Continuing On To Corvallis

What's Next

No. 11/12 Stanford (14-3, 4-1) wraps up its only regular-season trip to the Pacific Northwest when it meets No. 12/10 Oregon State (13-3, 4-1) in Gill Coliseum on Sunday, Jan. 17 at 6 p.m. Krista Blunk and Mary Murphy have the call on Pac-12 Networks.

Against Oregon State

Stanford is 53-6 all-time against Oregon State dating back to Feb. 14, 1981, is 24-6 against the Beavers on the road and has won 29 straight in the series.

The Cardinal’s last loss to OSU came in Corvallis on Jan. 11, 2001 (81-65), which is also the Beavers’ only win in the teams’ last 41 games.

Sunday will mark the fifth meeting with both schools ranked in the AP top 25.

Lili Thompson had 13 points to lead five players in double figures last season as No. 19 Stanford snapped No. 7 Oregon State’s 21-game home winning streak, 69-58.

Catching You Up

Lili Thompson scored nine of her 16 points in the fourth quarter, including a layup to tie the game with 34.3 seconds left and another to push Stanford ahead with 2.4 to go, and the No. 11 Cardinal rallied for a 64-62 victory over Oregon in Eugene on Friday night.

Once more » pic.twitter.com/VH05qtp6fI

— Stanford WBB (@StanfordWBB) January 16, 2016

Starting in place of Erica McCall, Kaylee Johnson added 16 points, six rebounds and five blocks. Karlie Samuelson led all scorers with 18 points, including 12 from deep, and Kailee Johnson chipped in a career high 10 rebounds.

Stanford’s defense limited Oregon to just 26.9 percent shooting in the second half and a 23.1 clip in the fourth quarter after the Ducks went 13-of-24 (.542) from the floor in the first 20 minutes. The Cardinal held UO without a field goal in the game’s final five minutes and Oregon went 1-of-10 to close the game as Stanford eliminated what was a nine-point deficit late in the third.

Thompson scored on a drive to her left to tie the game at 62 with 34.3 seconds left, but failed to convert the 3-point play. Then Kailee Johnson blocked Lexi Petersen’s shot on the other end with 11 seconds remaining. Thompson scored again going to her left with 2.4 seconds left, but missed the ensuing free throw. After a timeout that allowed Oregon to move the ball to the frontcourt, the Ducks didn’t get off a final shot in time.

Defensive Updates

The Cardinal has held 14 of 17 opponents below 40 percent shooting, six below 30 percent and one below 20 percent. Stanford is third in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.314) and 17th in scoring defense (53.4).

Each of Stanford’s 16 opponents (not counting the season opener at UC Davis) have been held below their season shooting average. Those foes have also put up 15.3 points less than their scoring average when facing Stanford.

Before Colorado shot 41.1 percent on Jan. 10, the Cardinal has forced seven straight opponents to shoot less than 37 percent. In those seven games, Stanford allowed just 42.7 points on 25.9 percent shooting (106-of-410). In its last nine, the Cardinal has surrendered 46.3 points on 28.9 percent shooting (149-of-516).

Utah’s 52 points on Jan. 8 snapped Stanford’s five-game streak of holding opponents below 50, which tied a school record. In the 2012-13 season, the Cardinal each of Long Beach State (41), UC Davis (38), Gonzaga (41), Pacific (43) and South Carolina (49) under that point threshold. The program has never done it in six straight.

One game after holding Chattanooga to 30 points on Dec. 28, the sixth-fewest for an opponent in program history, the Cardinal only surrendered 34 on Jan. 2 at Arizona, a total now tied for 10th in its record books. Stanford had never before held back-to-back opponents to less than 35 points.

At Arizona on January 2, Stanford held that program to lows for a Pac-12 game in both points and field goal percentage (.208). The 34 points allowed also tied a Stanford record for fewest allowed in a Pac-12 game, matching the same total from a 60-34 win against Washington State on Feb. 8, 2007.

