[sheriand]

Wbbfan2 here: I love the analytical breakdown also.  But, I always respond that having watched Derek Jeter play alongside A-Rod for years, I can attest that stats lie.

In this game, Lyndy simply could not guard.  Mel could.  Lyndy shows up as neutral and Mel negative?  No way.  There are all sorts of variables that are not factored in.  A Sydney blows by Lyndey passes off and the shot is missed.  Mel d\'s up, a Sydney passes off, and the player makes a tough shot.  The stats might tell you that Lyndy played better "d" than Mel, but it was not the case.

The word on the street in Houston is that Tara is getting ripped, off-the-record, by the media there.  I think that\'s a shame.

[sheriand]

Wbbfan2 here: I love the analytical breakdown also.  But, I always respond that having watched Derek Jeter play alongside A-Rod for years, I can attest that stats lie.

In this game, Lyndy simply could not guard.  Mel could.  Lyndy shows up as neutral and Mel negative?  No way.  There are all sorts of variables that are not factored in.  A Sydney blows by Lyndey passes off and the shot is missed.  Mel d\'s up, a Sydney passes off, and the player makes a tough shot.  The stats might tell you that Lyndy played better "d" than Mel, but it was not the case.

The word on the street in Houston is that Tara is getting ripped, off-the-record, by the media there.  I think that\'s a shame.

[sheriand]

Wbbfan2 here: I love the analytical breakdown also.  But, I always respond that having watched Derek Jeter play alongside A-Rod for years, I can attest that stats lie.

In this game, Lyndy simply could not guard.  Mel could.  Lyndy shows up as neutral and Mel negative?  No way.  There are all sorts of variables that are not factored in.  A Sydney blows by Lyndey passes off and the shot is missed.  Mel d\'s up, a Sydney passes off, and the player makes a tough shot.  The stats might tell you that Lyndy played better "d" than Mel, but it was not the case.

The word on the street in Houston is that Tara is getting ripped, off-the-record, by the media there.  I think that\'s a shame.

[sheriand]

Wbbfan2 here: I love the analytical breakdown also.  But, I always respond that having watched Derek Jeter play alongside A-Rod for years, I can attest that stats lie.

In this game, Lyndy simply could not guard.  Mel could.  Lyndy shows up as neutral and Mel negative?  No way.  There are all sorts of variables that are not factored in.  A Sydney blows by Lyndey passes off and the shot is missed.  Mel d\'s up, a Sydney passes off, and the player makes a tough shot.  The stats might tell you that Lyndy played better "d" than Mel, but it was not the case.

The word on the street in Houston is that Tara is getting ripped, off-the-record, by the media there.  I think that\'s a shame.

[81alum]

Four questions for the post-mortem.

1. Any idea why Joslyn didn\'t play at all, even when Chiney was in foul trouble?  Did Tara think that Ruef--who played far less than Tinkle this year--was a better matchup?

2. Any idea why Kayla did not get any offensive rebounds and was limited to four points?  Were they doing something special to her?

3. Why did Chiney have such a sub-par game?  Was it freshman jitters or was it an A&M strategy to concentrate on Chiney at the expense of Nneka?

4. Just how bad was Toni\'s ankle?  How was her running and cutting when she was in the game?  Was she completely ineffective--and if so, what happened to make the ankle worse after North Carolina, when she played very well?

[81alum]

Four questions for the post-mortem.

1. Any idea why Joslyn didn\'t play at all, even when Chiney was in foul trouble?  Did Tara think that Ruef--who played far less than Tinkle this year--was a better matchup?

2. Any idea why Kayla did not get any offensive rebounds and was limited to four points?  Were they doing something special to her?

3. Why did Chiney have such a sub-par game?  Was it freshman jitters or was it an A&M strategy to concentrate on Chiney at the expense of Nneka?

4. Just how bad was Toni\'s ankle?  How was her running and cutting when she was in the game?  Was she completely ineffective--and if so, what happened to make the ankle worse after North Carolina, when she played very well?

[81alum]

Four questions for the post-mortem.

1. Any idea why Joslyn didn\'t play at all, even when Chiney was in foul trouble?  Did Tara think that Ruef--who played far less than Tinkle this year--was a better matchup?

2. Any idea why Kayla did not get any offensive rebounds and was limited to four points?  Were they doing something special to her?

3. Why did Chiney have such a sub-par game?  Was it freshman jitters or was it an A&M strategy to concentrate on Chiney at the expense of Nneka?

4. Just how bad was Toni\'s ankle?  How was her running and cutting when she was in the game?  Was she completely ineffective--and if so, what happened to make the ankle worse after North Carolina, when she played very well?

[81alum]

Four questions for the post-mortem.

1. Any idea why Joslyn didn\'t play at all, even when Chiney was in foul trouble?  Did Tara think that Ruef--who played far less than Tinkle this year--was a better matchup?

2. Any idea why Kayla did not get any offensive rebounds and was limited to four points?  Were they doing something special to her?

3. Why did Chiney have such a sub-par game?  Was it freshman jitters or was it an A&M strategy to concentrate on Chiney at the expense of Nneka?

4. Just how bad was Toni\'s ankle?  How was her running and cutting when she was in the game?  Was she completely ineffective--and if so, what happened to make the ankle worse after North Carolina, when she played very well?

[meos]

Don\'t believe your eyes, believe my stats? (Why even take the time to pull that together?)

Poise - (or lack thereof) - lost the game. Apart from Nneka, Mel was the most poised Stanford player out there. (Tara acknowledged it with her "New York" comment at half time.) Mel played many times the number of minutes she normally averaged this year, and under the most extremely stressful condition for the team.  There is no shame in acknowledging this minor role performed by the 5th year senior. The other seniors (who played) will hopefully move on to successful pro careers. [BTW, Toni had the ball ripped out of her hands by Colson while standing still in the corner -- and that was the last time she saw the court.]

Note that at winning time, Mel was fouled out and on the bench, as was Chiney. No one was there to deter Colson\'s straight line to the basket.

[meos]

Don\'t believe your eyes, believe my stats? (Why even take the time to pull that together?)

Poise - (or lack thereof) - lost the game. Apart from Nneka, Mel was the most poised Stanford player out there. (Tara acknowledged it with her "New York" comment at half time.) Mel played many times the number of minutes she normally averaged this year, and under the most extremely stressful condition for the team.  There is no shame in acknowledging this minor role performed by the 5th year senior. The other seniors (who played) will hopefully move on to successful pro careers. [BTW, Toni had the ball ripped out of her hands by Colson while standing still in the corner -- and that was the last time she saw the court.]

