Category: Stanford Cardinal

Stanford beats USC in a 79-76 thriller from Maples

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By Joey Friedman

PALO ALTO — The Stanford Cardinal (13-11, 6-6) hosted the USC Trojans (13-12, 6-6) at Maples and won by a final of 79-76 in dramatic fashion.

Just three days ago, The Cardinal displayed one of their worst offensive performances of the season on the road at Oregon. They were held to just 46 total points and shot a meager 27.3% from the field and 16.7% from beyond the arc after missing all of their first 13 shots.

Stanford wore their gray uniforms while USC donned their black ones, which in fact was the same uniform combination featured on highlight reels of last year’s matchup between these two foes during which then-freshman Daejon Davis hit a miracle half-court buzzer-beater to give Stanford the edge in a 77-76 victory.

To start in what was called “a redemption game” by Bryce Wills, Stanford couldn’t find their rhythm offensively without sophomore point guard Daejon Davis in the lineup. He remained out against the Trojans and has sat for the last two games after a head-to-head collision in the road game at Oregon State. He averages 12.6 points per game.

It was more of the same in the early going for the Cardinal at Maples against USC. For much for the first half, they were held to a shooting percentage below 30% and, with 6 minutes left to play, were at their greatest deficit with the score 34-20 in favor of the Trojans.

On the back of 3 first half blocks from Oscar Da Silva, however, they were able to shift the momentum and ended up shortening the deficit to only 5 points when Marcus Sheffield hit Stanford’s first three-pointer of the night with two and a half minutes to play until the break. The Card finished the half shooting just 1-9 from three-point range.

The Trojans took a 40-35 lead to the half while Stanford managed to inch their shooting percentage up to 35%. The only scorer with double digits in the point column in the first half was USC freshman guard Kevin Porter Jr. who had 10 points and 4 rebounds. Stanford sophomores Oscar Da Silva and KZ Okpala each finished the half with 7 points. Entering the game, Stanford was 5-0 in games in which Oscar Da Silva scores more than 13 points.

The Cardinal took their first lead of the night on senior center Josh Sharma’s jump hook with 12 minutes left in the game and the score 52-51. The jump hook gave Sharma his 9th and 10th points of the night. Both he and KZ Okpala combined for 14 of Stanford’s first 17 points in the second half.

Stanford capped a productive first 12 minutes of the second half with another Marcus Sheffield three-pointer by which time the Cardinal had extended their lead to 6 points with the score 64-58 after making 8 of their last 9 shots from the field. Through the first 12 minutes of the second half alone, both offense and defense flowed and Stanford had amassed a 65% shooting percentage, had forced 7 turnovers, and had converted those turnovers into 9 points.

The Trojans responded with a 10-0 run over the next two and a half minutes to take a four-point lead before KZ Okpala made a jumper and Marcus Sheffield, once again, hit another three-pointer to give Stanford a 69-68 lead with 3:45 remaining.

The Trojans and Cardinal exchanged blows until, with a four-point deficit and under 50 seconds left in the game, Marcus Sheffield nailed a three-pointer to put Stanford within one point. Stanford defended well and forced a turnover on a poor pass from USC junior forward Nick Rakocevic.

On the next offensive possession, Stanford pulled ahead for the final time on an acrobatic Bryce Wills and-1 layup. After Wills’ missed a free throw, USC had a chance to respond with 12 seconds left, but the Trojans were once again well-defended by the Card and senior forward Bennie Boatwright missed what would’ve been a game-winning jumper. After a successive Bryce Wills rebound, USC hopelessly fouled Wills before he ironed out the 79-76 win with a pair of made free throws.

For the Cardinal, in Daejon Davis’ absence, 5 players stepped up and scored 10 or more points, most notably KZ Okpala had 18 points and Marcus Sheffield had a personal season-high 16 points (4-6 on three-point shots). Josh Sharma had 14 points and 9 rebounds, Bryce Wills had 11 points and 6 rebounds, and Oscar Da Silva had 10 points and 8 rebounds. Stanford finished by shooting a total of 46% from the field and 32% from three (6-19).