Stanford has held its opponent below 10 points 17 times in 68 quarters, or 25.0 percent of the time this season. It did so in eight straight over games against CSU Bakersfield, Chattanooga and Arizona.

Stanford is also fourth in the country in blocked shots per game (6.6) and has tallied seven or more blocks in a game seven times this season after doing it five times all of last year. The Cardinal is on pace for 204 rejections this season, which would break the school record of 196 set in 2001-02.

The Cardinal’s 12 blocks against CSU Bakersfield on Dec. 22 are tied for second in Cardinal single-game history with games against New Mexico (2013), UC Davis (2012) and Massachusetts (2000). The school record of 13 was set on Feb. 3, 1989 against Arizona State. Stanford’s 11 blocks at Oregon on Jan. 15 are tied for sixth in school history and its 10 in the season opener at UC Davis are tied for 11th.

Stanford has had three games with double-digit blocks in a single season for the fourth time in program history. The Cardinal did it a school-record four times in 2000-01 and three times each in 2012-13 and 2001-02.

Its defensive prowess this season is a return to normal for the Cardinal. Last year’s 37.0 percent field goal percentage defense mark was 43rd and the lowest in some time. Stanford hadn’t surrendered a better percentage since 2005-06 (36th; .373) and hadn’t finished a season ranked lower in that category since 2002-03 (57th; .384).

From 2006-07 to 2013-14, the Cardinal did not finish outside the nation’s top 15 in field goal percentage defense, capping that stretch with a 35.7 percent mark to check in 14th in the country in 2013-14.

Stanford was the nation’s best with a school record field goal percentage defense in 2012-13 (.316). The Cardinal was seventh in 2011-12 (.339), fifth in 2010-11 (.336), third in 2009-10 (.339), 13th in 2008-09 (.352), 11th in 2007-08 (.355) and sixth in 2006-07 (.346).

This And That

Since 2007-08, the Cardinal sports a conference road record of 67-7 and a Pac-12 home record of 71-3.

Over the past seven seasons, the Cardinal is 62-4 in the month of January.

Stanford is 2-2 against the AP top 25 this season after going 3-6 against such foes in 2014-15. The Cardinal has won both of its game against ranked teams at home and dropped both on the road. Oregon State is the last team in the polls Stanford has beaten in a true road game.

Last year’s win in Corvallis kept the Beavers from clinching the Pac-12 regular-season title outright.

Lili Thompson's 1,027 career points are 34th all-time at Stanford, between Molly Goodenbour (1,040; 1989-93) and Angie Paccione (1,013; 1978-83).

Kaylee Johnson has come on strong in Stanford’s last nine games, averaging 9.2 points on 73.3 percent shooting (33-of-45) to go along with 6.1 rebounds.

The sophomore opened the year averaging 1.1 points and 4.5 rebounds while shooting just 22.2 percent from the floor in the Cardinal’s first eight games.

Johnson has scored 10+ five times in those nine games after doing it all of six times as a freshman.

Notes entering the weekend »

Against Oregon

Stanford is 48-9 all-time against Oregon dating back to Feb. 13, 1981 and is 21-8 against the Ducks on the road. The Ducks’ 62-55 win in Eugene last season snapped the Cardinal’s 18-game winning streak in the series and was Oregon’s first since Dec. 29, 2004 (62-58).

Oregon went on a 15-2 run early in the second half to take control. With Stanford up four, 38-34, and 16:23 on the clock, the Ducks’ Katelyn Loper was fouled taking a 3-pointer and hit all three at the line to ignite the stretch. Stanford had won the previous 18 by an average of 28 points.

Catching You Up

Stanford swept Utah (72-52) and Colorado (71-56) to open up its Pac-12 home schedule last weekend in Maples Pavilion.

Four players scored in double figures as the Cardinal cruised to a 72-52 home victory over the Utah on Friday night. Lili Thompson and Brittany McPhee contributed 16 points apiece, with Karlie Samuelson adding 13 on 3-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc, and Erica McCall chipping in 11.

