This evening at 5:30 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks and Cardinal Sports Network radio, Stanford men’s basketball will welcome the Valparaiso Beacons to Maples Pavilion. Stanford comes in at 2-1 overall while Valparaiso comes in at 0-2, dropping their first two games at home.
Last time out: On Monday, Stanford defeated San Jose State 76-62, outscoring the Spartans 47-24 in the second half. Harrison Ingram and Jaiden Delaire each had 19 points to lead Stanford.
RECAP: Stanford MBB cruises past San Jose State after shaky first half
On Valparaiso: The Beacons are led by senior forward Thomas Kithier, who is averaging 22.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game this season. He is shooting 70.4% from the field, attempting only one 3-pointer, which he missed. So, he’s very much an old school forward that does his damage in the paint. 5th year guard Kevion Taylor is averaging 14.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game while sophomore guard Sheldon Edwards is chipping in 11.5 points per game.
As a team, the Beacons are averaging 65.5 points per game on 43.7% shooting from the field, 28.9% shooting from 3-point range, and 66.7% shooting from the foul line. They’re averaging a -7.0 rebound margin, 12.0 assists, 6.0 steals, 4.6 blocks, and 11.5 turnovers per game. Their opponents are averaging 71.5 points per game on 42.7% shooting from the field, 34.9% shooting from 3-point range, and 75.9% shooting from the foul line.
The Beacons are off to a rocky start and don’t appear to pack the same punch as they have in years past. Still, they have some solid guards and a really talented 4-star forward that knows how to get after it inside. They do appear to be much more capable than what they’ve shown so far.
Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is figure out a way to protect the rim and not allow Kithier to do his thing inside. Rim protection has been an issue for Stanford so far. That’s an area that freshman big Maxime Raynaud needs to improve on and then outside of him, nobody else is really doing much in this department. Lukas Kisunas is averaging 0.3 blocks per game on the year, right in line with his career average. So, Stanford needs to figure out how to do better in this area and tonight will be a good test for them.
Secondly, Stanford needs to take advantage of Valparaiso’s shoddy perimeter defense. The Beacons are allowing opponents to shoot 34.9% from deep this year, so there’s an opening here for Stanford to make some threes and build some momentum from beyond the arc. Spencer Jones, who came into the season as a career 40.7% shooter from 3-point range is shooting just 2-13 (15.4%) on the year. This would be a good game for Stanford to get him going.
Lastly, Stanford simply needs to bring energy at the start of the game. They’ve had an issue coming out with the right energy in the first half so far this year, hence the shaky starts to Tarleton State and San Jose State. Stanford needs to bring the type of energy they brought in the second half on Monday night in the first half and get out to a big lead early. If they can do that, that’ll show progress.
Prediction: Stanford should have learned their lesson from Monday night’s game, but that doesn’t mean they have. On paper, this should be a 20+ win for Stanford where they win going away from start to finish. I think it’ll be a little closer than that. Stanford 77 Valparaiso 60 is my prediction. I think Stanford will hold a slight lead at halftime, something like five points or so before pulling away in the second half like last time.
