Playing Hawaii
The SWBB team can be phenomenal. Yesterday they were up by thirty points before the U of Hawaii knew what hit them. Hawaii had hacked and pushed but to no avail (I’m sure that Stanford players are nursing multiple abrasions and bruises today). There is a Warrior Ethos on the Island, one steeped in centuries of survival. When translated into a basketball game governed by rules and played on a hardwood court, a different type of game erupts, especially when played by full-framed players, coached to win at all costs.
The Stanford women played through the Hawaiian maul-ball for a half, took their abuses in a game where many fouls were ignored, and seemed to hang it up at halftime when the game was out of reach. And who could blame them?
The game was all but over when one of the smaller Hawaiian players drilled Cam like a Loggerhead Shrike attacking its prey. Cam was spun 360 degrees, and pushed to the ground face first. I was reminded of the game I saw in this same court four years ago when Anna Wilson was blindsided and driven into the folding chairs on the sidelines. Unlike Anna, who was wheeled on a stretcher to an awaiting ambulance, Cam was able to get up off the floor and continue to play.
For those fans who were not in attendance, Stanford’s second half play, which may have seemed like a letdown, was probably an exercise in survival.
Who could blame them?
The SWBB team can be phenomenal. Yesterday they were up by thirty points before the U of Hawaii knew what hit them. Hawaii had hacked and pushed but to no avail (I’m sure that Stanford players are nursing multiple abrasions and bruises today). There is a Warrior Ethos on the Island, one steeped in centuries of survival. When translated into a basketball game governed by rules and played on a hardwood court, a different type of game erupts, especially when played by full-framed players, coached to win at all costs.
The Stanford women played through the Hawaiian maul-ball for a half, took their abuses in a game where many fouls were ignored, and seemed to hang it up at halftime when the game was out of reach. And who could blame them?
The game was all but over when one of the smaller Hawaiian players drilled Cam like a Loggerhead Shrike attacking its prey. Cam was spun 360 degrees, and pushed to the ground face first. I was reminded of the game I saw in this same court four years ago when Anna Wilson was blindsided and driven into the folding chairs on the sidelines. Unlike Anna, who was wheeled on a stretcher to an awaiting ambulance, Cam was able to get up off the floor and continue to play.
For those fans who were not in attendance, Stanford’s second half play, which may have seemed like a letdown, was probably an exercise in survival.
Who could blame them?