Note that at winning time, Mel was fouled out and on the bench, as was Chiney. No one was there to deter Colson\'s straight line to the basket.

[meos]

Don\'t believe your eyes, believe my stats? (Why even take the time to pull that together?)

Poise - (or lack thereof) - lost the game. Apart from Nneka, Mel was the most poised Stanford player out there. (Tara acknowledged it with her "New York" comment at half time.) Mel played many times the number of minutes she normally averaged this year, and under the most extremely stressful condition for the team.  There is no shame in acknowledging this minor role performed by the 5th year senior. The other seniors (who played) will hopefully move on to successful pro careers. [BTW, Toni had the ball ripped out of her hands by Colson while standing still in the corner -- and that was the last time she saw the court.]

Note that at winning time, Mel was fouled out and on the bench, as was Chiney. No one was there to deter Colson\'s straight line to the basket.

[meos]

Don\'t believe your eyes, believe my stats? (Why even take the time to pull that together?)

Poise - (or lack thereof) - lost the game. Apart from Nneka, Mel was the most poised Stanford player out there. (Tara acknowledged it with her "New York" comment at half time.) Mel played many times the number of minutes she normally averaged this year, and under the most extremely stressful condition for the team.  There is no shame in acknowledging this minor role performed by the 5th year senior. The other seniors (who played) will hopefully move on to successful pro careers. [BTW, Toni had the ball ripped out of her hands by Colson while standing still in the corner -- and that was the last time she saw the court.]

Note that at winning time, Mel was fouled out and on the bench, as was Chiney. No one was there to deter Colson\'s straight line to the basket.

[Treebound]

This one did hurt and I\'m sorry to see Pohlen and Pederson go out with sub-par performances.     This was ours to take and the women did not close it out when they had the chance.  

Needle\'s point resonates with me, similar to the men\'s Alabama loss, we lost this game to a more speedy and athletic opponent that wanted the W more than we did.     I can\'t help but think that both players and coaches were looking beyond this game.   That\'s just too bad!  

Nneka deserved more help last night.  My heart goes out to her for a gutty performance.

[Treebound]

This one did hurt and I\'m sorry to see Pohlen and Pederson go out with sub-par performances.     This was ours to take and the women did not close it out when they had the chance.  

Needle\'s point resonates with me, similar to the men\'s Alabama loss, we lost this game to a more speedy and athletic opponent that wanted the W more than we did.     I can\'t help but think that both players and coaches were looking beyond this game.   That\'s just too bad!  

Nneka deserved more help last night.  My heart goes out to her for a gutty performance.

[Treebound]

This one did hurt and I\'m sorry to see Pohlen and Pederson go out with sub-par performances.     This was ours to take and the women did not close it out when they had the chance.  

Needle\'s point resonates with me, similar to the men\'s Alabama loss, we lost this game to a more speedy and athletic opponent that wanted the W more than we did.     I can\'t help but think that both players and coaches were looking beyond this game.   That\'s just too bad!  

Nneka deserved more help last night.  My heart goes out to her for a gutty performance.

[Treebound]

This one did hurt and I\'m sorry to see Pohlen and Pederson go out with sub-par performances.     This was ours to take and the women did not close it out when they had the chance.  

Needle\'s point resonates with me, similar to the men\'s Alabama loss, we lost this game to a more speedy and athletic opponent that wanted the W more than we did.     I can\'t help but think that both players and coaches were looking beyond this game.   That\'s just too bad!  

Nneka deserved more help last night.  My heart goes out to her for a gutty performance.

[Pastor]

sic semper statistics!

[Pastor]

sic semper statistics!

[Pastor]

sic semper statistics!

[Pastor]

sic semper statistics!

[M T]

Mel plays an athletic game.  She makes flashy plays, but she gets burned by this.   Just because she makes some successful flashy plays doesn\'t mean that overall she contributed more than she cost.

I don\'t mean to put down Mel, but I think thoughts that she played well in the game are short-sighted.  Talking about her play points out the difficulties in saying whether a player contributes more or less than she hurts the team.

How do you account in some measure for the fact that there were only 5 assists to Nneka during the game, and that Mel was credited with only one.   (Nneka received a pass from Mel with her back to the basket, 3 feet beyond the 3 point arc, took three dribbles toward the basket and did a spin move on Adams.)

If you\'re someone that believes your eyes, turn on your DVR to 10:47 left in the game.
10:47 Mel gets the ball on an inbounds play with 30 seconds on the shot clock. She goes to the basket and makes an off balance shot leaping away from the basket, knocking away the only possible Stanford rebounder.  A&M rebound.  (I would count this as a bad play.  She made a poor shot with no chance of a rebound when there was a lot of time on the shot clock.)
10:30 Mel goes in to swat the ball away on a dribbler cutting to the basket (that\'s fine) but then she stands and watches Nneka, Chiney, and Kayla battle with Adams and Elonu for the rebound, without blocking anyone out or covering a player.  A&M gets the tip and tosses it out to the player she left waiting at the 3 point line.  Once the pass is made, Mel can\'t get out in time.  A&M 3 points.
[This was the 3pt shot that I previously mistakenly remembered as at the end of the game.]
10:16  Mel makes a good drive to the basket but charges around Adams and into Elonu.  The shot misses anyway, and we did have a 1 Stanford on 4 A&M rebounding disadvantage.  That was one more foul on the way to those foul shots by A&M late in the game.

Wind the tape/DVR back a bit to 11:55 and you\'ll watch Mel dive for a ball as it goes out of bounds (off A&M, but you never know with these officials).  She couldn\'t possibly get the ball.  If she did, she probably would not retain possession (going out of bounds or getting trapped by Adams under the A&M basket).  But she manages to touch the ball on the way out, so the ball goes to A&M.  She tried to be a hero but wound up costing Stanford the ball.

It isn\'t all bad.  If you go back to 12:22, Mel does jump to block out an A&M player when it looks like there will be a shot.  Then she goes back toward her player.  Mel jumps back in when Jeanette\'s player cuts to the basket.  IMO, Mel almost ruins Jeanette\'s defense because Mel blocks Jeanette (resulting in Jeanette sandwiched between Mel & the dribbler).  Maya Moore would have passed out to Mel\'s player on the 3 point line, but this was no Moore.  The dribbler tries to spin and loses the ball, which Mel gets to. The scorer gives Mel a steal, which I think is generous.  Then when she goes down court with the ball, she drives to the basket and makes a good pass to Chiney rather than trying to shoot it herself.

How can you reasonably sum over all those good and bad plays?  My point is that it is hard to objectively sum up all the good, bad, and indeterminate individual plays that a player makes in the game.

