Dec. 22, 2006
LOS ANGELES- Jillian Harmon poured in 14 points to lead four Cardinal players in double-figure scoring as No. 14/15 Stanford shot 52.6-percent overall in a 68-59 victory over UCLA on Friday afternoon.
The Cardinal (7-3, 2-0 Pac-10) held off a late Bruin rally that cut the lead to six with just over three minutes left to play.
UCLA (7-7, 1-1 Pac-10) became the latest victim of a stingy Stanford defense, which forced 16 turnovers and limited the Bruins to just 33.9-percent shooting.
Brooke Smith, who became the first Cardinal player to foul out of a game this year, added 13 points and five boards. Jayne Appel chipped in with 11 points and five boards while JJ Hones scored 11 points while dishing out five assists.
UCLA's Noelle Quinn led all scorers with 18 points and Lindsay Pluimer added 15.
UCLA held a 36-35 rebounding edge and managed to stay close thanks to a 14-19 mark from the charity stripe.
The opening 10 minutes featured four ties and two lead changes, as both squads were unable to build much of a lead.
After a jumper by Quinn tied the game at 14-14, Stanford embarked on a 13-2 scoring run that included seven points from Smith to make it 27-16 with 8:48 on the clock.
With Stanford's post trio of Smith, Appel and Kristen Newlin in early foul trouble, UCLA had multiple opportunities to chip away at the Cardinal lead late in the first half. The Bruins took care of business at the free throw line by making 10-13 tries, but shot a dismal 24.3-percent (9-37) from the field.
A free throw from Moniquee Alexander cut the Cardinal lead to 33-28, but Michelle Harrison drained a three-pointer right before time expired to give Stanford a 36-28 lead at intermission.
Stanford opened the second half quickly by scoring the first 10 points before UCLA's Tierre Henderson finally answered at the 17:10 mark with a three-pointer to trim the Cardinal lead to 46-31. The 10-0 surge included fast-break layups from Harmon and Cissy Pierce as UCLA struggled to find its offense.
The Cardinal lead swelled to 20 following a jumper from Newlin at the 16:43 mark before the Bruins were able to cut the deficit back to 52-36 just four minutes later.
Leading 59-38 with 10:23 left to play, UCLA mounted its biggest offensive charge of the contest with a 17-2 scoring run. Quinn and Pluimer combined for 11 of those points, bringing the Bruins closer as the Cardinal continued to be cautious with foul trouble.
Appel's put-back with 2:26 remaining increased Stanford's lead to 65-57 and the Cardinal iced the game with free throws.
Following the holiday break, Stanford hosts Arizona (Dec. 28 at 7 p.m.) and Arizona State (Dec. 30 at 5 p.m.) in a two-game homestand.