Stanford’s defense was strong yet again. The Cardinal held Utah 20 points below its season scoring average and the Utes were also out-rebounded for the first time this season, 36-30. Utah was 15th in the NCAA, averaging 44.4 rebounds per game, and had a +11.5 margin.

Led by strong performances from forwards Kaylee Johnson and Erica McCall, Stanford downed Colorado, 71-56, on Sunday afternoon.

The two frontcourt players each recorded a double-double, with Johnson totaling 17 points and 11 rebounds, and McCall finishing with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and a game-high three blocks. Johnson’s 17-point output was a career-high, and she also topped the team with four assists, a personal best.

.@_KayleeJohnson_ with her 2nd double-double this season. 7th career. Cardinal up 63-52. Watch on @Pac12Networks. https://t.co/sEbEwKtMzZ

— Stanford WBB (@StanfordWBB) January 10, 2016

It was the first time two Stanford players had a double-double in the same game since Chiney Ogwumike (29 points, 15 rebounds) and Mikaela Ruef (11 points, 13 rebounds) did so on March 30, 2014 in the Sweet 16 against Penn State in Maples Pavilion.

Stanford made one fewer field goal than Colorado and two fewer 3-pointers, but the Cardinal carried the day by earning 26 more free throw attempts than the Buffs. Stanford was 23-for-34 from the charity stripe while CU went 4-of-8.

With her basket at the 3:12 mark of the second quarter, Lili Thompson surpassed 1,000 career points, becoming the 36th Cardinal to do so.

Setting The Stage

Oregon assistant coach Nicole Powell starred at Stanford in the early 2000s. She was a Kodak First Team All-American and a finalist for the James Naismith Player of the Year for three straight years (2002-04).

Introduced by teammate @sebnemkimyacioglu, @goducksnp took her place among @gostanford legends last night when she was inducted into the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame. #GoStanford

A photo posted by Stanford Women's Basketball (@stanfordwbb) on Oct 17, 2015 at 11:58am PDT

Powell began her career as Pac-10 Freshman of the Year in 2000 and was named Conference Player of the Year in 2002 and 2004. She helped Stanford accumulate a 105-26 record over her four years, as she averaged 17.3 points, 9.6 rebounds and 4.8 assists for the Cardinal.

She ended her collegiate career as Stanford’s all-time leader in career rebounds (1,143) and third all-time leading scorer (2,062 points).

On Oct. 16, Powell was inducted into the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame and introduced by Cardinal teammate Şebnem Kimyacıoğlu.

Starting Lineup

In 2015-16, Stanford is without a senior starter for the first time in 13 seasons. The 2002-03 campaign was the last time the Cardinal didn’t have a senior in its first five. That 13-player roster featured two juniors and 11 underclassmen.

Schedule Strength

In the official NCAA RPI released on Jan. 13 Stanford sits at No. 3 and has played one of the nation’s toughest schedules. The NCAAs most recent in-depth RPI report from Jan. 11 has the Cardinal’s schedule as the third-toughest.

Through games as of Jan. 12, Stanford’s 16 opponents this year have the fourth-highest combined winning percentage in the country of .690 (158-71). Tennessee leads that category with opponents that have gone 152-56 (.731), Dayton is second (147-57; .721) and Ohio State is third (157-65; .693).

The Cardinal is 8-3 against the RPI top 100. Only Connecticut (8) and Notre Dame (9) have as many RPI top 100 wins. DePaul (12) is the only team in the nation that has played more RPI top 100 opponents than Stanford (11).

The average RPI of Stanford’s opponents is 82. Seven other schools have played a schedule in which its opponents average RPI is in the top 100 - Connecticut (94), Dayton (71), Notre Dame (87), Ohio State (88), Rutgers (84), Saint Joseph’s (95), Tennessee (83).

