ON FRIDAY WE GET TO THE HEART OF THE MATTER. THE #6 TEAM IN THE NATION AWAITS DOWN IN THE DESERT.

Have you ever seen a wildcat fight? Their teeth and claws are a blur - just like Aari McDonald.   

Someone should tell Idaho's Number 2 she can forget about trying to stop the blur - she's going to the hoop for two. 

UCLA was a test on Monday  - or rather Michaela Onyenwere and Emily Bessoir were hard to stop -  but Stanford will have to play better if we hope to prevail down in the desert on Friday. We'll have to shoot like a number one team and take care of the ball. 16 turnovers and 10 steals probably won't cut it on Friday. 

Our defense was effective for the most part, but we have work to do to get ready for the Wildcats. Aari McDonald shoots great and, as you know, is one of the quickest players in the nation. She makes her living behind the arc and in the heart of defenses - wrecking havoc. 

Makes me recall an NCAA Regional Championship game up in Spokane a few years back, when Courtney Vandersloot was ripping our defense to shreds in the first half. No one could stay in front of her. 

During halftime Karli suggested a zone defense that stopped her cold in the second half and won the game. Whenever Courtney tried to penetrate, there were two players pinching off her drive. It was beautiful. I'm hoping for something beautiful on Friday. Just like Courtney and Gonzaga - if you stop Aari, you stop Arizona.

GO STANFORD!!     

YOU WANT A TUNE-UP FOR THE NCAA TOURNAMENT? JOIN THE PAC12!!

 Isn't it great! Ten years ago the PAC12 was pretty good. Now it's tough!! Look at what lies just ahead - December 21 UCLA is ranked #11(out of 351 Division 1 teams). January 1 Arizona is ranked #6. And January 8 Oregon is ranked #7. 

And that brings me to the main point of this blog piece. Did you watch the Ducks trample Oregon State last weekend? They were simply sensational! Kelly says this may be the best shooting team he's ever had! And that's saying something. I don't want to tell you what ranking the Ducks deserved this week - but, I will tell you that Stanford had better focus like never before over the next three weeks! For one thing this shooting slump from beyond the arc needs to end.

Taylor Mikesell and Te-Hina Paopao (I know they're not household names yet, but don't let that fool you) went 9 for 13 against the Beavers from beyond the arc. That's 70% if my math serves me. And if they'd kept shooting 3's in the second half, it would have been 18 for 26. The team shot 50% 12 for 24, because Erin Boley (who is one of the best shooters in the nation) was 0 for 2. When she joins the fray - Katy bar the door!

And size! These are some tall Ducks!     

#25    Angela Dugalic     6'-4"

#22    Kylee Watson       6'-4"

#10    Arielle Wilson       6'-6"

#32    Sedona Prince      6'-7"

#14    Lydia Giomi          6'-6"

#1      Nyara Sabally       6'-5"

#21    Erin Boley             6'-2"

All I'm saying is that over the next three weeks Stanford will get to play three of the best teams in the nation - it's a lot like the NCAA Tournament, but it all happens in our conference.

You've probably heard that the NCAA plans to have the entire women's tournament in San Antonio and the surrounding area. Just think how many great games we can take in! We should rent a block of rooms on the river. How about a whole floor at the Grand Hyatt?  

In my next blog I'll cover the Bruins and the Wildcats, but I must say Mikesell and Paopao took my breath away on Sunday. Man can they shoot! Let's get it together - end this shooting slump - and win these three games against some of the nation's best!

GO CARDINAL!! 

LINDY LAROCQUE COMES TO THE RESCUE! STANFORD NEEDS TO SHARPEN UP TO START THE PAC12 SEASON.

So far this season I've seen the Cardinal, Ducks, Buffalos, Huskies, Cal, UCLA, USC, and the Wildcats play. Granted this season has been scrambled and disjointed by the pandemic, but so far I'd rank the Cardinal and Ducks tied for first, Wildcats third, UCLA fourth, Trojans fifth, the Buffalos sixth, Huskies seventh, and Cal eighth. 

