On Sunday, #2 Stanford women’s basketball defeated Utah 83-73 in Salt Lake City. Stanford sophomore forward Cameron Brink (24 points & 11 rebounds) and senior guard Lexie Hull (21 points & 8 rebounds) led the way for the Cardinal while freshman forward Jenna Johnson was the top performer for the Utes with 15 points. Stanford improves to 13-3 overall and 4-0 in the Pac-12 while Utah falls to 9-4 overall and 0-1 in the Pac-12.

Stanford got out to a 10-5 lead with 4:00 to go in the 1st quarter. Lexie Hull and Hannah Jump each had 3 points for the Cardinal. Stanford was dominating the boards so far with a 10-5 rebounding edge, which ironically was perfectly matching the scoreboard.

Utah would close the gap to end the quarter as Stanford led 14-13. Cameron Brink was up to 4 points and 5 rebounds for Stanford, making an impact in the paint. Gianna Kneepkens and Dasia Young hit back-to-back threes for the Utes, erasing the lead that Stanford was trying to build.

With 4:33 to go in the half, Utah led 29-21, putting a lot of pressure on Stanford. Johnson was up to 7 points for the Utes, who had made 4 of their last 4 field goal attempts. Stanford had no made field goals in the last 4+ minutes. They were in a real funk.

At halftime, Utah led 37-30. Anna Wilson hit a nice floater to beat the buzzer for Stanford, capping off a 6-0 run over the final 1:17. Johnson and Kneepkens each led Utah with 7 points while Hull was leading Stanford with 7 points.

With 4:22 to go in the 3rd quarter, the game was tight as Utah led 50-48. Hull (15 points) and Brink (11 points & 6 rebounds) were bringing Stanford back in the game. At the end of the 3rd quarter, Utah led 63-60. Hull (18 points & 6 rebounds) was starting to find a real groove while Brink (14 points & 6 rebounds) was doing the same. Both players were the reason Stanford was keeping it close. Johnson was up to 13 points for Utah, doing her part to keep her team in front.

With 4:01 to go, Stanford now led 73-68. Brink knocked down a huge jumper, giving her 17 points and 7 rebounds while Hull was up to 21 points. Stanford was starting to pull away, but they needed to finish strong.

With 25.9 to go, Stanford led 83-73. Wilson went 1-2 at the foul line, but Brink was there for the put back on the miss. Utah head coach Lynne Roberts got a technical foul, upset that a foul wasn’t called on Brink who had forced a tie up, keeping the ball with Stanford. Haley Jones rattled home two free throws off the front of the rim, pretty much icing the game.

Haley Jones’ foul shots would be the final points of the night, making it an 83-73 final score. The game went about as I expected it to though it was a little higher scoring. I predicted an 80-69 victory for Stanford and 83-73 is pretty darn close to that. I figured Utah would battle hard and make a game of it but that Stanford’s superior talent would pull through in the end. That’s exactly what happened.

Up next for Stanford will be a home game against Cal on Friday. That game will tip-off at 7:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Bay Area and Varsity Network radio. It should be noted that Cal missed their Rocky Mountain trip due to COVID issues within their own program, so it’s no guarantee the game will be played as scheduled. If a change in schedule does occur, CardinalSportsReport.com will provide an update.

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