For the Trojans, Bennie Boatwright finished with a team-high 19 points and 6 rebounds, Jonah Matthews finished with 16 points, Nick Rakocevic finished with 15 points and 9 rebounds, and Kevin Porter Jr. finished with 10 points and 5 rebounds. USC shot the lights out, especially from beyond the arc when they shot 48.1% from the field and 58.3% from distance.

What’s next?
Stanford will host UCLA on Saturday for a 7 PM evening tip before going on their last regular season road trip of the season as they visit the Washington schools.

USC will do battle with the struggling Cal Bears in Berkeley at 5 PM on Saturday before they host the Oregon schools in their last regular season homestand.

Stanford returns home to host USC Wednesday night

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By: Ana Kieu

The Stanford Cardinal held onto a three-game winning streak with wins over Oregon State, Cal and Colorado, and Oscar da Silva averaged 17.0 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. But the Cardinal (12-11, 5-6 Pac-12) dug themselves in a hole and never recovered as the Oregon Ducks (15-9, 6-5 Pac-12) on Sunday evening as they were routed by 20-plus points in a 69-46 loss at the Matthew Knight Arena.

While the Matthew Knight Arena may not have been as loud as the Autzen Stadium, the Ducks men’s basketball team draws a decent amount of fans, too. After all, Oregon is a pretty prominent university, despite what the East Coast media guys and gals might say. The Ducks currently rank fifth in the Pac-12 standings.

In case you missed it, Stanford was held to 46 points for the second time this season, making 15-of-55 field goal attempts (27 percent) for their second-worst shooting night of the season. Oregon, however, hit 44 percent from the field (26-of-59) and held a 41-37 rebounding edge. The Ducks cruised to a 69-46 loss. Payton Pritchard led the Ducks with 20 points. Louis Kings scored 16 points and Victor Bailey came off the bench to score 11 points. When it came down to defense, Kenny Wooten matched his career high with seven blocks.

The Ducks won four of their last five games, while the Cardinal suffered a tough loss. Of course, Stanford can rebound and defeat the rival USC Trojans (13-11, 6-5 Pac-12), but that’s going to take some work, as USC is three steps ahead in the Pac-12 standings. Stanford can’t afford to go through another shooting slump in the early moments of the first half as they recently wrapped their second-worst, first-half shooting performance of the 2019 season with only 27.3 percent from the field.

The Cardinal left the Beaver State with a split of the Oregon-based schools, but until good news comes along, they remain without the services of Daejon Davis, who suffered a head-to-head injury last Thursday against Oregon State. The Cardinal now turn their attention to their upcoming homestand as they’ll play five of their next seven games at home, which can benefit them if home court advantage helps them in their favor. The Cardinal just have to get to take on USC Wednesday evening at 8:00 pm PT on ESPNU.

Notes: The Cardinal wished the best to Washington Wizards point guard and Stanford alum Chasson Randle, who was given the nod after Czech point guard and shooting guard Tomas Satoransky was out Monday due to a personal matter. Randle, a Rockland, Ill. native, attended Rock Island High School and Stanford University. Randle went undrafted in the 2015 NBA Draft and played in the states as well as abroad until re-signing with the Wizards on Dec. 18, 2018.

Ducks shut down struggling Cardinal 69-46

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By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Sunday, February 10, 2019

Leading from wire-to-wire, Oregon cruised to a 69-46 Pac-12 men’s basketball victory over visiting Stanford Sunday in Eugene, Ore., as the Ducks have won four of their last five games.

Payton Pritchard’s 20 points led the Ducks (15-9 overall, 6-5 Pac-12), along with 16 points from Louis King and Victor Bailey’s 11 points off the bench. Defensively, Kenny Wooten matched his career high with seven blocks. King also had seven rebounds.

Bryce Wills, a freshman who is the Pac-12’s youngest player, paced the Cardinal (12-11, 5-6) with 13 points. KZ Okpala was held to 10 points – nearly eight below his average. Josh Sharma scored eight points and grabbed 10 rebounds.

