On New Year’s Eve, #2 Stanford women’s basketball defeated Arizona State by a final score of 101-69. Hannah Jump (20 points), Cameron Brink (17 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, & 2 blocks), and Haley Jones (16 points & 7 rebounds) led the way for the Cardinal. Tyi Skinner (20 points) and Treasure Hunt (19 points) were the top performers for the Sun Devils. Stanford improves to 14-1 overall and 2-0 in the Pac-12 while Arizona State falls to 7-6 overall and 0-2 in the Pac-12.
“I thought it was a really good team win,” Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer said after the game. “A lot of different people came in and contributed. They’re an aggressive team, they have some really talented players, and we started out, I thought Hannah got it going from three, ball went inside really well to Cam, I thought Talana played really well, and then Indya came in and picked up, did a great job for us both offensively and defensively. So, this is a really big win for our team. I thought Lauren Betts did a great job, too. I mean just going inside.”
This one was all-Cardinal from the opening tip. With 3:21 to go in the 1st quarter, Stanford had a commanding 22-10 lead, having led 16-3 earlier in the quarter. Jump was off to a blistering start with 9 points on 3-4 shooting from 3-point range.
At the end of the 1st quarter, Stanford led 26-13 as Jump’s 9 points was leading the way. Kiki Iriafen was up to 6 points for the Cardinal, doing a nice job of providing an inside presence. Stanford was shooting 9-15 from the field, getting up good shots and knocking them down.
Stanford would then lead 42-27 with 3:32 to go in the 2nd quarter. Jump was going wild with 17 points on 6-9 shooting from the field and 5-8 shooting from 3-point range. She was continuing to feel it.
“Just running the floor hard in transition,” Jump said of the key to her consistency. “Talana does a really great job keeping her head up and finding me. Haley as well and Indya, too. So just keeping up with the pace and then when we get o-boards, it’s really easy for me to kind of relocate and the bigs do a really good job of finding me. But, I’m constantly hunting my shot and I know that it’ll come and my teammates do a really great job of finding me wide open.”
At halftime, Stanford led 51-34. While Jump had her 17 points, Brink was up to 9 points and 10 rebounds, closing in on a double-double. Skinner was leading the Sun Devils with 13 points, doing all she could to keep her team in the game.
With 4:57 to go in the 3rd quarter, Stanford led 65-47. Haley Jones was up to 12 points and 6 rebounds after making a pair of free throws. As for Hannah Jump, she was now at 20 points.
At the end of the 3rd quarter, Stanford led 75-56. Brink was up to 17 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 blocks. Jones was up to 14 points & 7 rebounds. Stanford was on cruise control, but Arizona State was playing much better after the 1st quarter.
With 3:23 to go, Stanford led 94-67. Jump’s 20 points was leading Stanford. The Cardinal were finishing strong, outscoring the Sun Devils 19-11 in the 4th quarter.
In the end, Stanford walked out with a 101-69 victory. A 3-pointer by Brooke Demetre got Stanford over the century mark with 57 seconds to go. It was truly a fitting way to end the game.
For Stanford, this was about as good of a day as they could hope to have. They were favored by nearly 30 points and got the job done with ease. Brink, Jones, and Jump all had big outings. When they have those three going, they’re really tough to stop.
“They play really well together,” VanDerveer said. “They’re really, I think getting an understanding of what we’re looking for in terms of moving the ball, the shots that we want, and it was great to get Talana, get her points, double minutes, and Lauren. And Indya was right there. Just, I think that’s something that, we want to spread it around. We don’t want to be dependent on one person every game. So, it’s great to that different people are stepping up.”
Freshman guard Indya Nivar had a strong outing in this one for Stanford. She had 8 points on 2-4 shooting from the field and 4-5 shooting from the foul line. She was very efficient and did a great job of getting to the foul line.
“Excited to be here for sure,” Nivar said. “And then just keeping my confidence throughout everything. I work so hard in practice and I think my teammates prepare me well for moments like this when I play. So, just staying prepared, staying confident is like my main goals for this year.”
“Indya’s development and Indya’s progress will help be able to help rest Talana more,” VanDerveer added. “Indya made great deposits in her basketball account tonight. Helping us run offense, working hard defensively, getting to the rim and finishing, hitting her free throws, I just think we’re just scratching the surface of how good Indya is and her versatility. Can play the 1, the 2, or even the 3 if we needed her to. But for the most part, being the 1 or the 2, knowing what we’re doing. She’s vocal, she gives us a, I think she and Talana give us some really good aggressive defense and tonight we didn’t have Agnes available. So, I think Indya really took advantage of her time and maximized it and I’m really excited about how well she did.”
Stanford also has been fortunate to have VanDerveer’s 95 year-old mother Rita around the team for the past few games. VanDerveer always appreciates spending time with her mother and feels like she brings a real positive energy that benefits both herself and the entire team.
“I think that everyone likes their parents to come watch them play or coach,” VanDerveer said. “With the pandemic, it’s been really hard for my mom and for her to get out and to see people and to be able to cheer for our team. Our team, we had a party at my house last night and the team came over and she just loves this team and she always wants to know about everyone. So she’s up there cheering and she’s coaching at the same time. She really knows basketball very well. She’s watched a lot of it.”
Up next for Stanford is a home game against Arizona on Monday at 11:30 AM PT. That will air on Pac-12 Networks and Varsity Network radio.
Note: Tara VanDerveer said Agnes Emma-Nnopu missed the game due to getting hit in the eye. The hope is she’ll be back for Monday.
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