A strong win. 10 players got into double digit minutes, with another 2 at 9 minutes. The longest bench we have uses in many games.
Performances:
This one was Jones's win. Remember a month ago when we wondered if she was in a slump? Today she played like an All American. She led the team in points, in assists, and in rebounds, and was efficient with 10/14 shooting. Better yet, she was smiling and almost skipping around the floor as she led her team to a dominant win.
Among the other starters, it is noteworthy that Jump was Jump again, going 5/9 from three point range and adding a couple of assists.
Lepolo did not need to score since Cal wisely decided to defend her. Even so she got loose into lanes twice and took it to the hoop. Three assists to three turnovers won't pop off the page, but she also got the assignment to begin the defense on Curry, Cal's best scorer. Curry did get 20 points, but had to work for them at 6/18.
Brink got herself into foul trouble in the first half, and by the second half she was not really needed, so she would up with only 17 minutes. But she did stuff the stat sheet in those 17 minutes, going 5/7 with a couple of assists and a couple of blocks.
Iriafen is the unsung hero, with Jones and Brink getting most of the publicity. But she is a superior "big" to many starters we have had in the post-Ogwumike era. She was an efficient 3/5 with 7 rebounds in just 15 minutes.
From the bench, Betts and Bosgana did the most to distinguish themselves. Betts was awkward at first but settle down and went 4/7 in barely 10 minutes. Bosgana had a trey and a poke-steal for a layup at the other end, showing her quickness, speed, and versatility.
I also thought I would acknowledge that walk-on Lauren Green, in only 2 minutes of play, played highly energetic defense. Coming at the end of the game her energy level really stood out to me.
Nivar and Harriel got some minutes but did not really stand out. Neither scored, both fouled, Nivar did have a few assists which was good. I get the feeling they need more extended minutes in support of the first team before we can really see how they are turning out as players. Nivar got beaten a couple of times on defense--but then again the Cal guards did that to a lot of players.
Team Stats
As with Creighton, we nearly doubled Cal's rebounding--48 to 25. We DID double their O-boards 16 to 8.
Our turnovers were more or less average for us at 13, but fortunately we got Cal's up to 10. We had 6 steals today--perhaps a sign that Tara's desire for a more aggressive defense is finally soaking in.
Perhaps the best indicator of success this game is that we shot 53%, and held Cal to 39%. That is a deep disparity that summarizes both our offensive and defensive success.
Conclusion:
Of course there are lots of things to work on, most notably continuing the good trends begun by Brink in staying out of foul trouble and Lepolo in scoring, and settling on a reliable rotation, but 2022 comes to a close with our team looking very strong, uninjured, and with oodles of talent still to be developed. Pac 12 season and tournament season promise to make for a spectacular Spring for Stanford WBB.
Stanford Women's Basketball: California Postgame Press Conference - YouTube
"We don't have our rotation figured out yet."
Asked about Lepolo. "Talana is amazing, we have never asked our point guard to have the toughest defensive assignment. We never did that with Kiana, we've rarely done that. I think she is really special." On the other hand, "I said to Talana, that the "T" is not for turnover."
Asked about Jones's turnovers. "Haley is a great, great passer. She makes lots of great things happen. I just need her to make less happen."
Asked about Bett's production. "She is instant offense." "This was more of a traditional post game, and I thought Lauren did really well....She is a very special player and she is very hard to guard....It is just a matter of her understanding what we do and her developing."
Cal vs. No. 2 Stanford | Game Highlights | Women’s College Basketball | 2022-23 Season - YouTube
Performances:
This one was Jones's win. Remember a month ago when we wondered if she was in a slump? Today she played like an All American. She led the team in points, in assists, and in rebounds, and was efficient with 10/14 shooting. Better yet, she was smiling and almost skipping around the floor as she led her team to a dominant win.
Among the other starters, it is noteworthy that Jump was Jump again, going 5/9 from three point range and adding a couple of assists.
Lepolo did not need to score since Cal wisely decided to defend her. Even so she got loose into lanes twice and took it to the hoop. Three assists to three turnovers won't pop off the page, but she also got the assignment to begin the defense on Curry, Cal's best scorer. Curry did get 20 points, but had to work for them at 6/18.
Brink got herself into foul trouble in the first half, and by the second half she was not really needed, so she would up with only 17 minutes. But she did stuff the stat sheet in those 17 minutes, going 5/7 with a couple of assists and a couple of blocks.
Iriafen is the unsung hero, with Jones and Brink getting most of the publicity. But she is a superior "big" to many starters we have had in the post-Ogwumike era. She was an efficient 3/5 with 7 rebounds in just 15 minutes.
From the bench, Betts and Bosgana did the most to distinguish themselves. Betts was awkward at first but settle down and went 4/7 in barely 10 minutes. Bosgana had a trey and a poke-steal for a layup at the other end, showing her quickness, speed, and versatility.
I also thought I would acknowledge that walk-on Lauren Green, in only 2 minutes of play, played highly energetic defense. Coming at the end of the game her energy level really stood out to me.
Nivar and Harriel got some minutes but did not really stand out. Neither scored, both fouled, Nivar did have a few assists which was good. I get the feeling they need more extended minutes in support of the first team before we can really see how they are turning out as players. Nivar got beaten a couple of times on defense--but then again the Cal guards did that to a lot of players.
Team Stats
As with Creighton, we nearly doubled Cal's rebounding--48 to 25. We DID double their O-boards 16 to 8.
Our turnovers were more or less average for us at 13, but fortunately we got Cal's up to 10. We had 6 steals today--perhaps a sign that Tara's desire for a more aggressive defense is finally soaking in.
Perhaps the best indicator of success this game is that we shot 53%, and held Cal to 39%. That is a deep disparity that summarizes both our offensive and defensive success.
Conclusion:
Of course there are lots of things to work on, most notably continuing the good trends begun by Brink in staying out of foul trouble and Lepolo in scoring, and settling on a reliable rotation, but 2022 comes to a close with our team looking very strong, uninjured, and with oodles of talent still to be developed. Pac 12 season and tournament season promise to make for a spectacular Spring for Stanford WBB.
Stanford Women's Basketball: California Postgame Press Conference - YouTube
"We don't have our rotation figured out yet."
Asked about Lepolo. "Talana is amazing, we have never asked our point guard to have the toughest defensive assignment. We never did that with Kiana, we've rarely done that. I think she is really special." On the other hand, "I said to Talana, that the "T" is not for turnover."
Asked about Jones's turnovers. "Haley is a great, great passer. She makes lots of great things happen. I just need her to make less happen."
Asked about Bett's production. "She is instant offense." "This was more of a traditional post game, and I thought Lauren did really well....She is a very special player and she is very hard to guard....It is just a matter of her understanding what we do and her developing."
Cal vs. No. 2 Stanford | Game Highlights | Women’s College Basketball | 2022-23 Season - YouTube