In an overall miserable night for the Cardinal, Stanford was held to 46 points for the second time this season, making 15 of 55 field goal attempts (27 percent), its second-worst shooting night of the season.

Meanwhile, Oregon hit 44 percent from the field (26 of 59) and held a 41-37 rebounding edge.

The Cardinal opened the game by missing 21 of their first 22 shots – five of them blocked by Wooten – and Oregon led 16-2 13 minutes into the game. Oregon led 30-20 at halftime.

The Cardinal were without the services of point guard Daejon Davis, who sat out Sunday’s game after suffering a head-to-head injury on Thursday against Oregon State. A Stanford official would only comment that Davis was unavailable due to an unspecified injury.

Stanford returns home on Wednesday night to host Southern California. Tipoff set for 8:00 pm PT.

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Joey Friedman: Cardinal’s Pickens leads with offensive game against WSU

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On the Stanford Cardinal podcast with Joey:

#1 The Stanford Cardinal (9-8) got a win over Washington State (8-8) at Pullman on Thursday night 79-70.

#2 The Cardinal’s Dorian Pickens led the Cardinal with 28 points and Pickens got a three-pointerat 1:16 left to help the Cardinal in their nine-point win.

#3 KZ Okpala scored 21 points and Daejon Davis scored 6-7 field goals and 15 points.

#4 WSU’s Malachi Flynn led the Cougars with 24 points and had seven three-pointers.

#5 The Cardinal play at Oregon this Sunday at 5 pm.

Joey Friedman does the Stanford podcast each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Stanford wraps up road trip in Oregon on Sunday

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By: Ana Kieu

In case you missed it, Stanford Cardinal men’s basketball throttled the Oregon State Beavers 83-60 for its third win in a row. Oscar da Silva matched his career-high with 23 points in the throttle. da Silva also recorded nine rebounds and a career-high seven assists.

da Silva told the media: “I tried to be aggressive right from the get-go. I tried to take it at their bigs, get into their zone from the high post, and that worked really well.”

Aside from da Silva, the Cardinal’s leading scorers featured the likes of Josh Sharma, who had 20 points and eight rebounds, and Daejon Davis, who added 11 points on three three-pointers. The Cardinal (12-10, 5-5 Pac-12) have won four of their last five games. The Ducks (14-9, 5-5 Pac-12) are just one step ahead of the Cardinal in the Pac-12 conference, but they’re carrying one win to the home court inside the Matthew Knight Arena, so the Cardinal should prepare for the conference matchup if they haven’t already done so.

The Ducks’ last win came at home versus the California Golden Bears, a rival of the Cardinal, on Wednesday, February 6 by a final score of 73-62.

As you can see from the two tweets above, da Silva’s a crucial part of the Cardinal roster. The 6’9″ German sophomore forward has room for growth, but he has been destroying it on the hardwood, like, say, at Oregon State, where he shamelessly attacked the Beavers defense along with the nation’s leading shot blocker, Kylor Kelly. Kelly had 17 points before the break.

I’d also like to note that the Cardinal went on a whopping 11-2 run that put them in the driver’s seat with a far-fetched lead 71-52 with 4:28 left in the game. That run, my friends, was capped off by a three-pointer from Marcus Sheffield, a junior guard and forward from Alpharetta, Ga.

“We’re growing up. Slowly but surely,” said Stanford head coach Jerod Haase. “Overall, we’re trending the right way. The guys are playing hard, they’re playing together, and they believe in what we’re doing.”

With that said, Stanford will stick around the Beaver State for a few more days before they travel to Eugene, Ore. to take on the Ducks, who will likely be a tough customer. But we’ll see what happens next, okay?

After that, Stanford returns home on Wednesday, February 13 to host the USC Trojans at Maples Pavilion. Tipoff set for 8:00 pm PT on ESPNU.

Cardinal come from behind to upend Cougars 83-60

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By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Thursday, February 7, 2019

Thanks to a big night from Dorian Pickens, punctuated by timely shooting, Stanford traveled to Pullman, Wash., and defeated Washington State 79-70 Thursday in Pac-12 men’s basketball.

