Tag: Stanford Cardinal

Stanford Cardinal defeated 77-74 by archival Cal Bears in Pac-12 opener

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Photo: @StanfordMBB

By Alexandra Evans

PALO ALTO—The Stanford Cardinal Men’s Basketball team faced their first Pac-12 opponent of the season and cross-Bay Area rivals, the California Golden Bears, at Maples Pavillion two days before the new year.

Don Coleman, Marcus Lee, Justice Sueing, Nick Hamilton, and Darius McNeill started for the visiting Golden Bears. Kezie Okpala, Daejon Davis, Reid Travis, Michael Humphrey, and Dorian Pickens (who was out with an injury earlier this season) started for the Cardinal.

Cal’s Marcus Lee made the first basket of the game 17 seconds in, and Stanford’s Michael Humphrey made the second basket 13 seconds later. Cal made another two baskets over the course of 24 seconds and exceeded Stanford by four points at the 1:25 mark, until Reid Travis got a layup 15 seconds later at the 1:40 mark and Dorian Pickens made a three-pointer at 2:16, commencing Stanford’s lead over Cal, which would gradually increase throughout the first half.

Stanford’s Michael Humphrey more than doubled the lead just over 4 minutes in (13-6), and Stanford upped their lead to 10 points at the halfway point of the first 20 minutes. The score more than doubled again at the 12-minute mark (25-12) when Kezie Okpala made a jumper, assisted by Robert Cartwright.

The energy on the court and in the stands amped up significantly in the remaining five minutes of the first half, during which Stanford did not let their lead drop below 11 points. Humphrey made a dunk at 18:06 which put the Cardinal at a 14-point lead over the Bears, followed by a three-pointer from Dorian Pickens, bringing the lead to 17 points and then down to 15 after Cal’s Justice Sueing made two free throws following a foul on Oscar da Silva. Coleman made a three-pointer for the Bears with 30 seconds left in the half, and the Cardinal exceeded the Bears 37-24 at halftime.

Cal would slowly catch up to Stanford throughout the second half, and eventually exceed them. Coleman made the first basket, cutting Stanford’s lead over Cal to 11 points, and then by 10 points at the 3:18 mark when Lee got a jumper. Humphrey scored for Stanford, then Sueing for Cal, and the Cardinal’s lead was once again a point away from the single digits. Every time Stanford’s lead was cut to 10 points, they would score again to keep their lead above it through the first 10 minutes of the second half. Lee dunked for Cal, and less than a minute later, Josh Sharma made a jumper followed by a layup from Travis, giving Stanford a 15-point lead (55-40) at 6:43. The score was 60-45 just after the 10-minute mark, courtesy of Humphrey’s layup. 20 seconds later, McNeill got a 3-pointer for Cal. Stanford attained a 17 point lead after a 3-pointer from Davis with 9:28 remaining in the half.

Stanford’s lead was cut to single-digits when Cal’s Kingsley Okoroh got a layup with 6:12 left; they only led Cal by nine points. Coleman got a layup almost a minute after Okoroh, bringing the score to 66-59. Humphrey dunked for the Cardinal, inching the way back to a double-digit lead. He made a jumper one minute after his dunk and brought Stanford’s lead to 11 points once again. However, McNeill made a three-pointer for Cal directly after, followed by two layups and a free-throw from Sueing; Cal trailed by only three points. Travis quickly retaliated for Stanford with a layup and a free throw, bringing their lead up to six points. With 1:17 left in the game, Grant Anticevich made a three-pointer for Cal, making the score 73-72, giving Cardinal fans a “sudden death” feeling. Sueing got a layup and a free throw, and the Bears led the Cardinal for the first time since the beginning of the match (73-75). Travis was given two free throw opportunities with 20 seconds left in the match, only one of which he made. Davis was then fouled for Stanford, and Coleman, with two free-throw opportunities, made both for Cal with 17 seconds remaining. Travis had a chance at a three-pointer in the final seconds, but could not make it past Cal’s defense.

