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Dec. 2, 1997
Stanford Women's Basketball to Travel
Next Game: 12/14 @ Illinois
This Week: Stanford (1-3) does not play again until December 14. This week is "Dead Week" for students in preparation for finalswhich are next week. Up next for the Cardinal is No. 8 Illinois,No. 3 Connecticut and No. 16 Colorado. Only the Colorado gamewill be played at Stanford.
Stanford in the Rankings: Stanford was ranked 11th in last week's AP Poll. New rankings will be released on Tuesday. The Cardinal droped from a previous ranking of fourth. The Cardinal has been ranked in the AP Top 20 every week since the beginning of the 1987-88 season. In the Pac-10 Conference, the media has tabbed Stanford to capture the 1997-98 conference race.
TV & Radio: Stanford games air live on KBPA 1220 AM and KZSU 90.1 FM. Dave Flemming will handle the play-by-play duties, while Ray Salloom will provide the color. This season is the first year Stanford Women's Basketball is being heard on a commercial station (KBPA). Additionally, all Cardinal radio broadcasts can be heard on the world wide web via AudioNet.
Head Coach Tara VanDerveer: Head Coach Tara VanDerveer returns to The Farm for a 12th season after leading the 1996-97 team to a third consecutive Final Four appearance. At Stanford, VanDerveer owns a 286-67 (.813) overall record and a 152-21 (.879) Pac-10 mark. In her 18 years of collegiate coaching, VanDerveer has accumulated an impressive 438-118 (.789) record. Three times each VanDerveer has collected National Coach of the Year and District Coach of the Year honors. VanDerveer was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year for the fourth time in her career last season.
Injury Report: The Cardinal is still without Naomi Mulitauaopele. She had off-season surgery on her right knee and is still in rehab. Currently, she is listed week-to-week.
Outside Shooter: Senior co-captain Vanessa Nygaard continues to be one of the Cardinal's best outside shooters, while contributing inside as well. After the four games, Nygaard leads the team with 18.5 ppg and is second on the team with 7.5 rpg. Overall, Nygaard is shooting .463 (25-54) from the field. Currently, she is fifth on Stanford's all-time 3-Pt. FG Made list (152), just three behind Christy Hedgpeth in fourth (155). Against Tennessee, Nygaard posted a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, going 9-9 from the free-throw line. Last season, Nygaard shot .367 (58-158) from 3-point land, averaging 11.6 ppg and 6.9 rpg.
Back Court Update: Milena Flores and Melody Peterson have started all four games this season. Peterson is third on the team in points per game with a 12.5 per game average, while Flores is fifth with 9.8 ppg. These two are seeing the majoirty of the playing time, with Christina Batastini and Sarah Dimson seeing time off the bench. The back court is a young group, with four sophomores and one freshman making up the core group.
"O"ffense: Senior co-captain Olympia Scott posted her second double-double of the season against USF, scoring a career-high 31 points and grabbing 7 rebounds. Against Tennessee, she posted a team-leading 18 points and nine rebounds. On the season, Scott is the team's leading rebounder, averaging 7.8 per game and she is second in points with a 16.3 ppg average. Scott is a top-ten preseason Naismith candidate, as well as a preseason All-American by Street & Smith's and Athlon. Last season, Scott was an AP All-America Honorable Mention and a First-Team All-Pac-10 player.
Home Sweet Home: Maples Pavilion has been a kind home to the Cardinal. Stanford owns a 49-game winning streak at Maples Pavilion, the longest in Stanford Women's Basketball history. Three of the four seniors (Owen, Scott, Mulitauaopele) have never lost a game in Maples. The last home lost for Stanford was on March 26, 1994, when Purdue topped the Cardinal, 82-65, in the West Regional Final game at Maples. The Cardinal's 49 consecutive games was the longest active streak in NCAA Division I women's basketball, until the streak was halted with the 88-70 loss to Tennessee at the San Jose Arena. The 49 games rank ninth on the NCAA's all-time list.
The Last Time: Stanford has not opened the season 1-3 since the 1981-82. That year, the Cardinal finished 19-8 overall and reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time. After losing the third game, Stanford went on an eight game winning streak. Under VanDerveer, Stanford's worst starts have come in 1985-86 and 1993-94 when the teams started 2-2. In 1993-94 the team finished with a 25-6 record and reached the NCAA Reginal Finals.
Media Notes: The Pac-10 begins its coaches teleconference on Monday, December 15. Tara VanDerveer will be available from approximately 12:27 pm - 12:30 pm. The number to access the call will be released next week.