Applying Pressure

The Cardinal has held 14 of 16 opponents below 40 percent shooting, six below 30 percent and one below 20 percent. Stanford is third in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.310).

Each of Stanford’s 15 opponents (not counting the season opener at UC Davis) have been held below their season shooting average. Those foes have also put up 15.2 points less than their scoring average when facing Stanford.

Before Colorado shot 41.1 percent, the Cardinal has forced seven straight opponents to shoot less than 37 percent. In those seven games, Stanford allowed just 42.7 points on 25.9 percent shooting (106-of-410). In its last eight, the Cardinal has surrendered 44.4 points on 27.7 percent shooting (129-of-466).

Utah’s 52 points on Friday snapped Stanford’s five-game streak of holding opponents below 50, which tied a school record. In the 2012-13 season, the Cardinal each of Long Beach State (41), UC Davis (38), Gonzaga (41), Pacific (43) and South Carolina (49) under that point threshold. The program has never done it in six straight.

One game after holding Chattanooga to 30 points on Dec. 28, the sixth-fewest for an opponent in program history, the Cardinal only surrendered 34 on Jan. 2 at Arizona, a total now tied for 10th in its record books. Stanford had never before held back-to-back opponents to less than 35 points.

At Arizona on January 2, Stanford held that program to lows for a Pac-12 game in both points and field goal percentage (.208). The 34 points allowed also tied a Stanford record for fewest allowed in a Pac-12 game, matching the same total from a 60-34 win against Washington State on Feb. 8, 2007.

Stanford has held its opponent below 10 points 17 times in 64 quarters, or 26.6 percent of the time this season. It did so in eight straight quarters over games against CSU Bakersfield, Chattanooga and Arizona.

Stanford is also sixth in the country in blocked shots per game (6.3) and has tallied seven or more blocks in a game six times this season after doing it five times all of last year. The Cardinal is on pace for 195 rejections this season, which would be one shy of the school record of 196 set in 2001-02.

The Cardinal’s 12 blocks against CSU Bakersfield on Dec. 22 are tied for second in Cardinal single-game history with games against New Mexico (2013), UC Davis (2012) and Massachusetts (2000). The school record of 13 was set on Feb. 3, 1989 against Arizona State.

Its defensive prowess this season is a return to normal for the Cardinal. Last year’s 37.0 percent field goal percentage defense mark was 43rd and the lowest in some time. Stanford hadn’t surrendered a better percentage since 2005-06 (36th; .373) and hadn’t finished a season ranked lower in that category since 2002-03 (57th; .384).

From 2006-07 to 2013-14, the Cardinal did not finish outside the nation’s top 15 in field goal percentage defense, capping that stretch with a 35.7 percent mark to check in 14th in the country in 2013-14.

Stanford was the nation’s best with a school record field goal percentage defense in 2012-13 (.316). The Cardinal was seventh in 2011-12 (.339), fifth in 2010-11 (.336), third in 2009-10 (.339), 13th in 2008-09 (.352), 11th in 2007-08 (.355) and sixth in 2006-07 (.346).

Specialty Stats

Stanford started the year shooting 38.9 percent from 3-point range in its first 10 games. The Cardinal went 8-2 and averaged 8.6 makes from deep, including draining at least 10 on four different occasions. Its percentage from behind the arc was 17th and its makes ranked 19th.

In its last six games, Stanford’s 3-point field goal percentage has dipped to 28.6 percent and its makes per game has dropped to five, but the Cardinal has gone 5-1 by asserting itself in other ways.

In those last six games, Stanford is +6.0 in points off turnovers (14.2-8.2), +5.3 in second-chance points (13.0-7.7), +16.7 in the paint (29.7-13.0), +5.5 in points on the break (6.2-0.7) and +16.2 off the bench (29.0-12.8).

Those positive margins are a change from the season’s first 10 games when Stanford was -2 in points off turnovers (13.3-15.3), +1.7 in second-chance points (12.3-10.6), +5.6 in points in the paint (26.2-20.6), +0.9 on the break (4.6-3.7)and +8.2 in bench points.

