Preview:
Idaho lost to UC Davis in the first round of the WNIT last year--but they graduated only one significant player and return senior "splash sister" guards Taylor Pierce and Mikayla Ferenz, who set the NCAA record last season for most combined three pointers. They both shot exactly .404, one made 129 and the other made 137. (Yes, that is makes, not attempts.) So after learning how to deal with an elite forward last game, we get to test our perimeter defenses this game. The two of them combined last week for 47 points to help their team defeat CSU Northridge 88-73. They have only 4 posts on their roster, and none of them got many minutes last year. Last year Idaho was 2nd in the Big Sky and 19-14 overall.
Overview:
With 115 points this was our 6th highest scoring game in history--and the highest since 1994 when we scored 122. The game has become more defensive and slower since 1994, and so this score is truly remarkable--especially considering how we have struggled as recently as last year against the zone, which Idaho played. We tied the Stanford record with 16 made threes--the most since 2002 when Nicole Powell and Lindsey Yamasaki were pouring them in. Remarkably, Idaho's three point shooting was superb at better than 60%--largely thanks to a freshman--but it was not enough to overcome a 46-15 rebounding differential.
Flow of the Game:
Idaho was quite competitive in the first quarter. Although we got out to a fast 14-3 lead on the strength of well rounded scoring by Alanna, Lexie, Nadia, and Kianna, Idaho scrapped back to 19-28 by the end of the quarter. Their three point shooting was as good as advertised--we played vigorous defense on their "splash sisters" only to discover that they had two other players who were just as good. One went 5/6 and the other went 6/10. Idaho is going to be a good team and should be favored in their league. What allowed us to pull away was an enormous rebounding advantage. In the first quarter we had 13 rebounds to their 3--if you believe the stat sheet. Our own three point shots went in at a respectable rate, but when they missed it was as good as a pass to Maya or Nadia or Alanna, who routinely put the misses back in.
Each quarter we extended the lead and substituted more players. The third quarter we scored 40 points. My guess is that this is a Stanford record since the quarter system came into effect. I don't remember any other 40 point quarters. Where did all those points come from? Just about everyone, but Lexie got hot from deep and made several treys in row from the corner, among others.
As the game continued, it was clear that Idaho had carefully watched tape of our extensive troubles against the zone last year, and decided to play a zone and force us to shoot from the outside. Well, it also became clear that we are an entirely different team than a year ago. Seven of our players made at least one three, and we shot 40% as a team. Jenna also showed that she could attack a zone by penetrating and releasing teardrop shots--for which she was 2/2. The pace of our offense was fast without being out of control--we pushed it up the floor at every opportunity and we invariably shot with time left on the shot clock. The ball went inside and came back outside. The Princeton was nowhere to be found--this was our zone-breaking offense and it broke the zone.
Performances:
When you score 115 points, there are a lot of offensive performances to praise. Twelve players scored and six were in double digits.
Alanna had 19 points on 62% shooting and 9 rebounds in 22 minutes.
Kianna had 19 points on 70% shooting and 9 assists, in 28 minutes.
Lexie had 17 points on 60% shooting in 25 minutes, going 5/8 from three point range.
I was most excited about Nadia. Nadia has 16 points on 78% shooting in 22 minutes. She also had 5 rebounds and 3 assists. This is exactly what we have been hoping to see from her--a well rounded stat line with plenty of offense to go with her other contributions.
Maya Dodson showed even more than before that she has been transformed. She had 10 points on 63% shooting in 18 minutes. What was impressive was her agility under and around the basket and her speed up and down the floor. This also is just what we have been waiting to see from her. I'm thrilled.
Finally, Anna Wilson had 10 points and a couple of steals in only 11 minutes of play. It is wonderful to see our hard-luck kid coming back into her own.
Jenna Brown looked more comfortable than last game, with 7 points, 3 assists to only 1 turnover in only 13 minutes of play. During the Chalk Talk Kate talked about how much more difficult it is for a point guard to play as a freshman, but Jenna was absorbing an enormous amount of material and she certainly looked good to my eyes.
I'll stop the individual comments there although there were nice things to see from virtually everyone.
Conclusion:
It is too early to say how good this year's team can be, but I will say this: this year's team should be considerably better than last year's team. The improvement in our returning players is quite substantial, and the freshmen are already making major contributions. It will be fun to see whether we can develop fast enough to give Baylor some revenge in a month. Whether we do or not will depend on how well we play the next six games--several of which will be substanial challenges in their own right.
