On Friday at 2:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks and Varsity Network radio, #9 Stanford women’s basketball will take on Cal on the road in Berkeley. This will be the 100th meeting between the two programs. Stanford comes in at 10-1 overall while Cal comes in at 10-2. This will be the Pac-12 opener for both programs.
Last time out: On Wednesday, December 20th, Stanford defeated UC Davis 92-52. Hannah Jump broke the all-time 3-point record for Stanford women’s basketball.
RECAP: #9 Stanford WBB dominates UC Davis
On Cal: The Golden Bears are off to a strong start, doing a nice job of handling their business so far. Their two losses both were at home to Texas A&M and Gonzaga. Gonzaga they fell to by a final score of 78-70, playing them tough.
The Bears are led by graduate transfer guard Ioanna Krimili (15.0 points), junior forward Marta Suarez (14.3 points & 7.0 rebounds), and graduate student guard Leilani McIntosh (12.4 points & 3.1 rebounds). Krimili has only played in three games this season, missing the past nine games due to injury. It is unclear when she’ll be back.
As a team, the Bears average 73.3 points per game on 42.0% shooting from the field, 32.5% shooting from 3-point range, and 76.1% shooting from the foul line. They average 40.8 rebounds, 16.2 assists, 8.7 steals, 3.6 blocks, and 15.1 turnovers per game. They also average a +5.1 rebound margin and a +1.2 turnover margin. Their opponents average 58.3 points per game on 36.9% shooting from the field, 27.9% shooting from 3-point range, and 68.0% shooting from the foul line.
Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is work the ball inside. Cameron Brink and Kiki Iriafen should look to get going for the Cardinal and it’ll be up to Cal to stop them. If they perform well, Stanford will be in a great position to win with little trouble.
The second thing Stanford needs to do is get Hannah Jump going. Cal did a nice job of taking her out of the game last year. If Stanford gets Jump in a nice rhythm and she’s knocking down threes, that’ll just add another dimension to Stanford’s offensive attack.
Finally, Stanford needs to keep Cal away from the foul line. Cal is going to attack the basket and look to draw fouls. McIntosh and Suarez in particular will look to get going in that department. If Stanford keeps those two away from the charity stripe, Cal is going to be hard pressed to come up with enough points to win.
Prediction: I got Stanford winning by a final score of 82-72. It’s going to be a “Gold Out” at Haas Pavilion and Cal is going to come out fired up. I got Cal keeping this tight through three quarters before Stanford pulls away in the fourth. Should be a fun game.
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