I think the yardstick that best accounts for all the factors is scoring differential while a player is in.  It isn\'t perfect, but I believe it is a cleaner measure than understanding a multidimensional measure of all the other stats.  Just like all those other stats, it depends on the other players (both sides), but a player should play for that.  Use your team\'s strengths; take advantage of the other team\'s weaknesses.   I would say that this single stat combines more information than you find in those other stats.  I first started using this to try to understand how much Nicole Powell helped her team (both at Stanford & Sacramento & Charlotte, that originally drafted but they didn\'t use her much).

There are some adjustments I would make to that yardstick if I could figure out a good way.  This measure assumes that all your credit/blame happens while you are in the game.  Fouls are something that affects later play.  For instance, when Mel commits 3 fouls in the second half, she could be held accountable for some portion of the opponent foul shots in bonus situations.  Likewise, if she causes fouls by the other team, she could get some portion of her own team\'s bonus foul shots.  Potentially, one could account for getting an opponent fouled out, and account for the coach having to substitute in a lower skilled player when you (or an opponent) get DQ\'ed or having to sit on the bench in foul trouble.

With this measure, it doesn\'t mater whether you are the post or point guard, shooting guard, or defensive specialist.  One measure tells how well the team does when you are in versus out.

[M T]

Mel plays an athletic game.  She makes flashy plays, but she gets burned by this.   Just because she makes some successful flashy plays doesn\'t mean that overall she contributed more than she cost.

I don\'t mean to put down Mel, but I think thoughts that she played well in the game are short-sighted.  Talking about her play points out the difficulties in saying whether a player contributes more or less than she hurts the team.

How do you account in some measure for the fact that there were only 5 assists to Nneka during the game, and that Mel was credited with only one.   (Nneka received a pass from Mel with her back to the basket, 3 feet beyond the 3 point arc, took three dribbles toward the basket and did a spin move on Adams.)

If you\'re someone that believes your eyes, turn on your DVR to 10:47 left in the game.
10:47 Mel gets the ball on an inbounds play with 30 seconds on the shot clock. She goes to the basket and makes an off balance shot leaping away from the basket, knocking away the only possible Stanford rebounder.  A&M rebound.  (I would count this as a bad play.  She made a poor shot with no chance of a rebound when there was a lot of time on the shot clock.)
10:30 Mel goes in to swat the ball away on a dribbler cutting to the basket (that\'s fine) but then she stands and watches Nneka, Chiney, and Kayla battle with Adams and Elonu for the rebound, without blocking anyone out or covering a player.  A&M gets the tip and tosses it out to the player she left waiting at the 3 point line.  Once the pass is made, Mel can\'t get out in time.  A&M 3 points.
[This was the 3pt shot that I previously mistakenly remembered as at the end of the game.]
10:16  Mel makes a good drive to the basket but charges around Adams and into Elonu.  The shot misses anyway, and we did have a 1 Stanford on 4 A&M rebounding disadvantage.  That was one more foul on the way to those foul shots by A&M late in the game.

Wind the tape/DVR back a bit to 11:55 and you\'ll watch Mel dive for a ball as it goes out of bounds (off A&M, but you never know with these officials).  She couldn\'t possibly get the ball.  If she did, she probably would not retain possession (going out of bounds or getting trapped by Adams under the A&M basket).  But she manages to touch the ball on the way out, so the ball goes to A&M.  She tried to be a hero but wound up costing Stanford the ball.

It isn\'t all bad.  If you go back to 12:22, Mel does jump to block out an A&M player when it looks like there will be a shot.  Then she goes back toward her player.  Mel jumps back in when Jeanette\'s player cuts to the basket.  IMO, Mel almost ruins Jeanette\'s defense because Mel blocks Jeanette (resulting in Jeanette sandwiched between Mel & the dribbler).  Maya Moore would have passed out to Mel\'s player on the 3 point line, but this was no Moore.  The dribbler tries to spin and loses the ball, which Mel gets to. The scorer gives Mel a steal, which I think is generous.  Then when she goes down court with the ball, she drives to the basket and makes a good pass to Chiney rather than trying to shoot it herself.

How can you reasonably sum over all those good and bad plays?  My point is that it is hard to objectively sum up all the good, bad, and indeterminate individual plays that a player makes in the game.

I think the yardstick that best accounts for all the factors is scoring differential while a player is in.  It isn\'t perfect, but I believe it is a cleaner measure than understanding a multidimensional measure of all the other stats.  Just like all those other stats, it depends on the other players (both sides), but a player should play for that.  Use your team\'s strengths; take advantage of the other team\'s weaknesses.   I would say that this single stat combines more information than you find in those other stats.  I first started using this to try to understand how much Nicole Powell helped her team (both at Stanford & Sacramento & Charlotte, that originally drafted but they didn\'t use her much).

There are some adjustments I would make to that yardstick if I could figure out a good way.  This measure assumes that all your credit/blame happens while you are in the game.  Fouls are something that affects later play.  For instance, when Mel commits 3 fouls in the second half, she could be held accountable for some portion of the opponent foul shots in bonus situations.  Likewise, if she causes fouls by the other team, she could get some portion of her own team\'s bonus foul shots.  Potentially, one could account for getting an opponent fouled out, and account for the coach having to substitute in a lower skilled player when you (or an opponent) get DQ\'ed or having to sit on the bench in foul trouble.

With this measure, it doesn\'t mater whether you are the post or point guard, shooting guard, or defensive specialist.  One measure tells how well the team does when you are in versus out.

[M T]

Mel plays an athletic game.  She makes flashy plays, but she gets burned by this.   Just because she makes some successful flashy plays doesn\'t mean that overall she contributed more than she cost.

I don\'t mean to put down Mel, but I think thoughts that she played well in the game are short-sighted.  Talking about her play points out the difficulties in saying whether a player contributes more or less than she hurts the team.

How do you account in some measure for the fact that there were only 5 assists to Nneka during the game, and that Mel was credited with only one.   (Nneka received a pass from Mel with her back to the basket, 3 feet beyond the 3 point arc, took three dribbles toward the basket and did a spin move on Adams.)