The Cardinal has greatly increased its rebounding margin to +9.5 in its last six from +2.8 in its first 10 to help it dominate in those specialty categories.

Tracking Thompson

Against Colorado on Sunday, Lili Thompson became the 36th Stanford player to surpass 1,000 career points. Now at 1,011 she is 35th all-time at Stanford, between Angie Paccione (1,013; 1978-83) and Bethany Donaphin (1,010; 1998-2002).

Stanford up 28-21 on Colorado at the half. @_li_squared just became the 36th Cardinal to surpass 1,000 career points. #GoStanford

A photo posted by Stanford Women's Basketball (@stanfordwbb) on Jan 10, 2016 at 12:57pm PST

Thompson has scored 20 or more in five of Stanford’s 16 games this season. She’s had 10 career 20-point efforts, with eight coming in the month of November. The only non-November 20-point efforts came at USC on Jan. 25, 2015 (21) and on Dec. 13 at Texas (21).

Her 26-point outing against Missouri State on Nov. 27 was her fourth consecutive, making the junior captain the first Cardinal guard to score 20 in four straight games since Candice Wiggins in 2008.

She is also the first Stanford guard to start a season with 10 straight games in double figures scoring in a decade. Candice Wiggins scored 10 or more in all 34 games in 2005-06. That career-best streak was broken with nine points against CSU Bakersfield on Dec. 22.

In 21 career November games, Thompson is averaging 15.0 points. The junior scores 10.5 points per game in her 66 other career games in December, January, February, March and April.

At 15.3 points per game, the junior is 11th in the Pac-12 in scoring to go along with ninth in the league in assists (4.3).

On Nov. 17, Thompson was named to the John R. Wooden Award Women’s Preseason Top 30 and she was part of the Naismith Trophy Women’s Watch List released on Dec. 9.

She has also won a pair of Pac-12 Player of the Week awards this season (Nov. 24 and Dec. 21). Her most recent nod came after averaging 15.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists in Stanford’s wins over then-No. 14 Tennessee and Cornell.

Flying High

Erica McCall, who entered 2015-16 with just two career double-doubles, has quintupled that total 16 games into her junior season.

McCall has 10 this season, including four straight to open the year. In the past decade, only Chiney Ogwumike has had a better start to a year for the Cardinal. Ogwumike also had four straight double-doubles to start the 2013-14 campaign. McCall’s 10 double-doubles are tied for sixth in the NCAA. Only Jillian Alleyne at Oregon (13), Jonquel Jones at George Washington (13), Lexi Martins at Lehigh (12), Tori Jarosz at Marist (11) and Seanna Johnson at Iowa State (11) have more.

Only five Stanford players have ever averaged a double-double for an entire season: Chiney Ogwumike (2012, 2013, 2014), Nnemkadi Ogwumike (2012), Nicole Powell (2004), Jeanne Ruark Hoff (1980) and Kathy Murphy (1978). McCall is currently averaging 13.1 points and 9.5 rebounds per outing.

Firepower Off The Bench

Brittany McPhee has had two of her six career games in double figures scoring in the past two weeks. The sophomore, who averages 16.3 minutes per game, scored 21 in the Pac-12 opener at Arizona and 16 on Friday night against Utah. She leads the Cardinal in scoring in league games with 11.0 points on 57.1 percent shooting, including a 46.2 percent clip from deep.

In 12 nonconference games, McPhee averaged 5.3 points, shot 32.2 percent from the floor and 25.9 percent from behind the arc. She has made 10 of her last 23 attempts from 3-point range after starting her career going 9-of-48 (.188) in her first 37 career games.

Brittany McPhee is 6-of-12 from deep the last four games. Watch on @Pac12Networks. #GoStanford https://t.co/0T1tR0pjW6

— Stanford WBB (@StanfordWBB) January 10, 2016

Kaylee Johnson has come on strong in Stanford’s last eight games, averaging 8.4 points on 81.3 percent shooting (26-of-32) to go along with 6.1 rebounds.

