Two weeks ago the Stanford Cardinal played their last game, an 83-64 victory
over Portland State, before taking the time to go through final exams on the
Farm. Stanford has a few more tests in front of it in non-conference play
before they take on the Pac-10, starting with tonight’s contest versus the UC
Davis Aggies. The Cardinal were able to use an opening flurry of steals
and offensive rebounding to open up a quick 14-0 advantage en route to a 85-69 win.
The Cardinal are now 5-3 on the season, while the Aggies fall to 3-6.
Stanford started off the game energized, looking to pickpocket the Aggies at
every corner. Four steals and a plethora of offensive boards helped
everyone stake a claim in getting Stanford out to an early 14-0 lead as every
player on the floor scored for the home side. Davis continued to try and
stymie the offensive rhythm of the Cardinal with an aggressive 2-1-2 defensive
scheme, but Stanford would not be dissuaded from taking it to their
counterparts, moving the ball slickly around the perimeter before finding the
open man for the easy shot.
After the first media timeout, however, the Aggies calmed down and began to
play within themselves, getting a couple of easy buckets. After getting
the advantage down to 11, 16-5 at the 13:43, the Cardinal unleashed some of
their bombers from beyond the arc as Drew Shiller nailed two from the left wing
and Fields followed with one of his own, bumping the lead to 18, with 11:14 to
go in the first stanza. Jeremy Green got his second trifecta, nailing one
from way beyond the right wing, answering the right corner shot of Davis’
rifleman Mark Payne, keeping the lead at 17, 28-11.
The Cardinal allowed Davis to get within 14, 30-16 after a Julian Welch
three-pointer, before going on an 8-0 run, highlighted by an Andrew Zimmerman
dunk off a feed from Landry Fields, to stretch the lead to 38-16 at the 4:24
mark of the first half. Following the last media timeout, Fields continued
to assert himself inside as he got three free throws and a dunk off a fast break
induced by Shiller’s willingness to hit the floor for a steal, getting the
Cardinal lead to 47-24 at intermission.
For the half, Stanford shot 55% from the field, including 50% outside the
arc, 57% inside the three-point area, and a nice 6-7 from the free throw
line. UC Davis finished the first 20 minutes making just 31% of their
shots from the floor, including 44% outside the three-point line, 23% within the
perimeter, and were 6-10 from the charity stripe. Stanford’s hustle was
evident on the boards and the open court as they outrebounded Davis 22-11,
including 8-4 on the offensive glass, and got seven steals to the Aggies’
five. The Cardinal dished out 11 assists to seven turnovers, while UC
Davis tallied five assists and turned the ball over 11 times.
Stanford was led by Fields’ 14 points on 4-6 shooting (5-6 from the free
throw line) and was followed by Jarrett Mann who scored seven and a four-pack of
players with six each, including Jack Trotter, who also had nine rebounds (five
offensive) in 13 minutes of play. UC Davis was led by center Dominic Calegari’s eight points. Calegari was followed by Payne’s six points and
Welch’s four.
As the second half began, most eyes were focused on whether or not Stanford
could maintain and extend the 23-point lead they had on UC Davis. The
Cardinal’s attempt to answer that question was quickly stuffed as Davis came out
the aggressors, getting five quick points to put some life into their supporters
making the trip. A three-point play by Trotter stemmed the rising Aggies
tide, then a wide open left wing three-pointer by Green seemed to stop it cold,
giving Stanford a 53-29 edge with 18:08 to go in the game. Davis, though,
wouldn’t go quietly, getting a Welch jumper to go in before Zimmerman countered
with one of his own. Coming into the media timeout, Stanford had gotten
their lead back up to 26, seemingly thwarting the Aggies’ opening rally versus
the home side.
Both squads took turns over the next four minutes to trade buckets before the
Aggies put a short run together, netting a Payne layup and two Ryan Sypkens
three-pointers to cut down the lead to 20, 66-46, with 11:35 remaining in the
game. Head coach Johnny Dawkins had seen enough, taking a timeout to relay
a few words to his program having trouble putting away their Big West
rival. Stanford responded with an acrobatic inside runner by Green, who
finished and was fouled on the made attempt. The free throw was good,
giving the Cardinal back their 23-point lead.
UC Davis refused to give up, shaving the lead down to 21 at the 9:36 mark,
but Stanford continued to catch the Aggies flat-footed on the defensive end,
getting a couple of easy shots and free throw opportunities to extend their lead
at the right time. Payne, though, continued to hustle for the
Aggies, getting a clean pick at the top of the circle and getting a deuce, but
he couldn’t get the free thrown down, keeping Stanford up 20 with just eight
minutes remaining. Two free throws by Trotter and a flying layup by Mann
propelled Stanford back to a 24-point lead with 6:52 left in the game, while
Fields finished strong inside to further put away the scrappy Aggies from
Davis. A long three-pointer by Calegari, a 6-10 center, stopped the 6-0
run, but UC Davis would get no closer than the final margin of 16 when all was
said and done.
After the contest, Dawkins seemed happy with the effort he saw, despite
looking like a team that “were off for two weeks at times.” Dawkins
thought that Davis was a “well-coached, tough team,” but that he was also
believed he saw some steps forward from his bunch as it was “good to see the
growth in some of our guys.” Trotter was singled out by his head coach as
a man who “gave us a lot” and the center echoed the sentiments as he spent the
past two weeks “focusing on [his] aggressiveness.”
For the game, Stanford shot 54% from the floor, including 40% from
three-point land, 59% inside the arc, and a nifty 72% from the free throw
line. UC Davis finished the game strong, making 42% of their shots
(including 48% in the second half) from the field, including 43% outside the
arc, 41% within the three-point line, and made 67% of their tries from the
charity stripe. The Aggies outscored the Cardinal 45-38 in the second
half, but it was not enough to win the game. Stanford’s completed the
contest with a 38-30 edge on the boards, but did not get a single offensive
rebound in the second half according to the final stat sheet. The Cardinal
dished out 14 assists, but committed 13 turnovers for the evening, while UC
Davis finished the game with 13 assists and 16 turnovers. Each team had 10
steals.
Stanford finished the game with five players in double-figures, led by
Fields’ 21 points on 6-11 shooting (including a solid 8-10 effort from the
charity stripe) and was followed by Green’s 16 and Trotter’s double-double of 14
points and 11 rebounds. Zimmerman put up 11 and seven, while Mann had 10
points and five assists, but did turn the ball over a team-high five times. UC
Davis’ leading scorer was Payne, who tallied 21 in the losing effort.
Sypkens came on strong in the second stanza, getting 16 points on 6-9 shooting
(4-5 from long distance), and was followed by Calegari’s 13.
Next up for Stanford is a stiff test from the Oklahoma State Cowboys on
Wednesday evening at 8:00pm, a game that is part of the Big 12/Pac-10 Hardwood
Series, a series which the Big 12 has dominated so far in 2009, winning eight of
10 games so far with just two remaining on the schedule for the two power
conferences. The 8-1 Cowboys have only left the comforts of their home
twice, winning two games in Las Vegas over Thanksgiving weekend and losing by 21
to Tulsa. Green is “eager to watch film and get ready for them,” as is the
crew here at The Bootleg. Stay tuned for further coverage of this game and
all games here as the season progresses!
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