If you\'re someone that believes your eyes, turn on your DVR to 10:47 left in the game.
10:47 Mel gets the ball on an inbounds play with 30 seconds on the shot clock. She goes to the basket and makes an off balance shot leaping away from the basket, knocking away the only possible Stanford rebounder.  A&M rebound.  (I would count this as a bad play.  She made a poor shot with no chance of a rebound when there was a lot of time on the shot clock.)
10:30 Mel goes in to swat the ball away on a dribbler cutting to the basket (that\'s fine) but then she stands and watches Nneka, Chiney, and Kayla battle with Adams and Elonu for the rebound, without blocking anyone out or covering a player.  A&M gets the tip and tosses it out to the player she left waiting at the 3 point line.  Once the pass is made, Mel can\'t get out in time.  A&M 3 points.
[This was the 3pt shot that I previously mistakenly remembered as at the end of the game.]
10:16  Mel makes a good drive to the basket but charges around Adams and into Elonu.  The shot misses anyway, and we did have a 1 Stanford on 4 A&M rebounding disadvantage.  That was one more foul on the way to those foul shots by A&M late in the game.

Wind the tape/DVR back a bit to 11:55 and you\'ll watch Mel dive for a ball as it goes out of bounds (off A&M, but you never know with these officials).  She couldn\'t possibly get the ball.  If she did, she probably would not retain possession (going out of bounds or getting trapped by Adams under the A&M basket).  But she manages to touch the ball on the way out, so the ball goes to A&M.  She tried to be a hero but wound up costing Stanford the ball.

It isn\'t all bad.  If you go back to 12:22, Mel does jump to block out an A&M player when it looks like there will be a shot.  Then she goes back toward her player.  Mel jumps back in when Jeanette\'s player cuts to the basket.  IMO, Mel almost ruins Jeanette\'s defense because Mel blocks Jeanette (resulting in Jeanette sandwiched between Mel & the dribbler).  Maya Moore would have passed out to Mel\'s player on the 3 point line, but this was no Moore.  The dribbler tries to spin and loses the ball, which Mel gets to. The scorer gives Mel a steal, which I think is generous.  Then when she goes down court with the ball, she drives to the basket and makes a good pass to Chiney rather than trying to shoot it herself.

How can you reasonably sum over all those good and bad plays?  My point is that it is hard to objectively sum up all the good, bad, and indeterminate individual plays that a player makes in the game.

I think the yardstick that best accounts for all the factors is scoring differential while a player is in.  It isn\'t perfect, but I believe it is a cleaner measure than understanding a multidimensional measure of all the other stats.  Just like all those other stats, it depends on the other players (both sides), but a player should play for that.  Use your team\'s strengths; take advantage of the other team\'s weaknesses.   I would say that this single stat combines more information than you find in those other stats.  I first started using this to try to understand how much Nicole Powell helped her team (both at Stanford & Sacramento & Charlotte, that originally drafted but they didn\'t use her much).

There are some adjustments I would make to that yardstick if I could figure out a good way.  This measure assumes that all your credit/blame happens while you are in the game.  Fouls are something that affects later play.  For instance, when Mel commits 3 fouls in the second half, she could be held accountable for some portion of the opponent foul shots in bonus situations.  Likewise, if she causes fouls by the other team, she could get some portion of her own team\'s bonus foul shots.  Potentially, one could account for getting an opponent fouled out, and account for the coach having to substitute in a lower skilled player when you (or an opponent) get DQ\'ed or having to sit on the bench in foul trouble.

With this measure, it doesn\'t mater whether you are the post or point guard, shooting guard, or defensive specialist.  One measure tells how well the team does when you are in versus out.

[M T]

Mel plays an athletic game.  She makes flashy plays, but she gets burned by this.   Just because she makes some successful flashy plays doesn\'t mean that overall she contributed more than she cost.

I don\'t mean to put down Mel, but I think thoughts that she played well in the game are short-sighted.  Talking about her play points out the difficulties in saying whether a player contributes more or less than she hurts the team.

How do you account in some measure for the fact that there were only 5 assists to Nneka during the game, and that Mel was credited with only one.   (Nneka received a pass from Mel with her back to the basket, 3 feet beyond the 3 point arc, took three dribbles toward the basket and did a spin move on Adams.)

If you\'re someone that believes your eyes, turn on your DVR to 10:47 left in the game.
10:47 Mel gets the ball on an inbounds play with 30 seconds on the shot clock. She goes to the basket and makes an off balance shot leaping away from the basket, knocking away the only possible Stanford rebounder.  A&M rebound.  (I would count this as a bad play.  She made a poor shot with no chance of a rebound when there was a lot of time on the shot clock.)
10:30 Mel goes in to swat the ball away on a dribbler cutting to the basket (that\'s fine) but then she stands and watches Nneka, Chiney, and Kayla battle with Adams and Elonu for the rebound, without blocking anyone out or covering a player.  A&M gets the tip and tosses it out to the player she left waiting at the 3 point line.  Once the pass is made, Mel can\'t get out in time.  A&M 3 points.
[This was the 3pt shot that I previously mistakenly remembered as at the end of the game.]
10:16  Mel makes a good drive to the basket but charges around Adams and into Elonu.  The shot misses anyway, and we did have a 1 Stanford on 4 A&M rebounding disadvantage.  That was one more foul on the way to those foul shots by A&M late in the game.

Wind the tape/DVR back a bit to 11:55 and you\'ll watch Mel dive for a ball as it goes out of bounds (off A&M, but you never know with these officials).  She couldn\'t possibly get the ball.  If she did, she probably would not retain possession (going out of bounds or getting trapped by Adams under the A&M basket).  But she manages to touch the ball on the way out, so the ball goes to A&M.  She tried to be a hero but wound up costing Stanford the ball.

It isn\'t all bad.  If you go back to 12:22, Mel does jump to block out an A&M player when it looks like there will be a shot.  Then she goes back toward her player.  Mel jumps back in when Jeanette\'s player cuts to the basket.  IMO, Mel almost ruins Jeanette\'s defense because Mel blocks Jeanette (resulting in Jeanette sandwiched between Mel & the dribbler).  Maya Moore would have passed out to Mel\'s player on the 3 point line, but this was no Moore.  The dribbler tries to spin and loses the ball, which Mel gets to. The scorer gives Mel a steal, which I think is generous.  Then when she goes down court with the ball, she drives to the basket and makes a good pass to Chiney rather than trying to shoot it herself.

How can you reasonably sum over all those good and bad plays?  My point is that it is hard to objectively sum up all the good, bad, and indeterminate individual plays that a player makes in the game.

I think the yardstick that best accounts for all the factors is scoring differential while a player is in.  It isn\'t perfect, but I believe it is a cleaner measure than understanding a multidimensional measure of all the other stats.  Just like all those other stats, it depends on the other players (both sides), but a player should play for that.  Use your team\'s strengths; take advantage of the other team\'s weaknesses.   I would say that this single stat combines more information than you find in those other stats.  I first started using this to try to understand how much Nicole Powell helped her team (both at Stanford & Sacramento & Charlotte, that originally drafted but they didn\'t use her much).

