On Friday, Stanford women’s basketball defeated Morgan State 91-49. Stanford forward Brooke Demetre led the way for the Cardinal with 15 points and five rebounds while guard Tess Heal had 14 points and three rebounds. Morgan State center Jael Butler was the top performer for the Lady Bears with 12 points and three rebounds. Stanford improves to 5-1 overall while Morgan State falls to 4-4.
VIDEO: Stanford WBB Postgame Press Conference: Morgan State
BOX SCORE: Morgan State at Stanford-Friday, November 22nd
“I think this was a great bounce back win for our team,” Stanford head coach Kate Paye said after the game. “Morgan State, this is the third time that we played them. We know they have a lot of California kids, so we appreciate them coming back and I thought they competed very hard right up to the very end. What I’m most excited about our team is just how we responded. It’s always great when we can get everybody in the game and everybody can make positive contributions and we had that tonight. Almost everybody scored. Harper I know didn’t score, but she had some beautiful assists out there.
“But really, I’m really excited and I’m glad Brooke’s sitting here. You know, Brooke is a fantastic leader for our team and she has so much on her shoulders. She is a great leader, she’s constantly helping everybody, she really gives it her all, and she’s up to the task.
“It’s exciting to see Elena Bosgana with six assists. I thought that really got us going early in the game when she’s moving the ball and people knocking down their shots. I thought we start to get a little bit comfortable out there, which is great to be back home.
“I thought our three freshmen did really well. It was great to get them some minutes. Kennedy Umeh with a double double is really exciting. It’s great to get Tess Heal going as well. We know she has a lot to give. So, that’s kind of opening remarks.”
Stanford dominated this game from the opening tip as they jumped out to an 11-0 lead with 6:51 to go in the 1st quarter as Jzaniya Harriel had six points on a pair of 3-pointers. Brooke Demetre would tack on six points in the quarter as well as Stanford would go on to lead 26-6 at the end of the 1st quarter.
Stanford would continue to put the screws on Morgan State, outscoring the Bears 26-15 in the 2nd quarter. Brooke Demetre was up to 15 points for the Cardinal while Nunu Agara was up to 11 points. Stanford was now up 52-21 at halftime.
At the end of the 3rd quarter, Stanford led 77-31. Stanford was shooting 60.4% from the field while Morgan State was shooting 30.2%. Heal really went to work in the 3rd quarter with eight points as others were getting a breather.
In the end, Stanford would win handily by a final score of 91-49. They did what they were supposed to do and accomplished all that they could in this one. They were able to get a lot of different players going and give a lot of their freshmen minutes that could serve them well down the road. Freshman center Kennedy Umeh for example was able to put up a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds in 11 minutes played. That should give her some confidence in the weeks ahead.
“Yeah, I mean, you know, I think with all three of our freshmen, each of them are so unique and brings something to our team that, you know, nobody else does, you know, you look at Shay and her speed, Harper and her length and her passing ability and Kennedy, she’s the only true center we have on our team,” Paye said. “So, it’s a big adjustment to kind of play at this level and a game like tonight we can really get in and get them really, a lot of good experience is extremely valuable.
“Kennedy, you know, finished on the block, obviously having a double double is really exciting. I think she also had a really nice pass out there. I can’t remember which one it was, I think it was one of the back door ones. But you know, then that gives you game film that you can sit down with a player and look at the good things, then also look at the things where maybe they can improve.
“I think with all three of them, Brooke’s been a freshman before. It’s not easy. It is a big jump up and our three freshmen are really lucky. Our upper class players like Brooke help them every single day and the hope is by the time we get to ACC play, that they’ve really kind of understand what we’re doing out there, understand the level of play, and how they can help our team. And again the three of them are very, each one brings something to our team that we don’t have and I know that looking at some of the big bodies that we’re gonna have to guard, you know, Kennedy Umeh will be very valuable.”
Up next for Stanford is a home game against Cal Poly on Monday, November 25th. Tipoff is set for 7:00 PM PT on ACCNX.
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