On Saturday, Stanford women’s basketball fell to Utah on the road by a final score of 84-78. Utah sophomore guard Gianna Kneepkens led the way for the Utes with 28 points and 4 rebounds while junior forward Alissa Pili (14 points) and sophomore guard Kennady McQueen (10 points) also finished in double figures. Stanford senior guard Hannah Jump (24 points) and junior forward Cameron Brink (14 points, 12 rebounds, & 4 blocks) were the top performers for the Cardinal. Utah improves to 25-3 overall and 15-3 in the Pac-12 while Stanford falls to 27-4 overall and 15-3 in the Pac-12.
As a result of this game, both Stanford and Utah are co-champions of the Pac-12. By virtue of tiebreaker rules, Stanford has been awarded the top seed in the Pac-12 tournament while Utah has gotten the second seed. Also, Utah is now ranked #3 in the AP Top 25 while Stanford is now ranked #6.
Video: Stanford Women’s Basketball Utah Postgame Press Conference
“That was a great game,” Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer said after the game. “Our team really battled. A game of runs; we had some great runs; they had some great runs. And congratulate Lynne and her team for Pac-12 championship that, you know, we didn’t want to share, but if there’s anyone to share with, they’re a great team and they deserved to win the game. They played really hard.
“Kneepkens was, she was awesome. She had a great game. We did not defend her well enough. But, they’re a total team. They pass the ball, they move the ball well, and just congratulations. For our team, I think we can play a lot better. We have some work to do.”
Stanford got off to a strong start in this game, leading 9-0 with 7:36 to go in the 1st quarter as Jump had 5 points early. Utah would respond with back-to-back threes to make it a 9-6 game with 6:59 to go in the quarter as Jenna Johnson and Alissa Pili each knocked one down. After a driving layup from Isabel Palmer and a pair of free throws made by Kelsey Rees, Utah took a 10-9 lead with 3:35 to go in the quarter.
At the end of the 1st quarter, it was a 17-15 lead for Stanford as Jump was up to 7 points on 3-4 shooting from the field and 1-1 shooting from 3-point range. She was in a nice groove. As for Utah, Pili was up to 7 points as well, doing a nice job of keeping the Utes on pace with the Cardinal. Both teams were playing like a Pac-12 title was at stake.
With 5:06 to go in the quarter, it was a 29-28 lead for Utah after Francesca Belibi and Lauren Betts each got a bucket inside for the Cardinal. This game continued to be a back and forth affair as neither team was able to gain much separation from the other.
When the game got to halftime, it was a 40-34 lead for Utah as the Utes finally had a bit of breathing room. Kneepkens had really taken the wheel and was up to 12 points on 50% shooting from the field and from 3-point range. After a scoreless 1st quarter, she was now the top scorer for the Utes. As for Stanford, Jump was up 15 points, doing her part to keep her team in the game. No other player for Stanford was even sniffing double figures, so Jump really needed to get more help.
With 5:06 to go in the 3rd quarter, it was a 52-45 lead for Utah after Jump made a huge 3-pointer for Stanford. Utah was hoping to build a steady double digit lead, but Stanford kept finding ways to close the gap and not allow Utah to get that comfortable.
At the end of the 3rd quarter, it was a 62-57 lead for the Utes. Kneepkens was now up to 19 points while Pili was up to 14 points. Both players were playing fantastic and were doing a nice job of playing off one another. As for Stanford, Brink was up to 12 points while Jump was up to 21 points. After scoring just four points in the first half, Brink scored eight points in the 3rd quarter. She was starting to heat up for the Cardinal.
With 6:06 to go, Utah led 71-64 after Talana Lepolo made a nice layup inside for Stanford. Stanford would continue to chip away at Utah’s lead, as it became a 73-70 lead for Utah after Haley Jones got a huge layup inside for the Cardinal. It would then get even closer, 73-72 after Brink got a layup inside with 2:29 to go.
Rather than folding like a house of cards, Utah responded in their next possession after calling a timeout. Kneepkens hit a huge 3-pointer to make it 76-72 with 2:12 to go and from there, Utah was able to keep the Cardinal at bay for the remainder of the game.
In the end, Utah would hang on to win 84-78. Stanford made a real effort to keep the game competitive and not allow Utah to run away with the game, but they ran out of gas down the stretch. Utah hit some big shots and really fed off the momentum of the home crowd. Utah also did a nice job of making things uncomfortable for Stanford, forcing the Cardinal to commit 21 turnovers.
“Yeah, our turnovers hurt us a lot,” VanDerveer admitted. “Probably the most. They were aggressive, they were more aggressive, our turnovers were bad, our lack of execution, they were the better team.”
For Utah, this is a big win. They’re co-champions of the Pac-12 and with everyone on the roster expected to be back next season, they’re a team that is not going anywhere. They have proven themselves deserving of a Pac-12 championship and are a team that is poised to make a lot of noise in the NCAA tournament.
As for Stanford, of all the losses they’ve had this season, this is the one that I think they can feel the least bad about. Utah is one of the top teams in the nation, they play in a tough road environment, and then on top of that, travel was not smooth to Colorado and Utah. Stanford dealt with various delays in flights and wasn’t able to get into Boulder or Salt Lake City at reasonable hours of the day. That’s why I was picking Utah to win this game. Some games you’re almost destined to lose due to the circumstances of the schedule and this felt like one of those games.
At this point, all Stanford can do is shake this off and get ready for the Pac-12 tournament which will begin for them on Thursday, March 2nd at 2:30 PM PT against either Washington or Oregon.
“Yeah, like Tara said, it shows us a lot of things to work on,” Jump said of this loss. “Taking care of the ball, executing our offense, and I think this will only make us hungrier come next week. If we play Utah again, it’ll be in the championship, so we gotta take it one game at a time and get there first and then if we do get there, take care of them.”
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