There are some adjustments I would make to that yardstick if I could figure out a good way.  This measure assumes that all your credit/blame happens while you are in the game.  Fouls are something that affects later play.  For instance, when Mel commits 3 fouls in the second half, she could be held accountable for some portion of the opponent foul shots in bonus situations.  Likewise, if she causes fouls by the other team, she could get some portion of her own team\'s bonus foul shots.  Potentially, one could account for getting an opponent fouled out, and account for the coach having to substitute in a lower skilled player when you (or an opponent) get DQ\'ed or having to sit on the bench in foul trouble.

With this measure, it doesn\'t mater whether you are the post or point guard, shooting guard, or defensive specialist.  One measure tells how well the team does when you are in versus out.

[M T]

I know a number of these stats have been brought up already, but I\'ve finally gotten to the point where I can review them without all the emotions.

Season high of 15 (sorta) unforced turnovers (TO - their Steals), about twice our average.  Thus season high of 22 turnovers (avg 14).  Consequently, we had a season low of 46 field goal attempts (average 60) and a season high against us in FGA differential (19 more shots by them).  Consequently, this tied our season low for points in a game (62).   Their defense (on the passer or receiver) also kept our 3pt attempts at almost the season low (6, avg 17, low 5). Only 13% of our shots were 3 point attempts (normally 29%)  Yet, we made half our attempts.  Our 13 of 19 FT was quite close to our average of 14 of 19.

Both our points off turnovers and 2nd chance points were half our average (10 and 8 vs 19 and 15).  Our rebounding was about normal (38% OR, 69% DR vs avg 42%, 70%).  Our assists/FG ratio was normal.
We had 8 blocks (vs avg of 4) and 8 steals (avg 7).   Although we had a few more fouls than average (18 vs 14), they had fewer free throws than average (10 vs 15), but they made all 10.

They scored 63 points versus our average opponent\'s 55.  Most of their offensive stats are a little above average against us and not particularly remarkable.  Their unforced turnovers (4) tied a season low for us (avg 8).  They only had 4 bench points.  Their 21 points off turnovers was almost double our average (11).  Their second chance points were 16 versus our opponent\'s average of 9.

I\'ll note that I\'m not comparing their numbers against their averages.  I suspect we beat their averages in virtually all categories.

As we know too well, their defense disrupted us.  I am surprised that we didn\'t get off more 3s since we shot them ok.  Once Jeanette started playing the #2, you\'d think she\'d have gotten 3pt opportunities.  But maybe she and Mel were not on the same track, so Jeanette didn\'t get the ball at the right time (if she ever had a right time).

Note only did their players affect our offense, but our defense (steals and such) was not as effective.  The sagging m2m let them get their threes (35%), but I\'m afraid that if we\'d stepped out on them more, they\'d have gotten past us.

The few times that Kayla brought the ball into the front court, good things seemed to happen.  I don\'t know how hurt Toni was, but she seemed effective and didn\'t show signs of pain or lack of ability.

While someone commented on Nneka (3 fouls) failing to challenge on the shot (by a 62% FT shooter in a double bonus situation) with 12 seconds left, I thought the two final plays were the most frustrating.

When A&M had the ball with 9 seconds left, two players were challenging the play, but Lindy was in full retreat and neither challenged nor slowed the dribbler down.  I thought Jeanette played ineffectively on that play as well.  She should have been running full speed to get to a defensive position rather than being approximately parallel to the dribbler.  She seemed to pause at the 3pt line.  A full-on charge by Jeanette of the shooter might have led to a better outcome.

As for the final play, it is unusual to do a Hail Mary pass with 3+ seconds, but ok.  My problem is that no one was near where the pass went.   It looks like the ball went where she meant it to go, but no one was there.  (I still can\'t believe the official told the A&M Asst. Coach to sit and he didn\'t (as required by the rules).)

The TV announcer felt that Jeanette should have played differently on a 3pt shot at 1:33.  I believe she thought Nneka would step out on the player, so she was ready to break to the basket if Adams did.  But Nneka was late thinking of that.  By the time they each realized what happened, they both stepped out on the shooter but were late.

Fans & players tend to obsess on the final plays, but as much difference might have been made on almost any play earlier in the game.  You just don\'t know that it is that critical when 30 or 10 minutes remain in the game.

One final, somewhat heretical comment.  As I watched the game, I thought the ref\'s calls and lack of calls were quite bad.  When I watched it again, reviewing each play, I may not have agreed with the calls, but I didn\'t think they were as bad as when I saw it live.  For instance, on Nneka\'s shot with 9 seconds left, I think there should have been a foul called, but I can see that a ref might choose to ignore the foul.

The worst calls include 18:05 1st, 17:59 2nd, 11:49 2nd, 8:34 2nd, 6:17 2nd (JP is on the ball before the coach turns to call time), 4:51 2nd, 1:37 2nd

[M T]

I know a number of these stats have been brought up already, but I\'ve finally gotten to the point where I can review them without all the emotions.

Season high of 15 (sorta) unforced turnovers (TO - their Steals), about twice our average.  Thus season high of 22 turnovers (avg 14).  Consequently, we had a season low of 46 field goal attempts (average 60) and a season high against us in FGA differential (19 more shots by them).  Consequently, this tied our season low for points in a game (62).   Their defense (on the passer or receiver) also kept our 3pt attempts at almost the season low (6, avg 17, low 5). Only 13% of our shots were 3 point attempts (normally 29%)  Yet, we made half our attempts.  Our 13 of 19 FT was quite close to our average of 14 of 19.

Both our points off turnovers and 2nd chance points were half our average (10 and 8 vs 19 and 15).  Our rebounding was about normal (38% OR, 69% DR vs avg 42%, 70%).  Our assists/FG ratio was normal.
We had 8 blocks (vs avg of 4) and 8 steals (avg 7).   Although we had a few more fouls than average (18 vs 14), they had fewer free throws than average (10 vs 15), but they made all 10.

They scored 63 points versus our average opponent\'s 55.  Most of their offensive stats are a little above average against us and not particularly remarkable.  Their unforced turnovers (4) tied a season low for us (avg 8).  They only had 4 bench points.  Their 21 points off turnovers was almost double our average (11).  Their second chance points were 16 versus our opponent\'s average of 9.

I\'ll note that I\'m not comparing their numbers against their averages.  I suspect we beat their averages in virtually all categories.

As we know too well, their defense disrupted us.  I am surprised that we didn\'t get off more 3s since we shot them ok.  Once Jeanette started playing the #2, you\'d think she\'d have gotten 3pt opportunities.  But maybe she and Mel were not on the same track, so Jeanette didn\'t get the ball at the right time (if she ever had a right time).

