Feb 21, 2004
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) - Nicole Powell made sure her final home game would be memorable.
Powell had 14 points and 15 rebounds in her final home game to lead No. 10 Stanford to its 10th straight win over UCLA, 63-54 on Saturday.
Sebnem Kimyacioglu added 13 points for the Cardinal (20-5, 13-3 Pac-10). Kelley Suminski had 12 points and T'Nae Thiel 10.
Stanford extended its conference home game winning streak to 28 games and have won 45 of its last 48 home games overall.
Powell was teary-eyed as she received a bouquet of flowers in a brief ceremony honoring the seniors before Stanford's final home game of the season.
"I didn't know how I would feel," said Powell, who had 10 points and 13 rebounds in the second half. "I didn't expect to cry at all. It's been a special experience for my whole family and for all the seniors, Katie (Denny) and Chelsea (Trotter) too. It was pretty emotional. But UCLA didn't care about senior day. We had to get focused."
Since returning from a sprained ankle on Jan. 4, Powell has recorded 10 double-doubles in 12 games, and was one rebound shy in each of the other two games. She has 45 career double-doubles, and six triple-doubles, in 110 games.
"Nicole is such a good player, and we knew we couldn't keep her under wraps," said UCLA coach Kathy Olivier. "She was more aggressive in the second half and absolutely got some key rebounds. Then she hit that key 3-pointer that got got the crowd all crazy and that's all she wrote after that."
Freshman Nicole Quinn recorded her sixth double-double in eight games with 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Bruins (15-11, 10-7), who had their season-high six-game winning streak snapped. Lisa Willis added 16 points.
Quinn made one of two free throws with 15:05 left, snapping a streak of 30 straight free throws, two off the school record and three off the conference mark. The made free throw snapped a 31-all tie.
The Cardinal responded with a 7-0 run, taking a 38-32 advantage two minutes later when Susan Borchardt made two free throws.
Stanford eventually built a 14-point lead with 7:22 left on Kimyacioglu's 3-pointer.
"In the first half they got the better of us," said Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer. "To me, the second half was Nicole getting a rebound and pushing it. She did a great job on the boards."
UCLA got within three points in the final four minutes but the Cardinal were able to hang on.
The Bruins went on a 15-4 run during a six-minute span of the first half, taking a 24-18 lead when Amanda Livingston hit a short jumper.
Stanford came back to tie it, but Willis hit a shot in the final 36 seconds to give UCLA a 26-24 halftime edge.