By Jeremy Harness

STANFORD – Sunday’s game at Maples Pavilion was, in a lot of ways, a microcosm of how Stanford’s entire season has gone thus far.

The Cardinal started off strong in the first half but hit a snag before roaring back in the second half to take the lead. Then a back-breaking turnover by Chasson Randle and a trio of free throws made by Oregon in the final minute of a tie game sent the Cardinal reeling off the court after a 73-70 loss that planted them in fifth place in the Pac-12 standings with two games to play in the regular season.

In other words, Stanford (18-10, 9-7 Pac-12) is once again a middle-of-the-road basketball team that is capable of a big splash early but has yet to show that it is a top-flight program under coach Johnny Dawkins, who has been rumored to be on the hot seat for the past two years.

Meanwhile, Oregon (22-8, 12-5 Pac-12) continued its upward trend, winning its fourth straight game and is on its way to cementing its third position in the Pac-12 with one game to play before the conference tournament starts.

The Ducks’ game plan on Sunday was to turn high-scoring guard Chasson Randle into a distributor and dare someone else to beat them, a strategy that worked wonderfully for Oregon at the tail end of the first half.

Randle only had five points and three shots in the first 20 minutes, and the rest of the team struggled to knock down shots with any consistency. Stanford shot only 36 percent from the floor while making only one of their seven 3-point attempts.

While the Cardinal misfired from the field late in the first half, Oregon was afforded the opportunity to get back into the game, and the Ducks grabbed the lead late in the half and led 36-30 at the break.

Early in the second half, the lighting on one side of the arena, as well as most of the scoreboard, had the power go out, and at the same time, Stanford began to rally. While Oregon’s offense slowed down, the Cardinal found the range from behind the arc, as Randle awoke from his slumber to score five points in the first five minutes of the half to help bring the game to a 44-44 tie.

Randle finished with 17 points on 6-of-18 shooting, and his ability to maneuver with the ball in traffic kept the Stanford offense on track for two reasons: either he was able to finish at the rim, or his highly-contested layups allowed for several offensive-rebound opportunities, on which the Cardinal repeatedly cashed in.

The comeback was complete when Stefan Nastic’s three-point play gave Stanford the lead back, 47-44 with 13:44 left.

Oregon was driven by Joseph Young and Elgin Cook – each of them finished with 21 points – as well as Dwayne Benjamin, who had 15, and each had a hand in keeping the Ducks in the game and giving them the lead back in the final two minutes.

After tying the game on two Nastic free throws, Stanford had a big chance to once again seize control with 47 seconds left, as they trapped along the baseline and created a turnover.

The Cardinal could not get the final breakthrough, though. On the ensuing possession, while working off the pick-and-roll that had been instrumental in their rally, Randle threw a bad pass right to Benjamin, who was fouled before he could rise up and dunk.

He made one of his two foul shots, giving the Ducks a one-point lead with 14 seconds left while Stanford had the last shot for the victory. However, Randle’s last weave through traffic was not successful, and Young was fouled and made both of his free throws.

The loss was sealed when the Cardinal, with no time-outs left, could get the ball out of the backcourt with three seconds left.