Note only did their players affect our offense, but our defense (steals and such) was not as effective.  The sagging m2m let them get their threes (35%), but I\'m afraid that if we\'d stepped out on them more, they\'d have gotten past us.

The few times that Kayla brought the ball into the front court, good things seemed to happen.  I don\'t know how hurt Toni was, but she seemed effective and didn\'t show signs of pain or lack of ability.

While someone commented on Nneka (3 fouls) failing to challenge on the shot (by a 62% FT shooter in a double bonus situation) with 12 seconds left, I thought the two final plays were the most frustrating.

When A&M had the ball with 9 seconds left, two players were challenging the play, but Lindy was in full retreat and neither challenged nor slowed the dribbler down.  I thought Jeanette played ineffectively on that play as well.  She should have been running full speed to get to a defensive position rather than being approximately parallel to the dribbler.  She seemed to pause at the 3pt line.  A full-on charge by Jeanette of the shooter might have led to a better outcome.

As for the final play, it is unusual to do a Hail Mary pass with 3+ seconds, but ok.  My problem is that no one was near where the pass went.   It looks like the ball went where she meant it to go, but no one was there.  (I still can\'t believe the official told the A&M Asst. Coach to sit and he didn\'t (as required by the rules).)

The TV announcer felt that Jeanette should have played differently on a 3pt shot at 1:33.  I believe she thought Nneka would step out on the player, so she was ready to break to the basket if Adams did.  But Nneka was late thinking of that.  By the time they each realized what happened, they both stepped out on the shooter but were late.

Fans & players tend to obsess on the final plays, but as much difference might have been made on almost any play earlier in the game.  You just don\'t know that it is that critical when 30 or 10 minutes remain in the game.

One final, somewhat heretical comment.  As I watched the game, I thought the ref\'s calls and lack of calls were quite bad.  When I watched it again, reviewing each play, I may not have agreed with the calls, but I didn\'t think they were as bad as when I saw it live.  For instance, on Nneka\'s shot with 9 seconds left, I think there should have been a foul called, but I can see that a ref might choose to ignore the foul.

The worst calls include 18:05 1st, 17:59 2nd, 11:49 2nd, 8:34 2nd, 6:17 2nd (JP is on the ball before the coach turns to call time), 4:51 2nd, 1:37 2nd

[M T]

I know a number of these stats have been brought up already, but I\'ve finally gotten to the point where I can review them without all the emotions.

Season high of 15 (sorta) unforced turnovers (TO - their Steals), about twice our average.  Thus season high of 22 turnovers (avg 14).  Consequently, we had a season low of 46 field goal attempts (average 60) and a season high against us in FGA differential (19 more shots by them).  Consequently, this tied our season low for points in a game (62).   Their defense (on the passer or receiver) also kept our 3pt attempts at almost the season low (6, avg 17, low 5). Only 13% of our shots were 3 point attempts (normally 29%)  Yet, we made half our attempts.  Our 13 of 19 FT was quite close to our average of 14 of 19.

Both our points off turnovers and 2nd chance points were half our average (10 and 8 vs 19 and 15).  Our rebounding was about normal (38% OR, 69% DR vs avg 42%, 70%).  Our assists/FG ratio was normal.
We had 8 blocks (vs avg of 4) and 8 steals (avg 7).   Although we had a few more fouls than average (18 vs 14), they had fewer free throws than average (10 vs 15), but they made all 10.

They scored 63 points versus our average opponent\'s 55.  Most of their offensive stats are a little above average against us and not particularly remarkable.  Their unforced turnovers (4) tied a season low for us (avg 8).  They only had 4 bench points.  Their 21 points off turnovers was almost double our average (11).  Their second chance points were 16 versus our opponent\'s average of 9.

I\'ll note that I\'m not comparing their numbers against their averages.  I suspect we beat their averages in virtually all categories.

As we know too well, their defense disrupted us.  I am surprised that we didn\'t get off more 3s since we shot them ok.  Once Jeanette started playing the #2, you\'d think she\'d have gotten 3pt opportunities.  But maybe she and Mel were not on the same track, so Jeanette didn\'t get the ball at the right time (if she ever had a right time).

Note only did their players affect our offense, but our defense (steals and such) was not as effective.  The sagging m2m let them get their threes (35%), but I\'m afraid that if we\'d stepped out on them more, they\'d have gotten past us.

The few times that Kayla brought the ball into the front court, good things seemed to happen.  I don\'t know how hurt Toni was, but she seemed effective and didn\'t show signs of pain or lack of ability.

While someone commented on Nneka (3 fouls) failing to challenge on the shot (by a 62% FT shooter in a double bonus situation) with 12 seconds left, I thought the two final plays were the most frustrating.

When A&M had the ball with 9 seconds left, two players were challenging the play, but Lindy was in full retreat and neither challenged nor slowed the dribbler down.  I thought Jeanette played ineffectively on that play as well.  She should have been running full speed to get to a defensive position rather than being approximately parallel to the dribbler.  She seemed to pause at the 3pt line.  A full-on charge by Jeanette of the shooter might have led to a better outcome.

As for the final play, it is unusual to do a Hail Mary pass with 3+ seconds, but ok.  My problem is that no one was near where the pass went.   It looks like the ball went where she meant it to go, but no one was there.  (I still can\'t believe the official told the A&M Asst. Coach to sit and he didn\'t (as required by the rules).)

The TV announcer felt that Jeanette should have played differently on a 3pt shot at 1:33.  I believe she thought Nneka would step out on the player, so she was ready to break to the basket if Adams did.  But Nneka was late thinking of that.  By the time they each realized what happened, they both stepped out on the shooter but were late.

Fans & players tend to obsess on the final plays, but as much difference might have been made on almost any play earlier in the game.  You just don\'t know that it is that critical when 30 or 10 minutes remain in the game.

One final, somewhat heretical comment.  As I watched the game, I thought the ref\'s calls and lack of calls were quite bad.  When I watched it again, reviewing each play, I may not have agreed with the calls, but I didn\'t think they were as bad as when I saw it live.  For instance, on Nneka\'s shot with 9 seconds left, I think there should have been a foul called, but I can see that a ref might choose to ignore the foul.

The worst calls include 18:05 1st, 17:59 2nd, 11:49 2nd, 8:34 2nd, 6:17 2nd (JP is on the ball before the coach turns to call time), 4:51 2nd, 1:37 2nd

[M T]

I know a number of these stats have been brought up already, but I\'ve finally gotten to the point where I can review them without all the emotions.