The Bears took home a 77-74 win.

“You go into every game confident that you’re going to win,” Humphrey said after being asked about the expectations of facing an identically ranked team. “We were all fired up to play [a rivalry game]. We wanted to start off Pac-12 play the right way, but we didn’t do that.”

Stanford struggled to make a majority of their free throws, which could have been the “make or break” of the overall score.

“I’ve probably worked more with free throws and shot more with [Stanford] than any other team I’ve ever had,” said Coach Jerod Haase. “To miss 16 free throws is going to be a problem. Ideally, you don’t get into that situation if the lead [in points] is a little bit bigger.”

Haase continued, “The experience and the cohesion of playing together is still growing, as is the execution of everything we are doing. But at the end of the day, you find ways to get stops at the end of a game… this game is going to sting, it’s going to hurt, but I feel as though we are building a foundation of something special.”

Both Stanford and Cal were 6-7 going into the match; one could argue that the outcome was going to be unpredictable. Stanford’s leader in points, Travis, averages 21.4 points per game (almost double that of his runner-up, Michael Humphrey, who has an average of 11.6 points per game). Cal’s point leader, Coleman, averages 20.5 points per game.

The Stanford Men’s Basketball team will commence the new year with a home match against the UCLA Bruins on January 4, 2018 at 7:00 p.m.

Cal Bears Podcast with Michael Duca and Morris Phillips: Cal trying to put bad taste of Portland State behind them; Stanford up next at the Farm

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AP File: California guard Don Coleman (14) scored 19 points brings the ball up court during NCAA Men’s Basketball game between Portland State Vikings and California Golden Bears 81-106 lost at Hass Pavilion Berkeley Calif. Thurman James / CSM (Cal Sport Media via AP Images)

By Michael Duca and Morris Phillips

BERKELEY–The game that Portland State and Cal played on Thursday, December 21st at Haas Pavilion wound up as a Vikings’ 106-81 win. Before that game, the Bears who were on a two game streak were looking good and making some progress they were getting better each time out they pulled themselves to a .500 record at 6-6. Then they laid a whole clutch of eggs right before Christmas time.

It’s almost as if they went out and scheduled mid majors that were guaranteed to shock assessing the case of Portland State and Central Arkansas who the Bears hosted in Berkeley these are good teams. It’s just not pigeonholed into some kind of fodder for a power five conference team. So Cal got the brunt of that. The unfortunate thing is they got the brunt of it at home, in the first half, in the first 10 minutes of the game. The Bears simply struggled against this opponent.

Morris and Michael have much more on the Cal Bears Basketball Podcast and each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Stanford Cardinal defeat Denver Pioneers 75-62 at home

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Photo: @StanfordMBB

By Alexandra Evans

PALO ALTO–The Stanford Cardinal men’s basketball team returned home from Southern California (after getting defeated by Long Beach State 76-68 on Sunday, December 3) to face, and defeat, the University of Denver Pioneers.

Stanford, who recently endured four consecutive defeats before winning two of the three most recent matches, kept a lead over Denver the entire match, even though the Pioneers trailed close at various moments.

In addition to the Cardinal’s 75-62 win, this match also marked freshman Daejon Davis’ career-peaking game to date as his first college quarter comes to a close. The stars of the game were and Davis and Reid Travis, who each put up 20 points.

”With the long [5 day] stretch off, coach [Haase] really held us accountable on everything,” Davis said. ”The level of focus on the little things helped us.”

Even the Pioneers’ coach, Rodney Billups, had to acknowledge Davis’ acceleration.

“Davis got hot. We didn’t anticipate him making so many shots. If you look at his season stats from behind the arc, we would have bet that he would not make so many tonight. But good players make plays,” Billups said.