The Cardinal on Saturday in Vegas looked out of sync against UNLV, I'm sure because of all the Covid disruptions. Three of the first four games cancelled and the County Health authorities forcing the team out of Santa Clara County to play their games. Lindy LaRocque's close relationship with Tara and Stanford saved the early portion of the season. We'll play three games at UNLV in southern Nevada, where Lindy is the new Head Coach. 

Today's game in Vegas with the Washington Huskies is the start of the Cardinal PAC12 season and Stanford has to get re-focused and more together than they looked yesterday against the Runnin Rebels. The Washington team wasn't great on Friday against Cal, but they're considerably better than Cal Poly or UNLV.

Kiana was off her game yesterday and today she'll be needed at full strength. She's obviously the motor and the glue, but yesterday she lacked her usual verve, had seven points and was 1 for 2 from distance. Haley was terrific and picked up much of the slack, but Kiana is crucial for the success of this team. 

Our three point shooting has to be resurrected. On Friday in Maples we shot 14 of 30 and on Saturday at UNLV 8 of 24. Anna was 2 for three and Lexie was 2 for 4, but Hannah was 1 for 6 and the rest of the team was cold. The defensive intensity needs to be turned up and the layups and put-backs have to go down. And the fouling? 22 fouls come from sluggish defense. 

Haley had a great scoring game with 25 points and Fran had one of her best outings with 15 points. An off game after all we've been through is understandable, but we need to shake it off and get sharp heading into the PAC12 season.           

A NUMBER OF TOP RANKED TEAMS ARE STUMBLING OUT OF THE GATE EARLY

I don't know about you, but I was really disappointed on Monday when the San Diego game was cancelled. I love watching this team play! Two cancellations in two days was tough to deal with! I can imagine the level of disappointment felt by the team. I'm left wondering how we'll play the two home games this weekend in view of the Santa Clara County Covid-19 rules that cancelled the last game. I wonder if we could move the games to San Mateo County? Seems crucial that we get this season under way.

We're not the only team impacted by the pandemic. Number 3 ranked UConn has yet to play. Yesterday they had to pull out of the upcoming Jimmy V Classic tournament in North Carolina. Today they announced their first game would be December 12 vs U Mass Lowell. 

Number 1 ranked South Carolina has really struggled in the last two games. In their last game the 21st ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs were up by two points midway through the fourth quarter, but couldn't close it out. Destanni Henderson put up 23 points and got her Gamecocks over the hump. They ended up winning 79 to 72. The Zags outshot the Number 1 ranked team, but got out-rebounded, had too many turnovers, and missed free throws down the stretch - a recipe for defeat.  

 In the second game of the season, the Gamecocks struggled before pulling out a ten point win against the Coyotes of South Dakota. So, to say the least, South Carolina looks beatable early in the season. 

Today (12/3) the eighth ranked NC State Wolfpack knocked off the Number One ranked South Carolina Gamecocks by eight points 54 to 46 to give them a record of 3 and 1. Neither team looked in sync and there was little to like about the way either team shot or played. It was the first time a Gamecock team had been held under fifty points since 2013. Dawn was not happy.    

Fourth ranked Baylor kept misfiring against South Florida. Halfway through the fourth quarter the Bulls pulled even at 53, but couldn't go on and win. They lost 67 to 62. The Bears only shot 37%, but pulled down 50 rebounds. Queen Egbo emerged as a surprise star for the team from Waco, scoring 25 points and providing the difference. DiJonai Carrington had seven points. 

Fifth ranked Louisville has had two easy games, but on Friday they play Number 20 DePaul at 3:30 on ESPN. The Blue Demons could upset the Cardinals. Louisville's Player of the Year candidate Dana Evans is averaging 18 and their fantastic freshman, Hailey Van Lith is averaging 16 points and 10 rebounds.

I'm sorry Stanford isn't playing in one of the great tournaments going on this week and next, especially the Bad Boy Mower Crossover Classic going on this week in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.   

GO CARDINAL!!