Season high of 15 (sorta) unforced turnovers (TO - their Steals), about twice our average.  Thus season high of 22 turnovers (avg 14).  Consequently, we had a season low of 46 field goal attempts (average 60) and a season high against us in FGA differential (19 more shots by them).  Consequently, this tied our season low for points in a game (62).   Their defense (on the passer or receiver) also kept our 3pt attempts at almost the season low (6, avg 17, low 5). Only 13% of our shots were 3 point attempts (normally 29%)  Yet, we made half our attempts.  Our 13 of 19 FT was quite close to our average of 14 of 19.

Both our points off turnovers and 2nd chance points were half our average (10 and 8 vs 19 and 15).  Our rebounding was about normal (38% OR, 69% DR vs avg 42%, 70%).  Our assists/FG ratio was normal.
We had 8 blocks (vs avg of 4) and 8 steals (avg 7).   Although we had a few more fouls than average (18 vs 14), they had fewer free throws than average (10 vs 15), but they made all 10.

They scored 63 points versus our average opponent\'s 55.  Most of their offensive stats are a little above average against us and not particularly remarkable.  Their unforced turnovers (4) tied a season low for us (avg 8).  They only had 4 bench points.  Their 21 points off turnovers was almost double our average (11).  Their second chance points were 16 versus our opponent\'s average of 9.

I\'ll note that I\'m not comparing their numbers against their averages.  I suspect we beat their averages in virtually all categories.

As we know too well, their defense disrupted us.  I am surprised that we didn\'t get off more 3s since we shot them ok.  Once Jeanette started playing the #2, you\'d think she\'d have gotten 3pt opportunities.  But maybe she and Mel were not on the same track, so Jeanette didn\'t get the ball at the right time (if she ever had a right time).

Note only did their players affect our offense, but our defense (steals and such) was not as effective.  The sagging m2m let them get their threes (35%), but I\'m afraid that if we\'d stepped out on them more, they\'d have gotten past us.

The few times that Kayla brought the ball into the front court, good things seemed to happen.  I don\'t know how hurt Toni was, but she seemed effective and didn\'t show signs of pain or lack of ability.

While someone commented on Nneka (3 fouls) failing to challenge on the shot (by a 62% FT shooter in a double bonus situation) with 12 seconds left, I thought the two final plays were the most frustrating.

When A&M had the ball with 9 seconds left, two players were challenging the play, but Lindy was in full retreat and neither challenged nor slowed the dribbler down.  I thought Jeanette played ineffectively on that play as well.  She should have been running full speed to get to a defensive position rather than being approximately parallel to the dribbler.  She seemed to pause at the 3pt line.  A full-on charge by Jeanette of the shooter might have led to a better outcome.

As for the final play, it is unusual to do a Hail Mary pass with 3+ seconds, but ok.  My problem is that no one was near where the pass went.   It looks like the ball went where she meant it to go, but no one was there.  (I still can\'t believe the official told the A&M Asst. Coach to sit and he didn\'t (as required by the rules).)

The TV announcer felt that Jeanette should have played differently on a 3pt shot at 1:33.  I believe she thought Nneka would step out on the player, so she was ready to break to the basket if Adams did.  But Nneka was late thinking of that.  By the time they each realized what happened, they both stepped out on the shooter but were late.

Fans & players tend to obsess on the final plays, but as much difference might have been made on almost any play earlier in the game.  You just don\'t know that it is that critical when 30 or 10 minutes remain in the game.

One final, somewhat heretical comment.  As I watched the game, I thought the ref\'s calls and lack of calls were quite bad.  When I watched it again, reviewing each play, I may not have agreed with the calls, but I didn\'t think they were as bad as when I saw it live.  For instance, on Nneka\'s shot with 9 seconds left, I think there should have been a foul called, but I can see that a ref might choose to ignore the foul.

The worst calls include 18:05 1st, 17:59 2nd, 11:49 2nd, 8:34 2nd, 6:17 2nd (JP is on the ball before the coach turns to call time), 4:51 2nd, 1:37 2nd

[sheriand]

Lyndy couldn\'t guard.  Toni couldn\'t go.  Mel contributed more than any of us had any right to expect from her.

The statistical analysis is interesting, and becomes more meaningful over time.  It\'s cited frequently in hockey, for example.

We expected some mistakes from Mel.  We didn\'t expect all those minutes and all those positive contributions.

I\'m still shaking my head over Danielle Adams being a 1st team all-American, while Nneka was on the second team.  I\'ve seen Adams on TV before, but this was the first time I saw all the bad body language, the pouting and the like.  I\'ve watched Nneka all year, and she always brings tremendous positive energy.  The difference is hard to quantify.

My friend Larry (who is brilliant) thinks Amber Harris is better than Nneka. I disagree.  Harris flashes tremendous ability at times, but she does not bring the effort 100% of the time, the way Nneka does.

Fantasy baseball players hate Jeter, but in Torre\'s book he wrote how that even has a rookie, Jeter had the ability to inspire his teamates.  When the going got tough he stayed cool and confident.  He was able to relax seasoned veterans, who were in tight spots, with his attitude.

I want to stress that the stats approach is interesting and helpful.  But, Mel\'s play was inspirational, which doesn\'t show up at any particular time on the tape/DVR.  There is no point in the following exercise in self torture, but I think she stops the ball, if she is in there on that last possession,  Kayla doesn\'t have to leave her player...

I am feeling slightly better this morning.  It was a great year, and there is reason to be optimistic about the future!

[sheriand]

Lyndy couldn\'t guard.  Toni couldn\'t go.  Mel contributed more than any of us had any right to expect from her.

The statistical analysis is interesting, and becomes more meaningful over time.  It\'s cited frequently in hockey, for example.

We expected some mistakes from Mel.  We didn\'t expect all those minutes and all those positive contributions.

I\'m still shaking my head over Danielle Adams being a 1st team all-American, while Nneka was on the second team.  I\'ve seen Adams on TV before, but this was the first time I saw all the bad body language, the pouting and the like.  I\'ve watched Nneka all year, and she always brings tremendous positive energy.  The difference is hard to quantify.

My friend Larry (who is brilliant) thinks Amber Harris is better than Nneka. I disagree.  Harris flashes tremendous ability at times, but she does not bring the effort 100% of the time, the way Nneka does.

Fantasy baseball players hate Jeter, but in Torre\'s book he wrote how that even has a rookie, Jeter had the ability to inspire his teamates.  When the going got tough he stayed cool and confident.  He was able to relax seasoned veterans, who were in tight spots, with his attitude.

I want to stress that the stats approach is interesting and helpful.  But, Mel\'s play was inspirational, which doesn\'t show up at any particular time on the tape/DVR.  There is no point in the following exercise in self torture, but I think she stops the ball, if she is in there on that last possession,  Kayla doesn\'t have to leave her player...