Isaac White was the runner-up for Stanford. He put up 17 points and contended that being under .500 is “unacceptable.” Losing teams do not make NCAA tournaments, White explained, clearly wanting to compensate for the Cardinal’s recent streak of losses.

”We got a win. That was the number one thing,” Jerod Haase, Stanford’s coach, said following the match, also noting that the team was much stronger offensively tonight.

The Cardinal will face the University of San Francisco Dons this Sunday, December 17, at 3:00 p.m.

Long Beach State rallies to upend Cardinal 76-68

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Photo credit: Stanford Cardinal

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Sunday, December 3, 2017

Despite the efforts of junior Reid Travis, the Stanford Cardinal dropped a 78-66 men’s basketball decision to the Long Beach State 49ers Sunday in a non-conference game at Walter Pyramid.

Travis posted his third double-double of the season, scoring a game-high 26 points and pulling down 11 rebounds. It was the seventh time Travis has topped the 20-point mark this season, scoring 18 of his points in the second half.

Stanford (4-6) led by as many as five points midway through the second half before the 49ers (4-6) rallied to take the lead with eight minutes to play.

Travis scored eight straight points to pull the Cardinal to within 62-61 at 3:21 of the second half. Long Beach State responded with an 8-0 run in the final three minutes, scoring 14 of the game’s last 21 points.

Jordan Griffin scored eight straight points during the 49ers game-clinching run. Griffin led LBSU with 21 points, followed by Bryan Alberts (15), Gave Levin (13) and Deishaun Booker (13).

Freshman Isaac White added 17 points for the Cardinal, and senior Michael Humphrey had 13 points and six rebounds.

The 49ers scored 17 points off 17 Stanford turnovers. LBSU outshot the Cardinal 51 percent (28-55) to 49 percent (28 of 57, 6-19 3-pointers), including 45 percent from 3-point range (10 of 22).

At the free throw line, LBSU hit 63 percent from the stripe (10 of 16), while Stanford was 60 percent (6 of 10).

The Cardinal held a 37-24 rebounding edge and collected five steals.

After a break for final exams, the Cardinal return to action on Friday, Dec. 19, hosting the Denver Pioneers at 7 p.m. PST at Maples Pavilion.

USC outlasts Stanford 31-28 to become Pac-12 champs for the first time since 2008

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Southern California quarterback Sam Darnold (14) and teammates celebrate after defeating Stanford 31-28 in the Pac-12 Conference championship NCAA college football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Friday, Dec. 1, 2017. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

By Morris Phillips

SANTA CLARA, CA–Tense, close and littered with pivotal plays, the Pac-12 Championship Game was, for once, a whale of a ballgame.

USC kept Stanford from gaining its first lead with a fourth quarter, goal line stand and went on to capture the conference title, winning 31-28. The Trojans became Pac-12 Champs for the first time since 2008, ending a period lowlighted by NCAA sanctions, coaching changes and for their tastes, too many losses to Stanford.

“We knew it would be a fourth quarter game,” USC coach Clay Helton said. “It would be four quarters. Credit to these guys, you go all the way through the season, how they finish games is amazing to me. They’re the best finishing bunch I’ve been associated with in my 23 years of college coaching.”

The Trojans preserved their 24-21 lead with eight minutes remaining by stuffing Cameron Scarlett on consecutive plays at the goal line. But peril wasn’t far removed until quarterback Sam Darnold got USC moving with a 54-yard pass and run to Michael Pittman that got the Trojans off the goal line and into what would be their game-winning drive. Five times on the eight-play drive, back Ronald Jones II would handle the ball culminating with his eight-yard touchdown run with 4:22 remaining.

While Jones finished with 140 yards rushing on 30 carries, Stanford standout Bryce Love settled for 125 yards on 22 carries. The difference? Jones had something left in his tank off two weeks rest, and was around for the Trojans’ final scoring drive. Love, the Heisman candidate, was still hampered by his nagging, ankle injury only six days after a bruising game against Notre Dame. Consequently, when Stanford threatened to take the lead, Scarlett spelled Love and was stuffed twice at the goal line.

