On Friday, #3 Stanford women’s basketball defeated Cal on The Farm by a final score of 84-49. Stanford junior forward Kiki Iriafen led the way for the Cardinal with 23 points and 11 rebounds while fifth year guard Hannah Jump (14 points), senior forward Cameron Brink (14 points & 4 blocks), junior guard Elena Bosgana (12 points & 4 rebounds), and junior forward Brooke Demetre (11 points) also scored in double figures. Cal forward Ugonne (Michelle) Onyiah (12 points & 4 rebounds) and guard Kemery Martin (11 points) were the lone players to score in double figures for the Golden Bears. Stanford improves to 23-3 overall and 12-2 in the Pac-12 while Cal falls to 15-11 overall and 5-9 in the Pac-12.
BOX SCORE: Cal at Stanford-Friday, February 16th
VIDEO: Stanford WBB Postgame Press Conference | Cal
“I thought our team really came out, this is a great team win for us,” Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer said after the game. “Having I think ten people in double minutes, I thought Elena really got us going. I thought she really locked in defensively. Krimili is a great player. I think Cal is honestly a lot better team than what we saw tonight. And we had to play very well to have this outcome. But I thought Elena got it going, played great defense, we shot a good percentage, we were moving the ball well, and Hannah’s defense, Hannah’s scoring, was obviously great for us. Going six for seven, got a right-handed, took it to the basket, we kinda have an inside joke on that one. But I think everyone really stepped up. Kiki had a great game. They’re a really good team. They can beat people and we’re rooting for them when Arizona/Arizona State comes to town and when we go to Oregon/Oregon State.”
The 1st quarter was close as Stanford led 22-16 at the end. Jump was up to nine points on 4-5 shooting from the field and 1-1 shooting from the foul line while Iriafen had five points and three rebounds. Jump didn’t attempt a single 3-pointer. For her to score so prolifically without her 3-ball is a testament to her working on other parts of her game.
“I mean, I’m expanding my game, right?” Jump said with a smile. “Yeah, I mean teams are playing me a certain way and I’ve got to adapt whether it be face guarded. Whether that’s back door cutting or just kinda getting to the rim a bit more. But yeah, I know, it’s probably very rare, but just trying to do what I can to help us out.”
In the 2nd quarter, Stanford outscored Cal 18-5, snuffing out any hope of a Golden Bears victory. Brink was up to 10 points and two blocks while Iriafen had 15 points and eight rebounds. Stanford was dominating Cal and getting whatever they wanted. With a 40-21 lead at halftime, Stanford was now in firm control.
“I think her confidence,” VanDerveer said of where Iriafen has most grown. “She feels comfortable out there. She knows what she’s good at and she’s doing it. Her rebounding is great. She’s got a double-double. She got on the o-boards, the big o-boards at the end of the first half. Obviously, she’s scoring really well, but she’s rebounding and I think took it coast-to-coast. That was something new and different.”
Stanford would lead 59-27 with 4:49 to go in the 3rd quarter. Iriafen (19 points & 10 rebounds), Jump (14 points), Bosgana (11 points & 4 rebounds), and Brink (10 points & 2 blocks) all were in double figures for the Cardinal. At this point, it was clear the game was over. The only question was whether or not Cal could at least make the final score look a bit respectable.
At the end of the 3rd quarter, Stanford led 70-34. Stanford was coming after Cal like Cal owed them money. Iriafen was up to 21 points and 11 rebounds. It looked like her day might have been done as she cramped up, though she did return. Aside from that, all was going smoothly for the Cardinal.
“I mean, anytime someone looks like they have an injury it’s kinda worrying, but Kiki’s kind of a drama queen and she knows that,” Jump said with a bit of a laugh. “But yeah, I think she’s gonna go in there and do her thing and we’re really excited for her and you mentioned what’s kinda changed and I think her poise and her confidence has been really crucial this year and I think every game she comes in and she kinda shows that. So, we’re super excited for her. But yeah, I mean anytime it happens we’re like (gasp), but she’s fine.”
Stanford continued to lead 74-40 with 4:40 to go. Brink was up to four blocks to go along with her 14 points. It was truly dominating stuff from the Cardinal on both ends. As good as their offense was, Stanford’s defense was just as impressive. They held Cal’s top scorer Ioanna Krimili to just two points. With her unable to get going, Cal was doomed.
“I honestly, I was locked in on guarding Krimili,” Bosgana said. “We knew she’s a great player, so I was trying to earn my minutes by playing defense. And then second half, I got it going. I think they gave me great passes. Kiki had a great pass when I was cutting. So yeah.”
In the end, Stanford walked out with an 84-49 win, nearly beating out my predicted spread of +36 (88-52 was my prediction). To paraphrase Dr. Peter Venkman (Bill Murray) of Ghostbusters, Stanford came, they saw, they kicked Cal’s butt. They showed Cal how they do things on The Farm.
As I mentioned earlier, what makes this win so impressive for Stanford is the work they did on both ends of the floor. They put up a bunch of points and in turn held Cal to very few points. I should add, Cal is not a bad team. They were coming off two straight wins and have shown they are capable of hanging with and beating good teams. To utterly destroy Cal like this is impressive.
As for Cal, this one was rough. There’s really no good way to spin this one. They just got their butts kicked. All they can do is move on the next game and not think about this game anymore. They’re having a good enough season that they can still feel like there’s things for them to accomplish. That being said, they do need to figure out how to make things more competitive with Stanford. As good of a team as Stanford is, they are a team that is capable of being pushed. There’s no reason Cal can’t at least make this rivalry competitive even if they are going to lose. Being blunt, this is a result that should be unacceptable if you are Cal.
Up next for Stanford is home game on Friday, February 23rd against Arizona. That will tip off at 7:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Arizona and Varsity Network radio.
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