On Thursday at 8:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks and Varsity Network radio, #2 Stanford women’s basketball will take on Washington State at home. Stanford comes in at 23-3 overall and 14-0 in the Pac-12 while Washington State comes in at 18-8 overall and 10-5 in the Pac-12. Stanford defeated Washington State 82-44 in Pullman earlier this season.
Last time out: On Sunday, Stanford defeated Oregon 66-62. Haley Jones took over in the 4th quarter, finishing with 18 points and 9 rebounds.
RECAP: #2 Stanford WBB squeezes past Oregon in Eugene
On Washington State: The Cougars continue to be led by Charlisse Leger-Walker (16.1 points & 5.4 rebounds), who is having a fantastic season and has the Cougars on track for an NCAA tournament bid as they are currently 2nd in the conference, ahead of #12 Arizona. The Cougars got the regular season split against the Wildcats, so they’ve definitely earned their keep. The other Cougars scoring in double figures on average are junior guard Johanna Teder (10.9 points) and junior center Bella Murekatete (10.2 points & 7.2 rebounds).
As a team, the Cougars average 60.6 points per game on 38.6% shooting from the field, 31.9% shooting from 3-point range, and 71.2% shooting from the foul line. They average 35.7 rebounds, 13.1 assists, 7.9 steals, 4.2 blocks, and 14.2 turnovers per game. They also average a -0.6 rebound margin and a +0.9 turnover margin.
Keys to the game: The first thing Stanford needs to do is contain Charlisse Leger-Walker. She’s been the driving force behind the Cougars’ success and is having a fantastic season. Beating Wazzu starts with containing her. Period.
The second thing Stanford needs to do is dominate the boards. Stanford averages a +8.9 rebound margin per game and should have no trouble dominating Wazzu inside. If it’s one-way traffic for the Cardinal on the glass, they should win with little trouble.
Finally, Stanford needs to put up points. Washington State wins games by holding opponents in the mid 60s or lower. If Stanford can put up 70+ points, it’s going to be tough for Washington State to generate enough offense to win.
Prediction: Stanford is at home and they defeated Washington State soundly on the road. There’s no reason to think Washington State has much of a chance in this one. That said, Washington State has been playing better as of late, winning four games in a row and eight of their last 10 games. So, I do think it’ll be a closer game than what we saw in Pullman, but still a Stanford victory. Stanford 78 Washington State 58 is how I see this playing out.
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