“We made enough plays to keep it close but not enough plays to win,” coach David Shaw explained. “The sequence of fourth-and-1 to take the lead in the Pac-12 championship game, there’s no hesitation at all. That’s what we’re going to do.”

Love was questioned later about the condition of his ankle, but said very little other than that it felt fine at the game’s beginning. Other areas of concern given injuries and players’ availability–along both Stanford’s offensive and defensive lines–were met with disdain by Coach Shaw. The Cardinal made no excuses regarding injuries–or their short week of preparation–given that some many reserves stepped up and played well.

“The word you’ll keep hearing me say which I said in our locker room is character,” Shaw said. “And Devery (Hamilton, Stanford’s starting offensive tackle) like a lot of guys late in the year, guys are banged up. He went out there, battled, got hurt. We take him back to re-evaluate him. We throw guys in there. And Brandon Fanaika plays well.”

If Stanford could have done anything differently, it may have been to turn quarterback K.J. Costello loose earlier. Heading into the final drive of the game, Costello had attempted just 15 passes, completing seven. But with Stanford trailing by 10 late, Costello completed three big passes, the last to Kaden Smith for a 28-yard touchdown with two mintes left.

Costello finished 10 of 22 for 192 yards and two touchdowns. Darnold was 17 of 24 for 325 yards and two scores. The Trojans racked up 501 yards in total offense and held a pair of 10-point leads. The game’s only turnover–a Stephen Carr fumble–was minimized when USC responded with their goal line stand.

USC became the first team from the Pac-12 South to win the championship game and will play in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s.

Stanford bounces back with 70-54 win over Montana

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Photo credit: @StanfordMBB

By London Marq

PALO ALTO — Back at home, the Stanford Cardinal looked to get back into the win column after losing four games straight at home and on the road. The well-respected Montana Grizzlies traveled to Maples Pavilion with the hopes of handing the Cardinal another loss. Stanford comes into this game looking to play at an efficient level as they are still short handed due to injuries and only declared eight men for the game.

Cardinal Star forward Reid Travis was a monster as he poured in 20 points and snagged nine rebounds. He was dominant around the hoop, taking advantage of the good ball movement. He kept Stanford in the game early when things were not looking pretty.

Freshman Daejon Davis from Seattle also had a solid game for the Cardinal. He showed of his agility, speed, and versatility slicing to the basket. He scored 17 points with four assists and five rebounds. He’s another young piece that has shown a high level of talent, like the Australian-born Isaac White, that Stanford acquired this past offseason.

Stanford would close the game out with dominance, going on a 26-4 run over the last 10 minutes of the game. Their next game is against Long Beach State in Southern California where they will hope to improve on this impressive bounce back game.

Final: Stanford def. Montana 70-54

Cardinal takes down Fighting Irish 38-20

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November 25, 2017: Stanford Cardinal running back Bryce Love (20) tries to blow by the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, during a NCAA Football game between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Stanford Cardinal at the Stanford Stadium in Stanford, California. Valerie Shoaps/CSM (Cal Sport Media via AP Images)

by Jerry Feitelberg

PALO ALTO, Calif. — The Stanford Cardinal played host to the University of Notre Dame  Fighting Irish Saturday night at Stanford Stadium. The Irish, ranked ninth in the nation before the start of the game, gave the Cardinal all they could handle for the first three-quarters of the game.

The Irish and the Cardinal went at it tooth-and-nail. The lead changed hands several times, and the outcome was in doubt until the fourth quarter. In the final stanza of the game, everything went wrong for Notre Dame. They committed two turnovers that led to 14 points for Stanford.

The Irish used a no-huddle offense to keep Stanford from substituting players on defense. That strategy did not work as the Stanford defense rose to the occasion and made three huge plays on defense that led the Cardinal to a 38-20 win over Notre Dame.