Pickens bagged a career-high 28 points, including a crucial 3-pointer with 1:16 to play in the second half. Pickens also made 7-of-10 from behind the arc.

Freshman KZ Okpala was next for Stanford with a career-high 21 points and Daejon Davis hit 6-of-7 field goals and finished with 15 points for the Cardinal (9-8 overall, 3-1 Pac-12).

Malachi Flynn led WSU (8-8, 0-4) with 24 points, including seven 3s. Milan Acquaah was next for the Cougars with 10 points, and Drick Bernstine added eight points and pulled down 12 rebounds.

Robert Franks, who came into the game leading WSU with 17.3 points per game, was held to eight points while committing six of the Cougars’ 22 turnovers.

With the Cougars leading 55-47, Washington State’s Kwinton Hinson committed a hard foul on Stanford’s Reid Travis, and the players had to be separated. From that point, the Cardinal roared to a nearly 10-minute, 21-3 run, taking a 68-58 lead with 6:26 remaining.

The Cougars pulled to within three points twice, but Pickens hit a pair of 3-pointers that helped Stanford hold on for its third straight win.

Stanford, which rallied for victories after being down 13 at UCLA and down 15 against USC, trailed Washington State 45-38 at the half.

A game official collided with a Cougars player in the second half, was injured, and had to leave the game.

The Cardinal travel to Oregon to face the Ducks on Sunday at 5:00 pm PT.

Stanford stops by Oregon State on Thursday

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By: Ana Kieu

The Stanford Cardinal, coming off a two-game winning streak, made sure to pay the Oregon State Beavers a visit inside the Gill Coliseum in Corvallis, Ore. Thursday night. The tipoff has been set to 7:00 pm PT on the Pac-12 Network.

The Cardinal’s last two wins occurred at Cal in a 84-81 thriller on February 3rd and at home–Maples Pavilion–versus the Colorado State Buffaloes 75-62 on January 26th. The Cardinal has been a wishy-washy team this season, but at least they aren’t in the abyss like my alma mater, San Jose State Spartans, or some other hapless men’s basketball team out there.

Anyways, the Cardinal and Cal Bears were more of a Bay Area rivalry than anything else. The Cardinal has to be focused on the road ahead in the Pacific Northwest as the Beavers and Ducks will likely be tough customers. And, of course, the home court advantage that often shifts the game in favor of the home team.

Cardinal head coach Jerod Haase told the local media that Bryce Wills has been making plays and growing each game. Wills currently holds a career-high of 16 points. That’s definitely a good thing as the Cardinal need all the help they can get.

Before the Stanford vs. Oregon State game, it was announced that KZ Okpala was named one of ten finalists for the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award. Okpala was joined by Gonzaga’s Rui Hachimura, Virginia’s De’Andre Hunter, Kentucky’s Keldon Johnson, Nevada’s Caleb Martin, Michigan’s Charles Matthews, Tennessee’s Admiral Schofield, Iowa State’s Marial Shayok, Oregon State’s Tres Tinkle, and Belmont’s Dylan Windler.

Okpala leads Stanford in scoring (18.1 points per game), rebounding (6.1 rebounds per game), three-point field goal percentage (.410), free throws (87) and minutes (33.0 mpg). He ranks third in the Pac-12 in scoring, fifth in three-point field goal percentage, and 14th in rebounding. In conference play, the forward is averaging 20.4 points per game (ranks second) and 6.1 rebounds per game.

Okpala scored a career-high 30 points at Cal and leads the Pac-12 with 12 games of 20 points or more this season. He’s one of 10 individuals in the nation to average 21.0 points per game or better in their last six games.

“KZ has been a rock for us,” said the Cardinal’s Anne and Tony Joseph Director of Men’s Basketball. “He’s a foundational piece for everything we do. There’s so much more for him to grow, but he’s really developing very quickly. He certainly deserves the recognition. It is great to see him among the 10 candidates for this prestigious award.”

