Dec. 21, 2001
TEMPE, Ariz. - Sophomore Nicole Powell (Phoenix, AZ/Mountain Pointe HS) and senior Lindsey Yamasaki (Oregon City, OR/Oregon City HS) combined for 47 points to lead sixth-ranked Stanford University (10-1, 2-0) to a come-from-behind 75-66 victory over host Arizona State University (9-3, 0-1) on Friday night at Wells Fargo Arena. Stanford, which trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half, outscored the Sun Devils 56-34 over the final 26 minutes.
"This is a great win for us," Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer said. "It gives us confidence on the road, and high expectations for the Pac-10 season.
Powell, playing in front of her hometown friends and family, was 10-of-15 from the floor en route to 25 points and nine rebounds. Yamasaki had 22 points, including 8-of-12 from the foul line, and four rebounds. Freshman guard Kelley Suminski (Chester, NJ/Mendham HS) chipped in 11 points and five assists, including 9-of-10 shooting from the foul line. As a team, Stanford shot .581 (25-of-43) from the field compared to ASU's .438 (21-of-48).
Senior guard Amanda Levens led Arizona State with 28 points.
Stanford, which trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half, took its first lead of the game on the strength of a 17-5 run to open the second half. The Cardinal took the lead at 39-37 on a Powell lay-up at 18:22 and built the lead to 50-41 just 3:27 later.
Stanford then survived foul trouble - Powell picked up her fourth foul with 11:46 to play and three others players had three fouls with seven minutes remaining - to hold on and post its ninth win in Tempe in its last 10 tries. The Sun Devils cut the lead to five at 52-47 with 11:17 remaining, but Stanford went on a 10-2 run behind six points from Yamasaki to push the lead to 62-49 at the 7:58 mark. The Sun Devils, who tied for the Pac-10 title with Stanford and Washington last season, got no closer than seven points the rest of the way.
"We decided to be the aggressor in the second half, and went to a full court press," VanDerveer said. "Te pressure really surprised them because we haven't done that all year."
In the first half, ASU took control early with a 15-2 run that gave it a 34-21 advantage with 5:02 remaining before the half. Levens scored nine of the 15 points, and finished with 16 of the Sun Devils' 36 first half points.
Stanford then made it a game before halftime with a 12-2 run over the final four minutes that trimmed the Sun Devil lead to 36-33 at intermission. Yamasaki and Powell combined for nine of the 12 points in the run. Powell and Yamasaki also combined for 21 of the Cardinal's 33 points in the opening half (Powell - 12, Yamasaki - 9). The three-point deficit marked the first time Stanford has trailed at halftime this season.
"Arizona State came out very aggressively," VanDerveer said. "I was proud of the way we showed poise at the end of the first half. We did not panic."
The Cardinal shot .600 percent (12-of-20) in the first half, compared to ASU's .588 (10-of-17). The Sun Devils also committed 16 turnovers, while the Cardinal had 12.
After breaking for the holidays, Stanford returns to action on Friday, December 28 when it hosts UCLA (3-6, 0-1) at 7:00 p.m. at Maples Pavilion.
INJURY NEWS: Stanford sophomore point guard Susan King (Richfield, MN/Academy of Holy Angels) returned to the San Francisco Bay Area after re-injuring her right knee on Wednesday night at Arizona, and underwent an MRI on Thursday ... The MRI was "inconclusive" in regards to an ACL tear ... She will rest the knee for the next two weeks, and be re-evaluated on January 2 ... King missed the final 21 games of the 2000-01 season with a torn right ACL, and missed the first eight games of this season after having a scope to clean out the right knee on November 8.