On Thursday, January 9th at 7:00 PM PT on ACCNX, Stanford women’s basketball will welcome Florida State to The Farm for their ACC home opener. Stanford comes in at 8-6 overall and 0-3 in the ACC while Florida State comes in at 13-2 overall and 3-0 in the ACC. Florida State is almost a ranked team, receiving more votes than any non-ranked team in the latest AP Top 25 poll.
Last time out: Stanford fell to Clemson on the road on Sunday by a final score of 65-61 in overtime. Stanford had a chance to win the game in regulation with the final possession but couldn’t convert.
RECAP: Stanford WBB falls to Clemson on the road in OT
On Florida State: The Seminoles are having a really strong season and have an opportunity to enter the AP Top 25 this week if they can win both Bay Area road games. Their two losses are at Illinois and at Tennessee. Tennessee is ranked while Illinois is not ranked.
The Seminoles are led by junior guard Ta’Niya Latson, who is averaging 27.9 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, making her the top scorer in the nation. Senior forward Makayla Timpson is averaging a double-double with 17.9 points and 10.7 rebounds per game while senior guard O’Mariah Gordon (16.5 points) and junior guard Sydney Bowels (10.2 points) are also scoring in double figures.
As a team, the Seminoles average 94.9 points per game on 46.3% shooting from the field, 35.4% shooting from 3-point range, and 79.4% shooting from the foul line. They average 41.4 rebounds, 14.5 assists, 11.7 steals, 6.0 blocks, 11.7 steals, and 11.0 turnovers per game. They average a +3.2 rebound margin and a +9.2 turnover margin per game. Their opponents average 66.9 points per game on 39.7% shooting from the field, 28.5% shooting from 3-point range, and 69.5% shooting from the foul line.
Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is contain Latson. She’s the nation’s top scorer. You have to do whatever you can to slow her down. If she scores over 20 points, it’s likely going to be a long night for the Cardinal.
The second thing Stanford needs to do is take care of the ball. The Seminoles are used to turning people over and winning the turnover battle decisively. If Stanford can take good care of the ball and not allow Florida State to dominate that statistical area, they’ll have a shot. If not, it’ll be a long night.
Finally, Stanford needs to make winning plays in crunch time. If this game does get close, what will decide the game is who makes winning plays. Stanford has been close in their last couple of games only to fall apart late. They have to be able to make winning plays when they count and finish the job.
Prediction: I gotta roll with Florida State in this one. They’re simply the better team and on the cusp of being ranked. It feels crazy to not pick Stanford women’s basketball to win a home game, but it’s a different Stanford team this year that is rebuilding. Florida State 82 Stanford 73 is how I see this playing out.
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