Nov. 25, 2009
CANCUN, Mexico- John Wall scored a season-best 23 points- including clutch shots in the final minute that sent the game to overtime- and No. 5/5 Kentucky closed with an eight-point run for a 73-65 victory over gritty Stanford on Wednesday night in the championship game of the Cancun Challenge at the Moon Palace Resort.
Kentucky (6-0, 0-0 SEC) managed to escape with the victory despite another standout performance from Landry Fields, who registered his third straight double-double with 23 points and 13 boards in 45 minutes. Jeremy Green added 18 points- including five three-pointers- to help keep Stanford in control for much of the game.
Stanford (3-3, 0-0 Pac-10) led 38-32 at halftime and held a four-point lead with 7:38 left to play, attempting to knock off its highest ranked opponent since rallying from 17 points down to stun No. 3/2 UCLA 75-68 back on Jan. 28, 2007 at Maples Pavilion.
But Wall hit a 12-foot fadeaway jumper from the right wing to tie the score at 61-61 with 30.6 seconds remaining in regulation, then two free throws with 2.4 seconds left to send the game to overtime.
Playing his fifth collegiate game, Wall capped a big night with a slam dunk at the final horn, setting off a wild celebration by Kentucky players before a crowd of 1,425.
Fellow freshman Eric Bledsoe made an NBA-length 3-pointer with 33 seconds to go that gave Kentucky a 69-65 lead it did not relinquish.
Fields was fouled by Ramon Harris during a scramble and hit both ends of a 1-and-1 to give Stanford a 63-61 lead with 28.2 seconds on the clock.
The Wildcats opted not to call a timeout and went to DeMarcus Cousins, who was fouled on the block. The 53.6 percent free throw shooter missed the first free throw and then the second on purpose, but fouled Jarrett Mann on the rebound.
Mann, a 53 percent free throw shooter, then missed both of his free-throw attempts, setting up a final flurry. Wall drew a blocking call on Andrew Zimmermann with 2.4 seconds left and calmly swished both free throws to tie it again.
Stanford's full-court pass was batted off the backboard by Patrick Patterson and corralled by Wall to send the game to overtime.
The game was marked by several long stoppages in play. Officials spent several minutes reviewing a Stanford 3-pointer and intentional foul in the first half, then a shot clock malfunction had tournament organizers searching for a ladder with 11:31 left in regulation.
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NOTES: Fields has scored at least 20 points in all but one game so far this year. Through six games, he is averaging 23.0 points and 9.8 rebounds per game, while leading the team with 14 steals. Fields is shooting 45 percent from the field, 71.9 percent from the foul line and 31.8 percent from three-point territory ... The game featured 12 ties and nine lead changes ... Fields was 11-14 from the foul line ... After shooting 35.5 percent in the first half, Kentucky connected at 52.4 percent in the second half ... Andrew Zimmermann finished with six points and five boards, including a clutch jumper to put Stanford ahead 61-59 with 2:07 remaining in regulation ... Matei Daian knocked down his second career free throw in the overtime period ... Zimmermann and Jack Trotter became the first Cardinal players to foul out of a game this year ... Stanford and Kentucky were meeting for the first time since an 86-85 overtime win for the Wildcats in the 1998 Final Four ... Stanford is averaging 72.7 points per game, shooting 42.5 percent from the field and 37.7 percent from three-point territory.