Jan 30, 2004
By JANIE McCAULEY
AP Sports Writer
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) - One thing Tara VanDerveer has realized in her 18 seasons coaching at Stanford is when she tells her players what they need to do differently, they listen.
That was certainly the case Thursday.
Nicole Powell had 16 points and 10 rebounds and the No. 8 Cardinal bounced back from their first conference loss with an 85-59 victory over Washington.
"For anybody who thinks Stanford is in a mini slump, that answers that," Washington coach June Daugherty said.
Azella Perryman added 15 points in what VanDerveer considered her best game of the season, and Susan Borchardt had 12 for Stanford (16-3, 9-1 Pac-10), which used an inspired defensive effort to quickly turn this game into a blowout. Stanford had four players score in double figures in its 24th straight conference win at Maples Pavilion and VanDerveer liberally used her bench players.
Powell also added two steals, two assists and a blocked shot in 28 minutes.
Stanford responded well coming off its first conference loss, a 59-56 defeat at USC last Sunday in which Powell re-injured her troublesome right ankle and sat out a minute late in the game. The Cardinal shot just 34.7 percent, their lowest percentage in a conference game.
This time, they finished at 53.1 percent from the floor.
"We learned from what happened in L.A.," VanDerveer said. "Hopefully we can build on this."
The game featured a matchup of the top two scorers in the Pac-10 - Powell and Giuliana Mendiola, the reigning conference player of the year who had 15 points and was the only Washington player to score in double figures.
"It's not a rivalry with her," said Powell, who was injured at the start of last season. "All the awards she's definitely earned."
Mendiola was averaging 19.3 points per game coming in.
But Stanford has the top defense in the conference and put constant pressure on Washington's shooters. The Huskies (11-8, 4-6) have the No. 1 scoring offense at 74.9 points per game, but didn't show it.
They were sloppy with the ball, often forced shots and even had defensive lapses that led to uncontested lay-ins.
"It was pretty difficult," Mendiola said. "Obviously the score indicates that."
Powell, a 6-foot-2 forward and All-America candidate, seemed to favor the ankle a little bit Thursday, but was effective and got a rare chance to rest because of the big lead.
Stanford focused on containing 6-4 Washington center Andrea Lalum, who scored 20 points in the Cardinal's win over the Huskies in Seattle earlier this month. Lalum was 1-for-7 from the floor in this game for five points, had only six rebounds and committed four of her team's 19 turnovers.
"I just think we weren't poised tonight," Lalum said.
Borchardt scored the first five points of the game and Kristen Newlin made consecutive baskets midway through the first half to give the Cardinal a 24-12 lead.
Washington shot 40 percent (10-for-25) in the first half to Stanford's 58.3 percent. The Cardinal built a 46-26 halftime lead thanks to a 12-0 run midway through the half.
Newlin, a 6-5 freshman center, landed hard on her right knee in the second half and left the game. She will have an MRI on Friday.