The nation has been taking notice of Okpala, including ESPN College Basketball Analyst Jay Bilas.

Stanford’s KZ Okpala leads the Cardinal to a 84-81 win over the Cal Bears

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By Jerry Feitelberg

The Stanford Cardinal tipped off against the Cal Bears Sunday afternoon at Haas Pavilion. The Bears have been struggling all season long and the Cardinal entered the game with a mediocre record of 10-10. As followers of both schools know, records do not count when the two teams meet in any type of athletic competition. The Bears, 0-8 in Pac-12 play, wanted desperately to beat the Cardinal. Conversely, The Cardinal did not want to be the first Pac-12 team to be beaten by the Bears.

The teams went at it tooth and nail in the first 20 minutes of action. The lead changed hands several times and the game was tied at least three times in the first half. The Bears led 29-24 when Justice Sueing made a bucket and was fouled on the play. He then made the free throw. The Cardinal’s Cormac Ryan hit a three and Lukas Kisunas followed with his first basket of the night to tie the score at 29. The teams tied again at 31 and 35 each. Cal’s Matt Bradley knocked down a three to make it 38-35. Stanford made a basket and the first half finished with the Bears ahead 38-37. Okpala led the Cardinal with 11 points. Oscar da Silva and Daejon Davis each had 5. Sueing led the Bears with 10. Big Connor Vanover, who is 7 feet 3 inches tall contributed 8. Paris Austin had 6.

It was more of the same in the second half. Neither team would give an inch. If one team went on a small run, the other team fought back to either tie the game or take the lead. Stanford led early, but Cal came back to tie. The Bears tied at 58. The Bears led 66-51 but Stanford kept coming back and the Cardinal, led by KZ Okapala’s 30 points, was able to hold off the Bears as the won 84-81.

Here’s how the game ended. he Bears’ Matt Bradley drove the baseline for an apparent tying bucket. The Cardinal’s big Josh Sharma appeared to have fouled Bradley on the play. After a review, the call was reversed and the ball given to the Cardinal. Had Bradley been awarded the free throws, he could have tied the game. The Cardinal had the ball and ran out the clock to win the game 84-81.

Game Notes: The loss was the Bears tenth in a row and matches the longest streak in school history. The Bears are 5-16 for the season and 0-9 in the Pac-12. The Cardinal’s record is now 11-10 and they are 4-5 in the Pac-12.

Okpala had a career-high of 30 points to lead Stanford. Bryce Wills had 16, Daejon Davis 14, Oscar Da Silva 7 Cormac Ryan, 7. Justice Sueing paced the Bears with 23. Paris Austin had 15, Matt Bradley 13, and Connor Vanover 15.

While this is the third year in a row that the Cardinal is having a so-so season, there is a reason to have hope that the future will be brighter for Stanford as 11 of the 15 players on the squad are either freshman or sophomores. That should bode well for Cardinal coach Jerrod Haase.

Up Next: The Cardinal return to action Thursday night when they face the Oregon State Beavers in Corvallis, Ore.

Stanford Cardinal basketball podcast with Joey Friedman: Cardinal come out swinging, hold a lead in 75-62 win against Colorado

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On the Stanford Cardinal podcast with Joey:

#1 The Cardinal (10-10) came off a loss to the Utah Utes prior to last Saturday’s game. With the Colorado Buffaloes (11-8) and the Cardinal, who came in with some motivation, pulled off a win 75-62.

#2 Dorian Pickens was key for Stanford’s last season’s lead as he led with 18 points and the Cardinal who behind 16 points came back against Colorado showing the Cardinal trying win these games against Colorado. The Buffaloes rattled off six points with Tyler Bey’s help.

#3 Cormac Ryan did not play. He continues to sit out with ankle concerns.

#4 Sophomore Oscar Da Silva scored all of Stanford’s first eight points, which included a pair of threes in the first five minutes.

#5 The Cardinal next head to Berkeley to take on Cal on February 3rd in the first of three road games.

