02-26-2016, 03:26 PM
Overview
Stanford WBB got its 1000th win tonight. Our defense was its usual stout self, but we had one of our best offensive showings of the year and it came against the nations #1 defense and it came without one of our offensive stars. McCall's range and accuracy were superb, and she drained 25 points including 3/5 from from three point range. She killed Oregon State tonight in almost the same way that Devin Hunter killed us when we played in Corvallis. Strangest stat of the night: Karlie Samuelson with a double double, 13 points and a whopping 12 rebounds! Brittany McPhee was on fire offensively and shot 6/7 before going out with a possible injury late in the game.Â
Prelim:
Well, this is as significant as it could possible be. We haven't yet beaten a single team that is currently ranked in the top 25. The opportunities for marquee wins is dwindling. Having them at home is key. The game is being billed as the nation's best two defenses playing. How I hope that our offense can get on track! I will have a late write-up after getting back from the game.
Pregame
Kate spoke before the game. The most interesting insight was that Oregon State would be giving us lots of mid range jumpers. Hamblin in the center is enough to defensively dominate the post which allows them to press the perimeter and shut down three point shots. The shots that are left open with that defense are mid range jumpers. That is when they are in man. Zone of course killed us late in the game in Corvallis, but we have since practiced attacking the zone extensively and are much better prepared. Kate also noted McCall's improved range, and both observations proved prophetic for the course of the game. Lili, sadly, was away at funeral services for a relative and would not play tonight.
[i]Flow of the Game[/i]
This game was entirely a matter of self-confidence--us having it and Oregon State losing it. With Lili away, Tara started Bri at the 1, Karlie at 2, Britt at 3--playing Karlie and Britt simultaneously from necessity, rather than because the Cardboard has been recommending it all year! It worked brilliantly, if we do say so ourselves.
The first quarter was tight, and when Oregon State started off with an 8-2 run, and Lili's absence was apparent, the game might have gone bad. But McCall kept us in it and Brittany began to make some plays. She blocked a shot, then Karlie made a trey, and then Brittany made a spectacular layup-and-one to tie the game at 10. That play, which brought the boisterous and anxious crowd to its feet, seemed to instill the confidence that we needed to compete, and for the rest of the half we shot lights-out while holding Oregon State to the low 30 percent range.Â
The second quarter was a breakout. We started with a 21-19 edge, and outscored OSU 20-8 for the quarter. Hamblin got her points, but the defense controlled the rest of their team. Bri and Marta alternately hounded Sydney Wiese all over the floor, who visibly tired as the game ground on. Wiese wound up 2/8 for the game. Weisner was even worse at 1/8. Our defense seemed inspired all game, with hands in faces, double teams when needed. We gave up a couple of open treys and when Hamblin got the ball down low she could not be stopped--but those were relatively rare occasions.Â
We came out of halftime with a 41-27 14 point lead. Of course, the meltdown in Corvallis was on everyone's mind. I was also worried that we could not sustain our hot shooting, which had been in the upper 50% range. In particular, McCall had been routinely hitting mid to long range jumpers--an entirely different look from a year ago. But she did not cool off, and she kept draining those longish jumpers. Oregon State was entirely unprepared to stop those McCall jumpers, and this proved to be the key to unlocking the rest of their defense--exactly as Kate has told us before the game. The game plan, in this case, worked to perfection.
By the end of the third quarter the lead had swelled to 23, capped off by treys by Karlie and Erica. Then in the fourth quarter we mostly coasted. Oregon State tried a few new things but was unable to provoke another meltdown like last time. With about 4 minutes left Devin Hunter sent McPhee sprawling, and McPhee came up limping. She made a couple of free throws and another layup a minute later, but came out of the game and the trainer was working on an ankle, I believe. I have no idea if this might be serious or merely a tweak. We will probably know on Sunday. At the very end there were a few substitutions but not wholesale, and we found ourselves possessing a surprisingly solid win over a top-ten team.
Performances:
Erica McCall's progress has been good all year, but the last few games have been a truly remarkable transformation. The new range to her shot makes her impossible to defend and gave us a viable scoring option in the weak hole of the Oregon State defense. Her rebounding seems to have suffered by playing out so far on offense and also by playing around Hamblin when on defense.
