On Sunday, #2 Stanford women’s basketball defeated USC 83-57 on the road at the Galen Center. Stanford sophomore forward Cameron Brink led the way for the Cardinal with 26 points, 14 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 1 steal while junior guard Hannah Jump had 12 points off the bench in her return from COVID isolation. USC sophomore forward Jordyn Jenkins led the way for the Trojans with 20 points and 7 rebounds. Stanford improves to 18-3 overall and 9-0 in the Pac-12 while USC falls to 9-11 overall and 2-8 in the Pac-12.

Early on the game was tight as Stanford led 9-7 with 3:34 to go in the 1st quarter. Brink had five of Stanford’s first nine points, establishing herself from the opening tip. USC was hanging tough, hoping to finish the quarter strong.

At the end of the 1st quarter, Stanford led 17-9, closing the quarter out on an 8-2 run. Junior forward Ashten Prechtel knocked down a triple off the bench while junior forward Francesca Belibi was up to 4 points of her own. Like so many times before, after letting their opponents hang around for a bit in the 1st quarter, Stanford gained separation as they headed into the 2nd quarter.

With 3:43 to go in the 2nd quarter, Stanford led 28-19 after Brink nailed a step-back jumper. She was up to 13 points, scoring 8 of those points in the 2nd quarter. Brink wasn’t done yet as she would nail her third 3-pointer of the season in her third consecutive game to give her 11 points in the quarter and 16 points for the half. Thanks to Brink’s offensive explosion and four points at the end of the quarter from freshman forward Kiki Iriafen, Stanford had a comfortable 37-19 lead at halftime.

With 4:46 to go in the 3rd quarter, Stanford led 55-32. Jump was up to 6 points, halfway to her 12 point total. Stanford was holding USC to 12-33 (36.4%) shooting from the field and 1-5 shooting from 3-point range.

At the end of the 3rd quarter, Stanford led 63-46. USC outscored Stanford 27-26 in the 3rd. To their credit, they were battling. Jordyn Jenkins was up to 15 points for the Trojans. As for the Cardinal, it continued to be the Cameron Brink show as she was up to 20 points and 12 rebounds. As for Hannah Jump, she was now up to her 12 point total, all of which were scored in the 3rd quarter.

With 4:59 to go, Stanford led 70-53. Brink was now up to 24 points, 13 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 1 steal. She was having a monster game. As for Jenkins, she was up to 20 points and 7 rebounds, doing her part to keep things respectable.

Rather than letting USC close the gap and pad their stats, Stanford turned on the jets and walked out with an 83-57 victory, outscoring USC 20-11 in the 4th quarter. It was almost as if Stanford was just toying with USC and decided to send a message in the final moments of the game.

For Stanford this is a very solid win. While USC is not a good team, Stanford beat them on the road in a manner that a team of their caliber should. While I’m sure Tara VanDerveer isn’t happy to lose the 3rd quarter, her team did accomplish the goal they set coming in. Which was to win and win with comfort.

Up next for Stanford is a home game against Oregon State. It’s a make-up from a previously postponed game. That game will tip-off on Wednesday at 2:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks and Varsity Network radio.

Note: Stanford junior guard Haley Jones missed the game without a firm timetable for return.

To connect with CardinalSportsReport.com on Twitter, click here.

To connect with Ben Parker, click here.