On Sunday, #2 Stanford women’s basketball defeated Colorado 63-46 at home. Senior guard Lexie Hull led the way for the Cardinal with 14 points and 6 steals while sophomore forward Cameron Brink (11 points & 11 rebounds), sixth-year guard Anna Wilson (10 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, & 3 steals), and junior guard Haley Jones (10 points & 5 rebounds) finished in double figures as well. Senior guard Lesila Finau (11 points & 5 rebounds) and fifth-year forward Mya Hollingshed (10 points & 10 rebounds) were the top performers for the Buffaloes. Stanford improves to 21-3 overall and 12-0 in the Pac-12 while Colorado falls to 16-7 overall and 5-7 in the Pac-12.
“Well thanks for coming today, we know that a lot of people are gonna be watching a little football game later,” Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer said to open her post-game remarks. “This is a great win for our team and I would just say that Colorado came in with probably the number one defense in the league, but we really played great defense today. And it starts with Anna, Lexie, and Lacie on the perimeter. Lexie did a fantastic job guarding Hollingshed, who is really a tough player.
“Our bigs are really starting to work hard defensively, too. I thought Cam, I thought Ashten came in and gave us some great minutes. And then we got out running. I think our depth kinda wore them down a little bit. Even if people are only coming in for five or six minutes, they’re doing a good thing.
“Anna with five assists, no turnovers and this is a tough team to take care of the ball against. Great job, Anna. Defense, moving the ball, we had like four people in double figures. Not a high scoring game, but a very gritty game. Colorado is an NCAA tournament team in my mind. They’re a really tough team and I think we’re showing that we’re improving.”
Stanford led 6-3 with 8:06 to go in the 1st quarter. Lexie Hull was already up to 4 points for Stanford while her sister Lacie was on the board with 2 points of her own. Colorado soon called for time, hoping to regroup and not allow Stanford to pull away.
Colorado’s timeout didn’t have the desired effects as Stanford would lead 20-14 at the end of the 1st quarter. Lexie Hull was up to 7 points for Stanford as they were shooting 8-12 from the field and 2-3 from 3-point range. Hollingshed was leading Colorado with 6 points and 3 rebounds. Colorado was shooting 4-11 from the field and 3-4 from 3-point range.
In the 2nd quarter, things started to tighten up as Stanford led 27-23 with 4:49 to go until halftime. Junior guard Hannah Jump was up to 8 points for Stanford on 3-5 shooting from the field and 2-4 shooting from 3-point range. Hollingshed was up to 8 points for Colorado as well. One thing that was making a difference was Colorado’s 11-9 rebounding edge.
Colorado continued to chip away at Stanford’s lead and actually took a 30-29 lead into halftime. They outscored Stanford 16-9 in the 2nd quarter, holding the Cardinal to 4-14 (28.6%) shooting from the field in the quarter. After looking like Stanford might be in for an easy afternoon, Colorado had other plans in mind.
Stanford would regain the lead and go up 41-35 with 3:52 to go in the 3rd quarter. One key factor was Hollingshed picking up her fourth foul with 5:51 to go in the quarter. This forced her to sit, allowing Stanford to have more breathing room down low. Lexie Hull was now up to 11 points for Stanford on 4-9 shooting from the field and 2-5 shooting from 3-point range.
At the end of the 3rd quarter, Stanford led 43-35, ending the quarter on a 12-2 run. Stanford outscored Colorado 14-5 in the 3rd quarter. Brink was up to 8 points and 10 rebounds, nearing her double-double. At the very end of the quarter, Jump attempted a 3-pointer to beat the buzzer, but it was blocked by Finau. Fans were upset that there wasn’t a foul called, but from my vantage point it looked like the right no-call.
With 7:32 to go in the game, Stanford led 48-38. Brink now had her double-double as she was up to 11 points and 10 rebounds. Anna Wilson (10 points) and Lexie Hull (11 points) were also in double figures.
“Yeah, I definitely missed some bunnies that I feel like I usually make,” Brink said of how she kept chipping away to get the double-double. “But they’re really a physical team and I just tried to keep posting up hard and my guards kept finding me.”
Haley Jones started to come alive for Stanford as she was up to 8 points. She was helping Stanford keep a buffer between them and Colorado. Lexie Hull nailed a huge 3-pointer and was now up to 14 points. As a result, it was now a 57-43 Stanford lead with 4:44 to go.
“She’s always a team player,” VanDerveer said of Jones. “She’s always moving the ball. She missed a couple bunnies in there, too. But some of that they are physical. But Haley’s physical. So, I think she could have scored in the first half and I think she could have had more in the second half. As I think Cam could have had more. We probably left at least 10 points at the layup line.”
In the end, Stanford walked out with a 63-46 victory. Haley Jones was really key down the final stretch, scoring 8 of her 10 points in the 4th quarter. It wasn’t the prettiest of wins for Stanford when you consider that they were down at halftime, but the second half was really a thing of beauty. Stanford outscored Colorado 34-16 the rest of the way after being down at halftime.
Given that Colorado is the last non-ranked opponent Stanford has lost to, they came into this game focused and did not take anything for granted. They really respect this Colorado team and are truly happy to be walking out of this game with a win.
“Again, they’re a really good team,” VanDerveer said of Colorado. “You’re not going to beat a really good team in the first half. It’s going to take forty minutes. I thought our defense got more aggressive. One thing that we need to do better, we did not keep them off the offensive boards. They had seventeen offensive boards. We’ve gotta box out better. We can do that. I thought we got out in transition. Anna pushing it going to Haley going to Lexie going to Lacie. I thought our transition. Our defense led to offense.”
One player who has been stepping up as of late for Stanford is Anna Wilson. She’s starting to settle more into the starting point guard role, something that Stanford really needs from her. She’s facilitating well, taking good shots, and playing elite defense. Given that this was Super Bowl Sunday, Wilson took the time to talk about the support her brother Russell Wilson has been to her and how she’s learned to take on new challenges and grow in her own sport.
“I think that he’s definitely someone who encourages me in every aspect,” Wilson said of her brother. “Whether it’s basketball, school, afterschool. All those things and I try to bring some of the similar things, attributes that he has to this team. I’m really excited. I’m not sure if I’m rooting for a particular team, but I do want Joe Burrow to do well. I don’t have a prediction, but I do hope that the game is really really close as the other championships throughout the division championships have been. But I hope it’s close. I hope it’s not a blowout.”
Up next for Stanford is a road trip to the Oregon schools. Up first will be Oregon State on Friday. That game will tip-off at 7:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks and Varsity Network radio.
Note: Sophomore guard Jana Van Gytenbeek is still in COVID protocol. Tara VanDerveer said they’re hoping she’s back for the upcoming road trip to the Oregon schools.
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