McPhee is rapidly ascending my scale of praiseworthiness. She contributed 15 points on 6/7 shooting, but that was only a fraction of her contribution--probably not even the most important part. She had 4 assists, 4 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Her defense was also very valuable--she has surprising length, as the blocks attest, but for every block there were more altered shots and solid defense. She was assigned to Weisner most of the time, and Weisner was the key to Oregon State's win last time we played them. Tonight, Weisner was almost a non-factor. As we have said before, she needs to be starting--and tonight she did.Â
Karlie was highly efficient on offense, scoring 13 points on 4/5 shooting, including 3/4 from three point range. She also had a couple of assists and a steal, reflecting her usual scrappy play. But somehow or another she came up with 12 rebounds--3 o-boards and 9 defensive. I was not paying careful enough attention to notice as she racked up what has to be her personal rebounding record--perhaps this was part of our defensive scheme, but somehow it worked. We wound up out rebounding OSU 32-27.
Kaylee started but played only 17 minutes. She had an efficient 8 points on 4/7 shooting.Â
Bri started and it was clear that she and Marta were going to take turns harassing Weiss and trying to wear her down. Bri went 2/2 and also contributed 3 assists and 3 turnovers.
Marta played 22 minutes and did not contribute a point, going 0/1 and 0/2 free throws. But she did have 4 assists and 0 turnovers, plus that hounding defense.
Alanna played 13 minutes and acquitted herself well, with 5 points on 2/4 shooting.
Kailee got 22 minutes despite her 4 fouls. She was 0-2, and she was also only 3/8 from the foul line, and also grabbed only 2 rebounds. She had 2 steals--snagging high passes out of the air in both cases.Â
As at team, we shot 57% to their 34%. That is the main difference. Our defense lived up to its billing, theirs did not. In particular our 8/14 treys were daggers. Most other categories were fairly even. We had 17 assists on 30 made baskets.
Conclusion:
Vindication of the Cardboard! We have argued all season that our offense needs more mid range jumpers, and that Britt and Karlie need to be playing together to open up the offense. Both of our wishes came true tonight, and we got our best win of the season. Now, we need to polish off poor Oregon, playing without their four year star, and set ourselves up for a terrific Pac-12 tournament.
Stanford WBB got its 1000th win tonight. Our defense was its usual stout self, but we had one of our best offensive showings of the year and it came against the nations #1 defense and it came without one of our offensive stars. McCall's range and accuracy were superb, and she drained 25 points including 3/5 from from three point range. She killed Oregon State tonight in almost the same way that Devin Hunter killed us when we played in Corvallis. Strangest stat of the night: Karlie Samuelson with a double double, 13 points and a whopping 12 rebounds! Brittany McPhee was on fire offensively and shot 6/7 before going out with a possible injury late in the game.Â
Prelim:
Well, this is as significant as it could possible be. We haven't yet beaten a single team that is currently ranked in the top 25. The opportunities for marquee wins is dwindling. Having them at home is key. The game is being billed as the nation's best two defenses playing. How I hope that our offense can get on track! I will have a late write-up after getting back from the game.
Pregame
Kate spoke before the game. The most interesting insight was that Oregon State would be giving us lots of mid range jumpers. Hamblin in the center is enough to defensively dominate the post which allows them to press the perimeter and shut down three point shots. The shots that are left open with that defense are mid range jumpers. That is when they are in man. Zone of course killed us late in the game in Corvallis, but we have since practiced attacking the zone extensively and are much better prepared. Kate also noted McCall's improved range, and both observations proved prophetic for the course of the game. Lili, sadly, was away at funeral services for a relative and would not play tonight.
[i]Flow of the Game[/i]
This game was entirely a matter of self-confidence--us having it and Oregon State losing it. With Lili away, Tara started Bri at the 1, Karlie at 2, Britt at 3--playing Karlie and Britt simultaneously from necessity, rather than because the Cardboard has been recommending it all year! It worked brilliantly, if we do say so ourselves.