Idaho lost to UC Davis in the first round of the WNIT last year--but they graduated only one significant player and return senior "splash sister" guards Taylor Pierce and Mikayla Ferenz, who set the NCAA record last season for most combined three pointers. They both shot exactly .404, one made 129 and the other made 137. (Yes, that is makes, not attempts.) So after learning how to deal with an elite forward last game, we get to test our perimeter defenses this game. The two of them combined last week for 47 points to help their team defeat CSU Northridge 88-73. They have only 4 posts on their roster, and none of them got many minutes last year. Last year Idaho was 2nd in the Big Sky and 19-14 overall.
Overview:
With 115 points this was our 6th highest scoring game in history--and the highest since 1994 when we scored 122. The game has become more defensive and slower since 1994, and so this score is truly remarkable--especially considering how we have struggled as recently as last year against the zone, which Idaho played. We tied the Stanford record with 16 made threes--the most since 2002 when Nicole Powell and Lindsey Yamasaki were pouring them in. Remarkably, Idaho's three point shooting was superb at better than 60%--largely thanks to a freshman--but it was not enough to overcome a 46-15 rebounding differential.
Flow of the Game:
Idaho was quite competitive in the first quarter. Although we got out to a fast 14-3 lead on the strength of well rounded scoring by Alanna, Lexie, Nadia, and Kianna, Idaho scrapped back to 19-28 by the end of the quarter. Their three point shooting was as good as advertised--we played vigorous defense on their "splash sisters" only to discover that they had two other players who were just as good. One went 5/6 and the other went 6/10. Idaho is going to be a good team and should be favored in their league. What allowed us to pull away was an enormous rebounding advantage. In the first quarter we had 13 rebounds to their 3--if you believe the stat sheet. Our own three point shots went in at a respectable rate, but when they missed it was as good as a pass to Maya or Nadia or Alanna, who routinely put the misses back in.
Each quarter we extended the lead and substituted more players. The third quarter we scored 40 points. My guess is that this is a Stanford record since the quarter system came into effect. I don't remember any other 40 point quarters. Where did all those points come from? Just about everyone, but Lexie got hot from deep and made several treys in row from the corner, among others.
As the game continued, it was clear that Idaho had carefully watched tape of our extensive troubles against the zone last year, and decided to play a zone and force us to shoot from the outside. Well, it also became clear that we are an entirely different team than a year ago. Seven of our players made at least one three, and we shot 40% as a team. Jenna also showed that she could attack a zone by penetrating and releasing teardrop shots--for which she was 2/2. The pace of our offense was fast without being out of control--we pushed it up the floor at every opportunity and we invariably shot with time left on the shot clock. The ball went inside and came back outside. The Princeton was nowhere to be found--this was our zone-breaking offense and it broke the zone.
Performances:
When you score 115 points, there are a lot of offensive performances to praise. Twelve players scored and six were in double digits.
Alanna had 19 points on 62% shooting and 9 rebounds in 22 minutes.
Kianna had 19 points on 70% shooting and 9 assists, in 28 minutes.
Lexie had 17 points on 60% shooting in 25 minutes, going 5/8 from three point range.
I was most excited about Nadia. Nadia has 16 points on 78% shooting in 22 minutes. She also had 5 rebounds and 3 assists. This is exactly what we have been hoping to see from her--a well rounded stat line with plenty of offense to go with her other contributions.
Maya Dodson showed even more than before that she has been transformed. She had 10 points on 63% shooting in 18 minutes. What was impressive was her agility under and around the basket and her speed up and down the floor. This also is just what we have been waiting to see from her. I'm thrilled.
Finally, Anna Wilson had 10 points and a couple of steals in only 11 minutes of play. It is wonderful to see our hard-luck kid coming back into her own.
Jenna Brown looked more comfortable than last game, with 7 points, 3 assists to only 1 turnover in only 13 minutes of play. During the Chalk Talk Kate talked about how much more difficult it is for a point guard to play as a freshman, but Jenna was absorbing an enormous amount of material and she certainly looked good to my eyes.
I'll stop the individual comments there although there were nice things to see from virtually everyone.
Conclusion:
It is too early to say how good this year's team can be, but I will say this: this year's team should be considerably better than last year's team. The improvement in our returning players is quite substantial, and the freshmen are already making major contributions. It will be fun to see whether we can develop fast enough to give Baylor some revenge in a month. Whether we do or not will depend on how well we play the next six games--several of which will be substanial challenges in their own right.
