a bit sloppy but UoP had an athletic team that was fast and flying around. I thought they were ok.
I'm curious why Jaylen Thompson didn't play and really hope that Spencer Jones can be back for the next two games because they are critically important to the NCAA tourney resume - Wisconsin and San Diego State. I'm pumped for this season!
The Kids
Whoever said this is the loudest Maples could be all season was spot on, these kids were enthusiastic and loud all game, screaming during opposing free throws and waving their free pom poms. It created an awesome environment. When the team took the court for warmups the crowd (kids) went crazy and the Stanford players were all grinning. It is the loudest they have probably ever been cheered taking the court.
Maples capacity is 7,233. I would estimate 1,500 school aged kids (3rd-5th grade?) and 500 "regular" fans putting the area at roughly 28% capacity. Kids filled up the entire 6th man section (but where were the Stanford students?!) and the entire lower bowl behind the UoP basket (smart move) as well as 2 upper sections behind UoP's bench. In the 2nd half some of the older kids had filtered down into the lower bowl to where I was sitting (right behind UoP's bench). Sure they were a bit annoying but I always loathe how empty Maples' lower bowl is due to indifferent season ticket holders and the overly-aggressive seat enforcers.
These were all PAUSD kids (at one point the PA announcer had each school see who could cheer the loudest. It was... very loud). I saw the daughter of one of Stanford's assistant coaches sitting with her class so perhaps that was one of the connections. How many of those kids are going to go home and ask their parents to bring them back to a game? This was a huge win all the way around! More of this please!
Others in Attendance:
I saw Tara before tipoff, KN95 masked up. Some women's players sat in the corner of 6th man (hopefully the men reciprocate this evening). David Moseley was there, Joe Lacob in his usual courtside seat (I hate how those seats are always so empty, I counted 10 of the 50 "courtside" seats occupied today). Muir did his classic "stand in the corner near the exit" for the 2nd half.
The Actual Game:
This was a B/B+ performance by Stanford given Spencer Jones' absence and fending off a UoP team who got hot and nailed a ton of tough long shots in the 2nd half. Sure they didn't cover the spread but I was thrilled to see a high-impact newcomer look awesome...
Michael Jones was the story today. The guy is a total stud and odds on favorite to be team MVP (Ingram and S Jones are still close though!) He started out hot (3-4 on 3s and 9 of the first 14 points) before missing his last 5 3-pointers (all close) but still found a way to contribute, scoring his last 22 points inside and at the FT line (6-7 on 2-point shots with some and-1s). He made some nice passes and looked solid on defense (long arms and disruptive).
At one point, UoP's top player (Jordan Ivy-Curry) blew by him for a layup and I remarked to my Dad that I was surprised to see Jones guarding UoP's best and fastest guard instead of O'Connell. The next position, Harrison Ingram was on him. Let's all hope that he doesn't pull a Ziaire where his first Stanford game is his best. He was also the only player to see significant minutes with no turnover. Can we get more intel on whether Jones may come back next season? That would be great to know!
Michael O'Connell and Isa Silva appear to be status quo from last year (somewhat even minutes with O'Connell still being the starter and closer). Silva didn't impress today but we shouldn't overreact from one game. That said, it was a disappointing effort from a highly touted player we all hope makes "the leap" this season. O'Connell looked about the same - solid but not spectacular. I feel a lot safer with him on the floor.
The center platoon of Keefe and Raynaud was also interesting to watch. I believe they combine for 40 minutes and substitute exclusively for each other. Keefe started out 1-5 of free throws before nailing 2 important ones late. He was his usual self but could lose some minutes this season because...
Raynaud was fantastic, disruptive on defense and super efficient on offense. His first buckets were on putbacks before Stanford started looking for him late. He confidently nailed all of his FTs and only 3 attempt. UoP was fairly small so don't expect this sort of output in most games but it was a very impressive showing from a young guy with tons of upside. Also noteworthy that Haase kept him in late when UoP was pressing and fouling. That's often when coaches will favor ball handling but Silva remained on the bench. He also led the team in rebounds and blocks.
This was a forgettable game for Harrison Ingram but I'm not concerned. I think we'll see games all season where Jones, Jones or Ingram takes center stage as the scorer. He brought the ball up a few times and was very involved as a distributor. He missed some close 3 pointers and had a few uncharacteristic turnovers. Overall, I think the fast pace of the game and Stanford's ability to get looks inside and clean 3s from other players made Ingram less of a focal point of the offense, which is fine. With 1:33 left, Haase ran a set play out of a timeout for Ingram but UoP fouled him (and he converted 1-2 FTs).
Branden Angel had a very efficient outing and should have played more if not for foul trouble. Max Murrell didn't do much (zero shot attempts) but filled in admirably on defense late when Angel sat with 4 fouls.
Ryan Agarwal was a surprising presence in the first half (where he missed two 3s but at least took confident shots). I don't expect we'll see much of him in close games with a fully healthy team but perhaps that is my wishful thinking that Haase will tighten the rotation to the top 8 guys. As an aside, there were plenty of South Asian students in the crowd today and it's awesome for them to have some representation on the court.
Jarvis Moss also got some good run, his 2 misses from outside didn't look as good as Agarwal's but he flashed some serious athleticism on a rebound and looked ok. But again, not someone I want to see getting meaningful minutes this season.
Turnovers were a bit sloppy but UoP had an athletic team that was fast and flying around. I thought they were ok.
I'm curious why Jaylen Thompson didn't play and really hope that Spencer Jones can be back for the next two games because they are critically important to the NCAA tourney resume - Wisconsin and San Diego State. I'm pumped for this season!