Also, the Washington Huskies beat the Washington State Cougars gave the Pac-12 North championship to Stanford. Stanford will now play the University of Southern California Trojans next Friday at Levi Stadium. If the Cardinal avenge the 42-24 loss to the Trojans in the second game of the season, the Cardinal will win the Pac-12 title and may not be playing in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s day as the Rose Bowl is part of the FBS playoff series. The winner will probably go to the Fiesta Bowl.

The first quarter so far has been a battle of defenses. Neither team could do anything for the first 11 minutes of the game. However, with third and seven, Irish quarterback Brandon Winbush hit a wide-open Kevin Stepherson for an 83-yard scoring strike. The extra point was good. It was the longest pass play for Notre Dame since the 2010 season. It was a three-play 86-yard scoring drive that took just 39 seconds. The Irish led 7-0.

The Cardinal tied the game at 7 when they went on a five-play, 72-yard drive to score with 43 seconds left in the quarter. The key plays were a 21-yard strike to J J Arcega Whiteside to the Irish 48. The referees called pass interference on the Irish, and that moved the ball to the Irish 29. Costello found Trent Irwin in the end zone for the score. The extra point was good to tie the score.

The Cardinal forced the Irish to punt early in the second quarter. It was a 35-yard punt with no return, but the Cardinal had good field position as they started their drive from their 45-yard line. K.J. Costello led them on a six-play, 55-yard drive for the Cardinal’s second score of the game. The key plays were a 20-yard and a 26-yard pass to tight end Kaden Smith. The scoring play was a four-yard pass to Arcega-Whiteside for the score. The Cardinal led 14-7 with 11:35 left to play in the first half. The Irish went on a 15-play 69-yard drive that stalled at the Cardinal 21-yard line. Justin Yoon kicked a field goal for Notre Dame, and the Cardinal led 14-10 with 2:36 left in the half.

The Irish started the second half with a bang. On the first play from scrimmage, Winbrush hit Equanimeaous St.Brown with a 75-yard pass play for the score. The point after was good. The drive took all of 12 seconds, and the Irish went ahead 17-14. It was the first time in Notre Dame’s long history that they have had two passing scores of more than 75 yards in a game. The Cardinal took the ensuing kickoff from their 29-yard line and went on a nine-play, 64-yard drive that stalled at the Notre Dame seven-yard line. Jet Toner kicked a field goal to the score at seventeen The drive took four minutes and 19 seconds off the clock. The Irish pinned the Cardinal down at the one-yard. The Cardinal couldn’t move the ball and had to punt from their seven-yard line. Bailey’s kick went 53 yards, but the Irish ran it back 41 to the Cardinal 19. The Irish picked up two five-yard penalties and their drive stalled at the Cardinal 21. Justin Yoon kicked a 39-yard field goal for the Irish as they reclaimed the lead 20-17.

In the fourth quarter, the Cardinal went on a seven-play, 70-yard drive, lasting two minutes and 37 seconds. The Cardinal appeared to stall at the Irish 19.

With third and nine, coach David Shaw called a timeout. On the next play, Costello hit Kaden Smith in the end zone for the touchdown. The extra point was good, and the Cardinal had the lead with 13:46 left in the game.

On the first play for the Irish after the touchdown, Wimbush’s pass was intercepted by Curtis Robinson. Robinson grabbed the ball at the 35-yard line and took it back to the Irish 29.

It took Costello and company to put the ball into the end zone for another Cardinal touchdown. Costello found tight end Dalton Schultz in the end zone for the score. Toner made the extra point, and Stanford now led 31-20 with 12:21 left.

The Irish woes continued to mount as C.J. Sanders fumbled the kickoff at the Irish 18-yard line that was recovered by Stanford. Bryce Love made two great runs to get the ball down to the Irish three-yard line. Cameron Scarlett pushed the pigskin over the goal line for the touchdown. Toner’s extra point was good, and the Cardinal has a three-score advantage 38-20 with 10:11 left in the game.