The first quarter was tight, and when Oregon State started off with an 8-2 run, and Lili's absence was apparent, the game might have gone bad. But McCall kept us in it and Brittany began to make some plays. She blocked a shot, then Karlie made a trey, and then Brittany made a spectacular layup-and-one to tie the game at 10. That play, which brought the boisterous and anxious crowd to its feet, seemed to instill the confidence that we needed to compete, and for the rest of the half we shot lights-out while holding Oregon State to the low 30 percent range.Â
The second quarter was a breakout. We started with a 21-19 edge, and outscored OSU 20-8 for the quarter. Hamblin got her points, but the defense controlled the rest of their team. Bri and Marta alternately hounded Sydney Wiese all over the floor, who visibly tired as the game ground on. Wiese wound up 2/8 for the game. Weisner was even worse at 1/8. Our defense seemed inspired all game, with hands in faces, double teams when needed. We gave up a couple of open treys and when Hamblin got the ball down low she could not be stopped--but those were relatively rare occasions.Â
We came out of halftime with a 41-27 14 point lead. Of course, the meltdown in Corvallis was on everyone's mind. I was also worried that we could not sustain our hot shooting, which had been in the upper 50% range. In particular, McCall had been routinely hitting mid to long range jumpers--an entirely different look from a year ago. But she did not cool off, and she kept draining those longish jumpers. Oregon State was entirely unprepared to stop those McCall jumpers, and this proved to be the key to unlocking the rest of their defense--exactly as Kate has told us before the game. The game plan, in this case, worked to perfection.
By the end of the third quarter the lead had swelled to 23, capped off by treys by Karlie and Erica. Then in the fourth quarter we mostly coasted. Oregon State tried a few new things but was unable to provoke another meltdown like last time. With about 4 minutes left Devin Hunter sent McPhee sprawling, and McPhee came up limping. She made a couple of free throws and another layup a minute later, but came out of the game and the trainer was working on an ankle, I believe. I have no idea if this might be serious or merely a tweak. We will probably know on Sunday. At the very end there were a few substitutions but not wholesale, and we found ourselves possessing a surprisingly solid win over a top-ten team.
Performances:
Erica McCall's progress has been good all year, but the last few games have been a truly remarkable transformation. The new range to her shot makes her impossible to defend and gave us a viable scoring option in the weak hole of the Oregon State defense. Her rebounding seems to have suffered by playing out so far on offense and also by playing around Hamblin when on defense.
McPhee is rapidly ascending my scale of praiseworthiness. She contributed 15 points on 6/7 shooting, but that was only a fraction of her contribution--probably not even the most important part. She had 4 assists, 4 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Her defense was also very valuable--she has surprising length, as the blocks attest, but for every block there were more altered shots and solid defense. She was assigned to Weisner most of the time, and Weisner was the key to Oregon State's win last time we played them. Tonight, Weisner was almost a non-factor. As we have said before, she needs to be starting--and tonight she did.Â
Karlie was highly efficient on offense, scoring 13 points on 4/5 shooting, including 3/4 from three point range. She also had a couple of assists and a steal, reflecting her usual scrappy play. But somehow or another she came up with 12 rebounds--3 o-boards and 9 defensive. I was not paying careful enough attention to notice as she racked up what has to be her personal rebounding record--perhaps this was part of our defensive scheme, but somehow it worked. We wound up out rebounding OSU 32-27.
Kaylee started but played only 17 minutes. She had an efficient 8 points on 4/7 shooting.Â
Bri started and it was clear that she and Marta were going to take turns harassing Weiss and trying to wear her down. Bri went 2/2 and also contributed 3 assists and 3 turnovers.
Marta played 22 minutes and did not contribute a point, going 0/1 and 0/2 free throws. But she did have 4 assists and 0 turnovers, plus that hounding defense.
Alanna played 13 minutes and acquitted herself well, with 5 points on 2/4 shooting.
Kailee got 22 minutes despite her 4 fouls. She was 0-2, and she was also only 3/8 from the foul line, and also grabbed only 2 rebounds. She had 2 steals--snagging high passes out of the air in both cases.Â
As at team, we shot 57% to their 34%. That is the main difference. Our defense lived up to its billing, theirs did not. In particular our 8/14 treys were daggers. Most other categories were fairly even. We had 17 assists on 30 made baskets.
Conclusion:
Vindication of the Cardboard! We have argued all season that our offense needs more mid range jumpers, and that Britt and Karlie need to be playing together to open up the offense. Both of our wishes came true tonight, and we got our best win of the season. Now, we need to polish off poor Oregon, playing without their four year star, and set ourselves up for a terrific Pac-12 tournament.
