Jan 11, 2002
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) - Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer thought she saw something she'd seen before while watching her team sprint to a fast start.
"I told Nicole (Powell) this looks like old times," VanDerveer said after No. 4 Stanford beat Oregon State 91-54 Thursday night to remain the only undefeated team in the Pac-10. "She said that was the ultimate compliment."
Powell, one assist shy of a triple-double, scored 20 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season and the 14th of her career as the Cardinal raced up and down the court reminiscent of Stanford teams in the mid 90s which reached the Final Four in three consecutive years (1995-97).
"That start remained me of three or four years ago of Stanford teams that really got up the floor," said Oregon State coach Judy Spoelstra. "With Powell, it's nice having a taller guard, and she really does see everything well."
Stanford led 19-2 after the first five minutes as Oregon State missed eight of its first nine shots and never got closer than 12 points the rest of the night.
The Cardinal, who made 10 of their first 11 shots, led by 20 points a minute later as they executed a crisp transition game and got several easy baskets as a result. They eventually built a 36-11 edge with 8:46 left in the first half following a jumper by Lauren St. Clair.
"Nothing against Oregon State, but it was easy to run," Powell said. "It was all effort and we were all on the same page. That's a lot of fun."
Freshmen T'Nae Thiel and Kelley Suminski added 13 points apiece as the Cardinal (15-1, 5-0 Pac-10) won their seventh straight game. They added to their best start in conference play since finishing the 1996-97 season unbeaten.
Felicia Ragland, the conference's leading scorer, had 20 points for Oregon State (8-8, 4-3), which had won two in a row. The Beavers were off to their best conference start since 1988-89.
Stanford, which hasn't been ranked as high nationally in five years, also improved to 16-0 against Oregon State at Maples Pavilion.
"We were running the ball and pushing it and creating good shot opportunities," said VanDerveer. "I like the way we played."
Oregon State fell to 0-3 against teams ranked in the top 10 and 3-5 on the road.
Stanford has beaten its opponents at home by an average of more than 20 points, and has played just three games decided by nine points or less overall
"That's a good Stanford team," said Spoelstra. "We were very tentative to start and non-aggressive on offense. I thought we were watching the white uniforms more than looking for the orange uniforms. Their transition game was on."
Oregon State's Leilani Estevan made her first free throw, but missed her second to end her consecutive streak at 12.
The Beavers rallied somewhat behind Ragland, who scored seven of her points in the final four points of the half, to draw within 48-34 by halftime.
Lindsey Yamasaki scored 12 points and Bethany Donaphin added 11 for Stanford.