The sophomore opened the year averaging 1.1 points and 4.5 rebounds while shooting just 22.2 percent from the floor in the Cardinal’s first eight games.

Johnson has scored 10+ four times this season after doing it in six games as a freshman.

Different Samuelson, Same Story

Stanford lost Bonnie Samuelson to graduation after a career in which she finished third in school history and 10th in Pac-12 history in 3-point makes (237), but younger sister Karlie Samuelson has stepped in to keep up the family’s sharpshooting legacy.

Karlie is 32-of-76 from behind the arc this season and is fourth in the conference (min. two made per game) in 3-point field goal percentage (.421). A career 38.7 percent 3-point shooter, Samuelson has made 105 from deep in her career and 10 away from setting a new personal best for a single season after draining 41 a year ago.

Seventy-nine percent (392-of-494) of her career points have come on 3-pointers (315) and free throws (77). The junior captain has made more than twice as many field goals from behind the arc as she has from inside, converting 51 2-point attempts. She is 13-of-22 (.591) on such shots this season.

Among The Best Ever

The Cardinal is 990-307 (.763) all-time since its first varsity season in 1975. Stanford would join an exclusive list with 10 more wins. Tennessee, Louisiana Tech, James Madison and Old Dominion are currently the only Division I institutions with 1,000 victories. Stanford is seventh on that list, also behind Stephen F. Austin and Texas.

Entering this season, the Cardinal was fourth in the NCAA over the last five years by both wins and percentage. From 2011-15, Stanford went 160-22 (.879). Connecticut was 182-12 (.938), Baylor was 173-14 (.925) and Notre Dame was 174-18 (.906).

More Milestones On The Horizon For Tara

Entering her 30th season on the bench at Stanford, Setsuko Ishiyama Director of Women’s Basketball Tara VanDerveer has accumulated a 966-220 (.815) record in her 36 years as a collegiate head coach and an 814-169 (.828) on The Farm.

In November 2013, she became just the fifth college women’s basketball coach to win 900 career games. This past March she won her 800th game at Stanford, becoming the 10th college basketball coach – men’s or women’s – with that many victories at a single Division I school, Pat Summitt (Tennessee), Mike Krzyzewski (Duke), Geno Auriemma (Connecticut), Dean Smith (North Carolina), Adolph Rupp (Kentucky), Andy Landers (Georgia), Jim Boeheim (Syracuse), Robin Selvig (Montana) and Jim Phelan (Mount St. Mary’s).

One of the greatest leaders in any sport at any level, VanDerveer enters the 2015-16 season as the third-winningest coach in NCAA women’s basketball history and is 34 victories away from joining Pat Summitt as the only coaches with 1,000 career wins.

VanDerveer is the 16th Division I women’s basketball coach in NCAA history to coach 30 or more seasons at the same institution and is one of five on the active coaching list. Pat Summitt (Tennessee; 1975-12), Harry Perretta (Villanova; 1979-15), Robin Selvig (Montana; 1979-15), Andy Landers (Georgia; 1980-15), Cindy Russo (FIU; 1978, 1981-15), Debbie Ryan (Virginia; 1978-11), Kay Yow (North Carolina St.; 1976-09), Wanda Watkins (Campbell; 1982-15), Kathleen Delaney-Smith (1983-15), Frank Bennett (Lipscomb; 1981-12), , Mike Granelli (Saint Peter’s; 1973-04), Jody Conradt (Texas; 1977-07), Marian Washington (Kansas; 1974-04), Lynne Agee (UNC Greensboro; 1982-11), Shirley Walker (Alcorn; 1979-08) are the others.

Off the court and on the gridiron, she served as Stanford football’s honorary captain for its Oct. 3 home win over Arizona. In another football connection, former Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh and one of Tara’s coaching confidants delivered a pregame address to the team before its win over Utah on Jan. 8.