Joey Friedman does the Stanford Cardinal basketball podcast each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Stanford erupts in the second half to beat the Buffaloes 75-62

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By Joey Friedman

PALO ALTO — Coming off a disappointing four-point loss to the Utah Utes at home two nights ago, the Stanford Cardinal (10-10, 3-5 Pac-12) hosted the Colorado Buffaloes (11-8, 2-5 Pac-12) at Maples Pavilion for a Saturday evening tip and won by a score of 75-62 in front of 3,648 fans.

Stanford looked to avenge last year’s close loss to Colorado on the road. Down by 16, they roared back with help from then-senior Pickens when he scored a game-high 18 points before Colorado bounced back with 6 straight points, mostly from then-freshman Tyler Bey) to close out the win.

Cormac Ryan did not play. He continues to sit out with ankle concerns.

Sophomore Oscar Da Silva scored all of Stanford’s first eight points which included a pair of threes in the first five minutes. He would add another three and top out at 13 points to pair with 5 rebounds in the first half. His third first-half three-pointer gave Da Silva his 20th three in the last 12 games.

KZ followed up his conference-leading 11th 20+ point game on Thursday night against the Utes by failing to score in the first half for the Cardinal, despite playing 12 minutes.

With about four minutes to play in the first half, freshman Jaiden Delaire and junior Marcus Sheffield nailed consecutive threes to bring the Colorado lead down to 6. Stanford would head to the locker room at half down by the same margin with the score 37-31 in favor of the Buffs. Ahead of the Colorado game, Stanford was just 1-9 on the season when trailing at the half.

Colorado spread out their scoring in their first half, making it difficult for Stanford to defend. Sophomore G/F Tyler Bey, junior forward Lucas Siewert, and senior guard McKinley Wright each finished with 8 points in the first half. The first two of whom also collected 4 rebounds respectively. Junior guard Shane Gatling also finished the first half with 7 points.

Stanford stifled the Buffaloes with three minutes of shutout defense at the beginning of the 2nd half and was able to crawl within 2 points with the score 43-41. A number of possessions later, a Daejon Davis alley-oop to Josh Sharma got the Cardinal within a single point before Sharma threw another dunk down to give Stanford the lead. Immediately after, Daejon Davis hit a three to put the Card up by four with just under 11 minutes left in the game and the score 50-46.

With four minutes left in the game, sophomores Daejon Davis and Oscar Da Silva collected consecutive three-point plays on and-one layups to put Stanford up 68-56. Stanford would go on to win by a score of 75-62. In the second half, Stanford shot 72% from the field and outscored the Buffs by 19 points.

Stanford finished by shooting 55% from the field, 35% from beyond the arc, and an impressive 88% from the free-throw line. Colorado shot 41% from the field, 19% from beyond the arc, and a disappointing 54% from the free-throw line. By the end, Stanford finished almost or exactly even with Colorado in rebounds (29-29), points in the paint (42-40 advantage to the Buffs), and assists (14-13 advantage to the Card). Stanford and Colorado finished with 16 and 11 turnovers, respectively.

Individually for the Cardinal, Oscar Da Silva missed tying his career high in points by 2 when finished with 21 alongside 7 rebounds. Daejon Davis scored 16 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds. Bryce Wills missed tying his career high in points by 1 when finished with 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. KZ Okpala finished with five points (2-8 from the field), 2 rebounds, and an assist.

For the Buffaloes, Tyler Bey finished with 17 points, McKinley Wright finished with 14 points, Lucas Siewert finished with 13 points, and Shane Gatling finished with 10 points.

Jerod Hasse credited tonight’s game as the best performance he’s seen from his young team in terms of playing simple and controlled basketball once they penetrate and get into the lanes. He, Oscar Da Silva, and Daejon Davis all said playing with joy tonight allowed for every facet of the game to flow better, especially in the second half.

What’s next?
The Cardinal will play three consecutive road games: first, they will battle the rival California Bears on February 3rd at 1:00 PM PT before they take on the Oregon schools on the road on February 7th and 10th.

The Buffaloes will host the Oregon schools on January 31st and February 2nd. Before traveling to face the Los Angeles schools.