Path to the DancePath to the Dance
Women's Basketball

Path to the Dance

11.14 vs. Texas

Stanford snagged the first of its three top-10 wins with a 71-59 rout of No. 8 Texas in Maples Pavilion on Nov. 14. Brittany McPhee scored a career-high 28 points, Erica McCall added 17 points and six blocked shots and the Cardinal shot 55 percent to knock out the Longhorns. McPhee's 11-of-15 effort from the floor was the most efficient for a Stanford guard against a ranked opponent this millennium.

.@bamcphee balled out with a career-high 28 points. No. 11 Stanford 71 - No. 8 Texas 59. #GoStanford

A post shared by Stanford Women's Basketball (@stanfordwbb) on Nov 14, 2016 at 8:26pm PST

1.29 vs. Washington

On the road in front of a sellout crowd and down 18 at No. 7 Washington, Stanford showed its mettle and staged a rally for the ages, knocking off the Huskies 72-68 on Jan. 29. Briana Roberson led the charge scoring all 14 of her points in the second half, Brittany McPhee added 17, including a steal and go-ahead layup with just over a minute remaining, and the Cardinal placed Tara on the cusp of history with career win No. 999.

2.3 vs. USC

Tara became just the third NCAA Division I coach to reach 1,000 career victories on Feb. 3 when Stanford beat USC 58-42 to give the Hall of Famer a major milestone to share with the home crowd. She joined her dear friend Pat Summitt and Duke's Mike Krzyzewski in the elite club. The current team, former stars and her mother Rita were just some of the thousands on hand to share in the special moment with a coach that has meant so much to women's basketball on the court and far beyond.

2.19 vs. Cal

Tara attributes much of her team's success this season to the leadership of its three senior captains – Erica McCall, Briana Roberson and Karlie Samuelson. During the season, McCall and Samuelson became the 37th and 38th Stanford players to score 1,000 career points, Karlie became the eighth to make 200 3-pointers and Roberson received her first All-Pac-12 honor when she was named to the league's six-person all-defensive team at season's end. On an emotional Senior Day, the trio closed out their careers in Maples with a 72-54 win over rival Cal and Roberson described her four-year journey simply, saying "It's surreal to play with this team."

3.5 vs. Oregon State

In the locker room after notching her 1,000th career win, Tara told the team there'd be bigger games to come and, as is often the case, she was right. Stanford climbed out of a 13-point hole to beat No. 6 Oregon State 48-43 and win its 12th Pac-12 Tournament title in Seattle on March 5. Alanna Smith scored 18 points off the bench, Karlie Samuelson added 14 and after surrendering 22 points and nine field goals in the first quarter, the Cardinal allowed just 21 points and seven made field goals over the game's final 30 minutes.