On Friday, #2 Stanford women’s basketball defeated #8 UCLA 72-59 on the road. Stanford senior guard Haley Jones (16 points, 12 rebounds, & 6 assists) and junior forward Cameron Brink (12 points, 11 rebounds, & 7 blocks) led the way for the Cardinal while UCLA guards Charisma Osborne and Gina Conti each had 13 points. Stanford improves to 17-1 overall and 5-0 in the Pac-12 while UCLA falls to 14-3 overall and 3-2 in the Pac-12.
With 3:23 to go in the 1st quarter, Stanford led 14-13. Elena Bosgana and Ashten Prechtel each had a 3-pointer for the Cardinal, doing their part to help their team stay in front. Emily Bessoir had a pair of 3-pointers for the Bruins, doing a nice job of shooting from the perimeter.
Stanford would maintain a one point lead at the end of the 1st quarter, leading 18-17. Kiki Iriafen was up to 6 points for Stanford, doing work inside. UCLA was a having tough time stopping her in the paint.
The game continued to be tight as it was 27-27 with 4:42 to go in the 2nd quarter. Stanford got down 25-20, but thanks to four straight points from Haley Jones, they tied it up.
The game would remain tied at halftime as it was 32-32. Jones was leading the Cardinal with 8 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists while Iriafen had 3 rebounds to go along with her 6 points. Bessoir and Osborne each had 8 points for the Bruins. At the break, Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer wasn’t happy with her team, saying in her halftime interview that her team needed to fix some things and play the kind of basketball she knows they are capable of playing.
Stanford came out strong to start the 3rd quarter as they led 41-34 with 7:20 to go in the quarter. Haley Jones was up to 10 points, 3 rebounds, and 5 assists while Hannah Jump had 8 points after nailing a 3-pointer off an assist from Talana Lepolo. Stanford was on a 7-0 run, forcing UCLA to call for time.
Stanford stayed in front by seven points with 4:49 to go in the 3rd quarter as it was now a 47-40 game. Jones was up to 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. She was taking control.
At the end of the 3rd quarter, Stanford led 51-49. UCLA had crawled back into the game as Osborne was up to 13 points. It was a battle in Westwood.
Unfortunately for UCLA, the 4th quarter was not competitive at all as Stanford led 62-49 with 4:41 to go. The Cardinal were outscoring UCLA 11-0 in the quarter as Brink was starting to heat up with 11 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 blocks, and 1 steal.
While UCLA did eventually get on the scoreboard in the 4th quarter, that damage had been done. Stanford won by a final score of 72-59. Through three quarters, it was a very tight game, but Stanford found a way to pull away in the 4th quarter, outscoring UCLA 21-10.
For UCLA, what makes this loss difficult is they were hanging with Stanford for most of the game. To collapse in the final quarter like they did is rough. If you are head coach Cori Close all you can do is hope your team learns from this and is better prepared for the next time you face Stanford.
As for Stanford, really a solid win. Cameron Brink in particular really stepped up in the 4th quarter with 6 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 blocks. She was a force inside and took over the game in crunch time. Just like she did in Berkeley at Cal. She’s learning how to take over games and be an effective closer for her team. It’s pretty incredible to see.
Up next for Stanford is a road game at USC. That will be on Sunday at 2:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks and Varsity Network radio.
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