I am feeling slightly better this morning.  It was a great year, and there is reason to be optimistic about the future!

[sheriand]

Lyndy couldn\'t guard.  Toni couldn\'t go.  Mel contributed more than any of us had any right to expect from her.

The statistical analysis is interesting, and becomes more meaningful over time.  It\'s cited frequently in hockey, for example.

We expected some mistakes from Mel.  We didn\'t expect all those minutes and all those positive contributions.

I\'m still shaking my head over Danielle Adams being a 1st team all-American, while Nneka was on the second team.  I\'ve seen Adams on TV before, but this was the first time I saw all the bad body language, the pouting and the like.  I\'ve watched Nneka all year, and she always brings tremendous positive energy.  The difference is hard to quantify.

My friend Larry (who is brilliant) thinks Amber Harris is better than Nneka. I disagree.  Harris flashes tremendous ability at times, but she does not bring the effort 100% of the time, the way Nneka does.

Fantasy baseball players hate Jeter, but in Torre\'s book he wrote how that even has a rookie, Jeter had the ability to inspire his teamates.  When the going got tough he stayed cool and confident.  He was able to relax seasoned veterans, who were in tight spots, with his attitude.

I want to stress that the stats approach is interesting and helpful.  But, Mel\'s play was inspirational, which doesn\'t show up at any particular time on the tape/DVR.  There is no point in the following exercise in self torture, but I think she stops the ball, if she is in there on that last possession,  Kayla doesn\'t have to leave her player...

I am feeling slightly better this morning.  It was a great year, and there is reason to be optimistic about the future!

[sheriand]

Lyndy couldn\'t guard.  Toni couldn\'t go.  Mel contributed more than any of us had any right to expect from her.

The statistical analysis is interesting, and becomes more meaningful over time.  It\'s cited frequently in hockey, for example.

We expected some mistakes from Mel.  We didn\'t expect all those minutes and all those positive contributions.

I\'m still shaking my head over Danielle Adams being a 1st team all-American, while Nneka was on the second team.  I\'ve seen Adams on TV before, but this was the first time I saw all the bad body language, the pouting and the like.  I\'ve watched Nneka all year, and she always brings tremendous positive energy.  The difference is hard to quantify.

My friend Larry (who is brilliant) thinks Amber Harris is better than Nneka. I disagree.  Harris flashes tremendous ability at times, but she does not bring the effort 100% of the time, the way Nneka does.

Fantasy baseball players hate Jeter, but in Torre\'s book he wrote how that even has a rookie, Jeter had the ability to inspire his teamates.  When the going got tough he stayed cool and confident.  He was able to relax seasoned veterans, who were in tight spots, with his attitude.

I want to stress that the stats approach is interesting and helpful.  But, Mel\'s play was inspirational, which doesn\'t show up at any particular time on the tape/DVR.  There is no point in the following exercise in self torture, but I think she stops the ball, if she is in there on that last possession,  Kayla doesn\'t have to leave her player...

I am feeling slightly better this morning.  It was a great year, and there is reason to be optimistic about the future!

[Leftcoast]

Jake Curtis provides a blow-by-blow analysis of the end-of-game fouls - here\'s his closing summary.

It added up to the fact that Stanford got to the Final Four four straight years, and has no national titles in that span to show for it.   The Cardinal lost to Tennessee in the 2008 finals and to Connecticut in the 2009 semifinals and the 2010 championship game.  This one had to be the toughest to swallow for two reasons – this is the only one of the four that came down to the final seconds, and A&M was the only one of the four opponents that was not better than Stanford.

http://www.examiner.com/stanford-cardina...semifinals

[Leftcoast]

Jake Curtis provides a blow-by-blow analysis of the end-of-game fouls - here\'s his closing summary.

It added up to the fact that Stanford got to the Final Four four straight years, and has no national titles in that span to show for it.   The Cardinal lost to Tennessee in the 2008 finals and to Connecticut in the 2009 semifinals and the 2010 championship game.  This one had to be the toughest to swallow for two reasons – this is the only one of the four that came down to the final seconds, and A&M was the only one of the four opponents that was not better than Stanford.

http://www.examiner.com/stanford-cardina...semifinals

[Leftcoast]

Jake Curtis provides a blow-by-blow analysis of the end-of-game fouls - here\'s his closing summary.

It added up to the fact that Stanford got to the Final Four four straight years, and has no national titles in that span to show for it.   The Cardinal lost to Tennessee in the 2008 finals and to Connecticut in the 2009 semifinals and the 2010 championship game.  This one had to be the toughest to swallow for two reasons – this is the only one of the four that came down to the final seconds, and A&M was the only one of the four opponents that was not better than Stanford.

http://www.examiner.com/stanford-cardina...semifinals

[Leftcoast]

Jake Curtis provides a blow-by-blow analysis of the end-of-game fouls - here\'s his closing summary.

It added up to the fact that Stanford got to the Final Four four straight years, and has no national titles in that span to show for it.   The Cardinal lost to Tennessee in the 2008 finals and to Connecticut in the 2009 semifinals and the 2010 championship game.  This one had to be the toughest to swallow for two reasons – this is the only one of the four that came down to the final seconds, and A&M was the only one of the four opponents that was not better than Stanford.

http://www.examiner.com/stanford-cardina...semifinals

[treefan]

Like MT, I\'ve wondered what was supposed to happen on that final play. I didn\'t see a Stanford jersey anywhere remotely where the ball went. Either Kayla Pedersen is absolutely the worst passer who ever lived, or there were some blown assignments on the play.

Ruef threw the inbound, not Kayla. Awful play.

[treefan]

Like MT, I\'ve wondered what was supposed to happen on that final play. I didn\'t see a Stanford jersey anywhere remotely where the ball went. Either Kayla Pedersen is absolutely the worst passer who ever lived, or there were some blown assignments on the play.

Ruef threw the inbound, not Kayla. Awful play.

[treefan]

Like MT, I\'ve wondered what was supposed to happen on that final play. I didn\'t see a Stanford jersey anywhere remotely where the ball went. Either Kayla Pedersen is absolutely the worst passer who ever lived, or there were some blown assignments on the play.

Ruef threw the inbound, not Kayla. Awful play.

[treefan]

Like MT, I\'ve wondered what was supposed to happen on that final play. I didn\'t see a Stanford jersey anywhere remotely where the ball went. Either Kayla Pedersen is absolutely the worst passer who ever lived, or there were some blown assignments on the play.

Ruef threw the inbound, not Kayla. Awful play.