Dec. 3, 2006
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) - Candice Wiggins scored 19 points and Brooke Smith added 14 in helping No. 15 Stanford to a 73-49 victory over No. 25 Texas Tech on Sunday.
Jayne Appel added 11 points, seven rebounds and four blocks for the Cardinal (4-3), who won their third straight over the Lady Raiders.
Chesley Dabbs and Alesha Richardson scored nine points apiece for Texas Tech (6-3), which lost two in a row for the first time this season.
Texas Tech's Erin Myrick entered the game averaging 13.1 points and 10.4 rebounds, shooting over 54 percent. She grabbed 10 rebounds, but was limited to 1-of-8 shooting. Richardson had also been averaging a double-double.
The Lady Raiders returned to the Top 25 last week for the first time in almost a year. Texas Tech had been ranked for 248 consecutive weeks before opening the season with two wins in its first seven games.
Stanford shot 42.4-percent from the field compared to Texas Tech's 28.3-percent.
Wiggins triggered Stanford's 21-2 run to open the second half that broke the game open. She connected on a 3-pointer from the corner and followed with a driving layup that led to a three-point play that gave the Cardinal a 57-32 lead.
The Lady Raiders hurt themselves with poor shooting to open both halves. They were held to five points in the first 13 minutes and were 2-of-19 from the field to open the second half. They shot under 30 percent for the game.
The teams combined to commit 45 turnovers, with the Lady Raiders turning it over 23 times.
Texas Tech missed its first eight shots, but rallied to take a 20-17 lead midway through the first half.
Stanford roared back with a 14-2 run to push its lead to 31-22 en route to a 36-30 halftime advantage.
NOTES: Stanford has played a game on every day of the week except for Saturday. The Cardinal will host Utah on Saturday, Dec. 16, at 2 p.m. in its next contest after almost a two-week break ... Through seven games, Stanford's starters have accounted for 70-percent of the team's overall scoring ... NCAA representatives were on hand for today's game, conducting the first of two upcoming site visits. Maples Pavilion will serve as one of eight host sites for the first and second rounds of this year's NCAA Tournament ... Texas Tech misfired on its first eight shots of the game and did not get on the scoreboard until the 15:15 mark, as LaVonda Henderson canned a jumper ... Stanford is 4-1 when leading at halftime ... Texas Tech scored just 19 second-half points, the fewest allowed by Stanford in a half this year and lowest point total since holding USC to 19 points in the first half of a 73-44 win on Mar. 5, 2005 ... Christy Titchenal, playing in just her third game while also celebrating her 21st birthday, scored her first points of the year when she nailed a three-pointer with 25 seconds left ... JJ Hones dished out seven assists for the second straight game, bringing her team-high total to 33 for the season. She has notched four assists or more in five different games this year ... Today's crowd of 2,956 was the largest of the year ... Perhaps nobody was working harder on Sunday afternoon than the Stanford facilities and operations crew. As soon as today's game ended, the group immediately began setting up for an NCAA Tournament second round volleyball match between Stanford and Missouri.