Stanford Cardinal
Pac-12 (31-1, 18-0)
Coach Tara VanDerveer is a legend and has created a dynasty at Stanford. After her first two seasons in Palo Alto, California, Coach VanDerveer has never failed to lead the Cardinal to the NCAA Tournament. In the last four years, Stanford has been to four Final Fours. There is little reason to think that they cannot make it five.
Big Wins: 11/13 Gonzaga (76-61), 12/20 Tennessee (97-80), 3/04 at California (86-61)
Bad Losses: 11/21 at Connecticut (58-68)
Coach: Tara VanDerveer (26 seasons at Stanford)
Why They Can Surprise:
The Cardinal work around two of the most dominating frontcourt players in the nation. Sisters Nnemkadi and Chiney Ogwumike are a formidable duo. Nnemkadi, a senior, is the big time scorer on the team. It is a rare occasion when she does not eclipse the 20 point and ten rebound plateau. Younger sister Chiney is no slouch in the paint on either end of the floor either. With a little more size than her sister, Chiney is developing into a great scorer and rebounder. It is nearly impossible for any team to stop both of them from scoring in the paint or from grabbing a ton of rebounds on both ends of the floor. With freshmen Taylor Greenfield and Bonnie Samuelson coming into their own as the season has progressed, Coach VanDerveer has a loaded frontcourt.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The backcourt does a superb job of keeping the turnovers down. Toni Kokenis, Linda La Rocque and Amber Orrange all have great assist-to-turnover ratios. It makes it a little easier when you can just throw the ball into either Ogwumike and get an assist for it, but the backcourt does work through the post and avoids turnovers. However, the backcourt does not really have a major scorer. Kokenis can attack the basket and will score about ten points per game, but she can be quite inconsistent from long range. La Rocque and Orrange are pass first players and rarely look to score. The outside shooting is mostly done by forwards Greenfield, Samuelson and Joslyn Tinkle. Tinkle is the best overall scorer of the bunch, but Samuelson needs to knock down some long range shots to stretch out the defense so the Ogwumike’s can get more space in the paint.
Probable Starters:
Amber Orrange, Freshman, Guard, 4.1 ppg, 2.7 apg
Toni Kokenis, Sophomore, Guard, 9.5 ppg, 3.7 apg
Joslyn Tinkle, Junior, Forward, 8.6 ppg, 5.6 rpg
Nnemkadi Ogwumike, Senior, Forward, 21.8 ppg, 10.5 rpg
Chiney Ogwumike, Sophomore, Forward, 15.8 ppg, 10.3 rpg
Key Roleplayers:
Taylor Greenfield, Freshman, Forward, 4.0 ppg
Lindy La Rocque, Senior, Guard, 4.0 ppg, 2.6 apg
Bonnie Samuelson, Freshman, Forward, 5.0 ppg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 77.5 (6th in nation, 1st in conference)
Scoring Defense: 54.6 (35, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 45.8 (8, 1)
Field-Goal Defense: 33.9 (8, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.5 (100, 4)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 31.3 (123, 6)
Free-Throw Percentage: 75.5 (23, 1)
Rebound Margin: 11.6 (6, 2)
Assists Per Game: 17.2 (10, 1)
Turnovers Per Game: 12.8 (5, 1)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
Stanford 2011 NCAA Round of 64 win over UC Davis
Stanford 2011 NCAA Round of 32 win over St. John's
Stanford 2011 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over North Carolina
Stanford 2011 NCAA Regional Final win over Gonzaga
Stanford 2011 NCAA National Semifinal loss to Texas A&M
Stanford 2010 NCAA Round of 64 win over UC Riverside
Stanford 2010 NCAA Round of 32 win over Iowa
Stanford 2010 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Georgia
Stanford 2010 NCAA Regional Final win over Xavier
Stanford 2010 NCAA National Semifinal win Oklahoma
Stanford 2010 NCAA National Final loss to Connecticut
Stanford 2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over UC-Santa Barbara
Stanford 2009 NCAA Round of 32 win over San Diego State
Stanford 2009 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Ohio State
Stanford 2009 NCAA Regional Final win over Iowa State
Stanford 2009 NCAA National Semifinal loss to Connecticut
Stanford 2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over Cleveland State
Stanford 2008 NCAA Round of 32 win over UTEP
Stanford 2008 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Pittsburg
Stanford 2008 NCAA Regional Final win over Maryland
Stanford 2008 NCAA National Semifinal win over Connecticut
Stanford 2008 NCAA National Final loss to Tennessee
Stanford 2007 NCAA Round of 64 win over Idaho State
Stanford 2007 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Florida State
*all team stats through 3/1