With time running out, the Irish mounted a drive that would have narrowed the gap to 10 points. With the ball at the Cardinal 24, Winbush’s pass into the end zone was picked off by safety Frank Buncom for a touchback. It was the third turnover of the game for the Irish. The Irish could do no more, and the Cardinal wins by a final score of 38-20

Game notes and stats — K.J.Costello completed 14 of 22 passes good for four touchdowns, and he did not throw an interception. The Cardinal did not commit a turnover in the win. Bryce Love had 20 carries for 125 yards, averaging 6.3 yards per carry. Love became the third Cardinal back to exceed 1800 yards in a season. The other two backs were Toby Gearhart and Christian McCaffrey. Notre Dame’s quarterback, Brandon Winbush, was 11 for 28 in the passing department. He threw for two touchdowns, but also threw two interceptions.

Stanford will play USC for the Pac-12 crown next Friday at Levi Stadium. 47,352 people watched the Cardinal improve to 9-3 for the year.

Notre Dame also ended the season at 9-3.

OSU Buckeyes overthrow Cardinal 79-70 in 2nd round of PK80

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Ohio State University forward Keita Bates-Diop (33) tries to dribble around Stanford University forward Michael Humphrey (10) in a college basketball game during the PK80-Phil Knight Invitational between the Stanford Cardinal and Ohio State Buckeyes on November 24, 2017, at Moda Center in Portland, OR. (Photo by Brian Murphy/Icon Sportswire) (Icon Sportswire via AP Images)

By Alexandra Evans

The Stanford Cardinal men’s basketball team returned to the court at the Moda Center to face the Ohio State Buckeyes in the second round of the PK80 Invitational tournament in Portland but it was all for not as the Buckeyes got a nine point victory over the Cardinal at 79-70.

OSU exceeded Stanford for the first eight minutes until Reid Travis took a shot to give them a 7-6 lead. The Cardinal would keep their lead over the Buckeyes for the remainder of the half, until the last 45 seconds when OSU made a three pointer to tie the score 32-32.

The Buckeyes then managed to come back and keep a lead over the Cardinal, which gradually increased as the second half progressed. The closest Stanford came to catching OSU was after Oscar da Silva jumped to make a basket, putting the score at 70-65 with 45 seconds left.

OSU, now 5-1, put up a 79-71 win and will go on to face Butler University in the finals.

Stanford freshman Daejon Davis put up a career-high 15 points before fouling out of the match in the second half; Travis (who also fouled out) and da Silva tied for second with 14 points each.

“One thing I liked best, when I looked into their eyes, I didn’t feel a sense of defeat at any point. There was a belief and a confidence that we were going to find a way to get it done,” Jerod Haase, Stanford’s coach, said following the match.

Stanford is now 3-4 and prepared to make a comeback this Sunday (their opponent is TBD).

North Carolina Walks Easy, Rout Stanford 96-72

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Photo credit: @StanfordMBB

By London Marq

PALO ALTO–It was a packed house in Palo Alto as the #9 ranked North Carolina Tar Heels came in into Maples Pavilion with the first sellout crowd since 2015. With a 3-1 record entering play, the Stanford Cardinal were looking to keep this one competitive with the 2-0 Tar Heels. The Tar Heels were in control from the tip and defeated the Cardinal 96-72 Monday night.

The first period was a blur of scoring. The Cardinal sprang out of the gate, garnering an 11-6 lead–just the start they were hoping for. The Tar Heels came back with a haymaker, going on a 24-to-4 scoring run. Kenny Williams of North Carolina was on fire, scoring his team’s first five baskets. Williams was 7-11 from the floor, including six made from downtown for the night. The short-staffed Cardinal wouldn’t bounce back after that and would go into halftime down by 14 (50-36).