"Do whatever is necessary to win. Play as hard as you can, as fast as you can, as long as you can." » @CoachJim4UM

A photo posted by Stanford Women's Basketball (@stanfordwbb) on Jan 8, 2016 at 6:45pm PST

Prognostications

Stanford is No. 11 in the AP top 25 and No. 12 in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll.

Stanford has appeared in the AP rankings a possible 486 times out of 701 total polls since 1977 (69.3 percent), with an average positioning of 6.9. It’s been in the past 268 polls, the fourth-longest active streak behind Tennessee (544), Connecticut (422) and Duke (351). Stanford has also been in 284 consecutive coaches polls.

The Cardinal’s 486 all-time appearances in the AP top 25 are fourth behind Tennessee (687), Georgia (522) and Texas (492).

Stanford was picked to finish second in the Pac-12 when the conference released the results of the preseason coaches’ poll on Oct. 14. Those results snapped Stanford’s 15-year streak at the top of the league’s preseason rankings. Before that announcement, UCLA was the last team to finish atop the preseason poll, receiving the honor two straight years in 1998-99 and 1999-2000.

The Cardinal, last year’s Pac-12 Tournament champion, totaled 104 points. Oregon State, the league’s 2015 regular-season winner, was the leading vote-getter, garnering 11 first-place votes and 121 points.

So International

Stanford forward Erica McCall won her fourth gold medal representing the United States at the 2015 World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea in July.

A United States co-captain, McCall finished the event tied for eighth overall in scoring (15.2), was eighth in rebounds (8.5), tied for third in blocks (1.8) and led all players in South Korea in field goal percentage, converting 37 of her 62 attempts from the floor (.597). Team USA went a perfect 6-0 and defeated its opponents by an average of nearly 22 points per game.

Champ. 🏆🇺🇸 @birdstheword_24 @gostanford @usabasketball #GoStanford

A photo posted by Stanford Women's Basketball (@stanfordwbb) on Jul 13, 2015 at 12:20pm PDT

In July, freshman Alanna Smith led Australia to a third-place finish and was named to the All-Star Five at the FIBA U19 Women’s World Championship in Chekhov, Russia.

The first international recruit in Stanford women’s basketball history, Smith tied for 12th in the entire tournament in points per game (12.6), tied for 15th in rebounds (7.0), tied for third in blocks (2.7), tied for 23rd in steals (1.3) and led Australia in each of those categories.

.@alannas96 » @gostanford freshman and one of the best at the @fiba U19 Women's World Championship. #GoStanford #FIBAU19 @basketballaus

A photo posted by Stanford Women's Basketball (@stanfordwbb) on Jul 27, 2015 at 10:22am PDT

Always Learning

Last year it was Mike D’Antoni, Joe Prunty, Jenny Boucek and others who helped Tara VanDerveer and her staff learn the intricacies of a more guard-oriented, fast-paced, pick-and-roll offense as Stanford moved away from the triangle for the first time since the 2002-03 season.

This year it has been a give-and-take with the NBA Champion Golden State Warriors. The Warriors practiced at Stanford on Oct. 5 before preseason game in San Jose and assistant coach Kate Paye attended another Golden State practice in the East Bay. When the Warriors were on the road in San Diego, VanDerveer’s sister and UCSD women’s coach, Heidi VanDerveer, attended a practice.

Solid start to the first day of practice. Warriors warmed up the court for the Cardinal. #GoStanford #Warriors pic.twitter.com/JyPwgPlEHo

— Stanford WBB (@StanfordWBB) October 5, 2015

Warriors assistant coach and former Stanford star Jarron Collins » “It goes back to, men’s team or women’s team, basketball’s basketball and we’re all trying to improve. There’s this synergy of just talking shop. We’ve had a level of success, obviously, and you just want to borrow from those that have achieved a certain level. Our practices are very open to coaches who want to come and watch and observe. It’s pretty cool for us getting to interact with Coach VanDerveer.”

