Kiana Williams led the way again and Cardinal bench players provided critical contributions for Stanford to beat Oregon State 63-60 Friday night.
Williams scored 24 points in the game and made several clutch shots down the stretch to counter a major run by Oregon State led by their own elite guard, Destiny Slocum. Slocum scored 26 and made consecutive threes to spark a 10-0 run that almost erased Stanford's 14 point lead.
Stanford held that margin with 7:06 left in the game and appeared poised to comfortably pull away, but nothing is comfortable against Oregon State. Slocum and Mikayla Pivec went on a run of their own and were the only Beavers to supply any offense in the second half for Scott Rueck's club.
A jumper by Pivec with 3:31 left in the game made the score 59-55 Stanford. A little more than a minute later Williams broke a nearly five minute scoring drought for Stanford.
Taylor Jones then scored her only second half basket for Oregon State after scoring 12 points in the first half. Williams came right back and drained a jumper off a pick-and-roll -- a play Oregon State struggled to stop for most of the game with Williams, Lexie or Lacie Hull peeling around the screen.
Up six with under a minute left Stanford got careless with the ball and committed two of its only four turnovers in the game. Kat Tudor made a three, her only shot of the game, to cut the deficit in half. Unexpectedly, Lexie was hounded into a turnover and Oregon State had the ball with 17.3 seconds left down three.
But credit to the Cardinal defense, led by Anna Wilson, for shutting down the last Oregon State possession. Slocum only managed to throw up a desperation shot after a lot of dribbling that didn't go anywhere.
Wilson was one of the players of the game for Stanford. Her eight points off the bench were big but not as important as her defense. Head coach Tara VanDerveer rotated both Hulls, Williams and Wilson on Slocum to try to slow down the All-American. Even though Slocum ended up with 26, it was Wilson's tough defense that helped give the Cardinal some room to create the lead.
Also important: when Wilson limped off the court in the second quarter, and Lexie was in foul trouble, it was Williams who had to chase around Slocum. Williams was battered around by a couple Oregon State screens, shoved by Slocum's physical drives and at risk of being worn down. Williams played all but 11 seconds of the game and Stanford couldn't afford to have her use so much energy on defense.
When Wilson came back, Williams only guarded Slocum if they happened to switch on a screen. Otherwise, Williams was able to match up with Tudor or Aleah Goodman, which requires much less running considering the remarkable amount of time Tudor or Goodman stand in a corner waiting for a pass off a drive for a three.
Stanford again got big minutes from Maya Dodson. She shows the rust of someone who has only been practicing for about 10 days, but she also provides a needed inside presence.
Alyssa Jerome also made two threes, grabbed four rebounds and was credited with two steals. It was one of her better games providing a boost off the bench. Stanford had 22 bench points to only two for Oregon State.
Williams is playing at a high level right now and when Lexie struggles to score then Williams has to take on even more responsibility. This was the second straight game that happened and the captain known as Skippy has stepped up. She knows there is no one who can sub in for her now that Haley Jones is out, so she grits her teeth through all the bumps and bruises.
Williams scored 24 points in the game and made several clutch shots down the stretch to counter a major run by Oregon State led by their own elite guard, Destiny Slocum. Slocum scored 26 and made consecutive threes to spark a 10-0 run that almost erased Stanford's 14 point lead.
Stanford held that margin with 7:06 left in the game and appeared poised to comfortably pull away, but nothing is comfortable against Oregon State. Slocum and Mikayla Pivec went on a run of their own and were the only Beavers to supply any offense in the second half for Scott Rueck's club.
A jumper by Pivec with 3:31 left in the game made the score 59-55 Stanford. A little more than a minute later Williams broke a nearly five minute scoring drought for Stanford.
Taylor Jones then scored her only second half basket for Oregon State after scoring 12 points in the first half. Williams came right back and drained a jumper off a pick-and-roll -- a play Oregon State struggled to stop for most of the game with Williams, Lexie or Lacie Hull peeling around the screen.
Up six with under a minute left Stanford got careless with the ball and committed two of its only four turnovers in the game. Kat Tudor made a three, her only shot of the game, to cut the deficit in half. Unexpectedly, Lexie was hounded into a turnover and Oregon State had the ball with 17.3 seconds left down three.
But credit to the Cardinal defense, led by Anna Wilson, for shutting down the last Oregon State possession. Slocum only managed to throw up a desperation shot after a lot of dribbling that didn't go anywhere.
Wilson was one of the players of the game for Stanford. Her eight points off the bench were big but not as important as her defense. Head coach Tara VanDerveer rotated both Hulls, Williams and Wilson on Slocum to try to slow down the All-American. Even though Slocum ended up with 26, it was Wilson's tough defense that helped give the Cardinal some room to create the lead.
Also important: when Wilson limped off the court in the second quarter, and Lexie was in foul trouble, it was Williams who had to chase around Slocum. Williams was battered around by a couple Oregon State screens, shoved by Slocum's physical drives and at risk of being worn down. Williams played all but 11 seconds of the game and Stanford couldn't afford to have her use so much energy on defense.
When Wilson came back, Williams only guarded Slocum if they happened to switch on a screen. Otherwise, Williams was able to match up with Tudor or Aleah Goodman, which requires much less running considering the remarkable amount of time Tudor or Goodman stand in a corner waiting for a pass off a drive for a three.
Stanford again got big minutes from Maya Dodson. She shows the rust of someone who has only been practicing for about 10 days, but she also provides a needed inside presence.
Alyssa Jerome also made two threes, grabbed four rebounds and was credited with two steals. It was one of her better games providing a boost off the bench. Stanford had 22 bench points to only two for Oregon State.
Williams is playing at a high level right now and when Lexie struggles to score then Williams has to take on even more responsibility. This was the second straight game that happened and the captain known as Skippy has stepped up. She knows there is no one who can sub in for her now that Haley Jones is out, so she grits her teeth through all the bumps and bruises.
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