In the second half, it was a sprint to the finish for the Tar Heels. Joel Berry would leave the court with 29 points for North Carolina. Reid Travis and Isaac White would do their best to defend home court with 21 and 20 points, respectively. The Cardinal will be looking to retrieve their injured players Marcus Sheffield and Dorian Pickens soon in order to remain competitive this season.

Cardinal coach Jerod Haase is now 1-3 against his former coach, Tar Heels coach Roy Williams. Haase played for Williams at Kansas and coached under him in North Carolina. Hopefully some of the winning spirit will go with Haase and company into their next matchup against #8 Florida this Thanksgiving Thursday.

Final: #9 North Carolina defeated Stanford 96-72.

Stanford holds off Cal to keep Pac-12 title hopes alive 17-14

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November 18, 2017: Stanford Cardinal running back Cameron Scarlett (22) tries to escape Cal’s defense, during a NCAA Football game between the California Golden Bears and the Stanford Cardinal at the Stanford Stadium in Stanford, California. Valerie Shoaps/CSM (Cal Sport Media via AP Images)

By Jeremy Harness

PALO ALTO – The Big Game has almost become an afterthought, with the Stanford Cardinal establishing itself as the clear dominant force in this annual rivalry game against the California Golden Bears, but it sure didn’t play out like it on Saturday.

Although it remained close for much of the game, Stanford avoided becoming a victim of the notorious “Pac-12 After Dark” trend, which has consistently featured big upsets and high drama during conference games after the sun had gone down, and held on for a 17-14 win over Cal at Stanford Stadium.

With the win, the Cardinal kept themselves in the running for the Pac-12 North title and the right to face USC, which has already claimed the Pac-12 South, in the conference’s title game on December 1.

Stanford has done all it can do at this point, and now they have to play the waiting game. The Cardinal will need Washington State–which, like Stanford, has two conference losses and owns the tiebreaker over the Cardinal by virtue of its head-to-head victory–to lose to Washington in the annual Apple Cup next Saturday to earn that berth.

In the process, Stanford got a real scare from Cal. The Golden Bears kept it close in the first half by limiting Heisman Trophy candidate Bryce Love to 17 rushing yards in the first half. Stanford, however, held a 10-6 halftime lead, thanks to K.J Costello’s 17-yard touchdown hookup with tight end Kaden Smith midway through the second quarter.

Love has been bothered by an ankle injury, which he re-injured in the fourth quarter and eventually gave way to Cameron Scarlett, who had several key runs to keep drives alive and allow the Cardinal to bleed out the clock down the stretch, as well as Trevor Speights.

However, there was a strong feeling that it was just a matter of time before he broke at least one long run to leave his imprint on the game, which he did midway through the third quarter. With some solid blocking from the offensive line that sealed the left edge for him, Love broke off left tackle and sprinted down the sideline untouched for a 57-yard touchdown that extended Stanford’s lead to 17-6.

Love finished the game with 101 rushing yards on 14 carries.

As it appeared that Stanford was starting to pull away, Cal used the legs of junior running back Patrick Laird to march right back down the field. Laird put the Golden Bears on the doorstep with a 39-yard run, and one play later, he punched it in from a yard out.

Laird had a big hand in giving Cal a realistic chance to win on Saturday, carrying the ball 20 times for 153 yards.

After quarterback Ross Bowers found the end zone on the ensuing two-point attempt, the Cardinal’s lead was trimmed to three.

As the Cardinal ventured into the red zone, they took a huge step back when guard Nick Wilson drew a 15-yard unsportmanlike penalty. That proved to be crucial, as Jet Toner missed a 41-yard field-goal attempt.

Cal then drove the ball in to Stanford territory when Bowers decided to take a shot at the end zone. His deep ball was underthrown and had a lot of air under it, allowing safety Ben Edwards to close the gap and pick the ball off, thwarting the Cal drive and set the stage for Stanford to play keep-away for the rest of the game.

The Cardinal host the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Saturday, November 25 at 5 pm on ABC.