VanDerveer, who also asks former Stanford guard and now-Warriors sideline reporter Rosalyn Gold-Onwude of her observations on what Golden State is doing, says “it’s kind of a little clinic happening every two or three nights on television.”

Fab Four

On Nov. 11, the Cardinal announced the signings of four prep standouts to National Letters of Intent in Mikaela Brewer (Barrie, Ontario/Innisdale Secondary School), DiJonai Carrington (San Diego, Calif./Horizon Christian Academy), Nadia Fingall (Navarre, Fla./Choctawhatchee) and Anna Wilson (Bellevue, Wash./Bellevue).

Collectively, the Cardinal’s class is rated No. 8 by espnW HoopGurlz and No. 6 by Prospects Nation.

Brewer, a skilled perimeter prospect, is a veteran of Canada Basketball and most recently represented her country at the 2014 FIBA U17 World Championship for Women in the Czech Republic.

A versatile perimeter performer, Carrington is a five-star talent rated as the 34th best player in the country according to espnW HoopGurlz and 16th by Prospects Nation. Her brother, Darren Jr., is a wide receiver at Oregon and her father Darren Sr., was an NFL defensive back with 22 career interceptions. Mother, Vickie, was a sprinter at Northern Arizona University where Darren Sr. played football.

2010 Stanford Women's Basketball Camp -----> 2015 Stanford Official Visit!!! Crazy realizing that picture was 5 years ago and tomorrow I will be signing my National Letter of Intent to play for this amazing Hall of Fame coach!!!!!! I cannot begin to explain how blessed I am! Tomorrow at the San Diego Hall of Champions all of the early signees will be singing their NLIs !!!! Come support us ! The event starts at 8am and will be covered on tv! #GOCARD #FearTheTree #TheFarm #NerdNation #dComebackWillBeReal #AllGloryToGod ✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽❤️❤️❤️🌲🌲🌲🤓🤓🤓🏀🏀🏀📚📚📚

A photo posted by ∂ιʝσиαι ¢αяяιиgтσи✞ (@dijonai__) on Nov 10, 2015 at 8:57pm PST

Fingall is a certifiable blue-chip prospect ranked 26th in the nation by espnW HoopGurlz and the seventh-best forward. The five-star post also checks in at No. 23 overall and No. 4 at her position according to Prospects Nation.

Wilson, a 5-foot-8 guard from Bellevue, Washington, will give Stanford another dynamic player in the backcourt and is rated as the 58th overall player in the class of 2016 by espnW Hoopgurlz and 34th by Prospects Nation. She is the younger sister of Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback Russell Wilson.

On Nov. 22, the Naismith Trophy announced that Carrington, Fingall and Wilson are among 50 players on the watch list for the Girls High School Player of the Year award.

Another Tournament Trip

Stanford made its 22nd overall trip to the Sweet Sixteen and eighth straight in 2014-15.

Since its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1982, Stanford has won two national championships (1990, 1992), reached 12 Final Fours (1990-92, 1995-97, 2008-12, 2014), 17 Elite Eights, 22 Sweet 16s and compiled an NCAA Tournament record of 77-27 (.740).

Overall, last year marked the Cardinal’s 29th NCAA Tournament appearance and 28th straight.

Stanford’s 12 Final Four appearances are the third-most by any school and its 29 overall tournament appearances rank third behind only Tennessee (34) and Georgia (31).

Tennessee is the only school that has a longer active streak of NCAA Tournament appearances than Stanford’s 28. The Lady Vols have earned a bid to all 34 NCAA Tournaments.

The Cardinal’s 77 wins in the NCAA Tournament are third all-time behind Tennessee (120) and Connecticut (103) as are its 104 tournament games. Tennessee has appeared in 146 and Connecticut 120.

Stanford’s .740 NCAA Tournament winning percentage is fourth all-time among programs with a minimum of 20 appearances behind Connecticut (.858), Tennessee (.822) and Baylor (.750).