STANFORD, Calif. - Chasson Randle was happy he had another chance to make a free throw. He didn’t want missing his first free throw of the season to hang over his head.
Randle scored a season-high 31 points, two off his career high, and Stefan Nastic added 15 points to help Stanford down Loyola Marymount 67-58 Wednesday night.
The Cardinal (6-2) won for the third time in four games despite Randle having his consecutive free throw streak end at 39, the school’s third longest, and the most since Ryan Mendez’s school-record 49 in 2001.
“He had a nice streak going,” Stanford head coach Johnny Dawkins said. “I’m proud of the way he bounced back. He takes a lot of free throws. I never had a run like that from the line.”
Randle, coming off a season-low nine-point effort, was 9-19 from the field and 10-12 from the foul line. Nastic was 7-10 from the field.
“I think the game was won when we started turning them over,” Randle said. “That leads to easy baskets.”
His first miss came on the front end of a 2-shot foul at the 13:14 mark of the second half.
“That’s the nice thing about two shots: you miss one and you still get another,” he said.
Evan Payne, who scored 32 points in his last outing against Northern Arizona, was limited to 14 points for the Lions (3-6), who lost their fourth straight.
Stanford and LMU were playing for the first time in 30 years and the sixth time overall. The Cardinal has won all six.
Simon Krajcovic converted a conventional three-point play to give Loyola Marymount a 48-47 advantage with 7:51 left, the ninth lead change of the game.
“We had some untimely turnovers,” LMU coach Mike Dunlap said. “You also have to give Number 5 (Randle) full credit for doing some things that we didn't do. He just played a great game.”
Stanford took the lead for good with an 11-2 run over the next three minutes, highlighted by 3-pointers from Randle and freshman Dorian Pickens.
Payne’s dunk at 17:50 of the second half put the Lions ahead 39-32 but the Cardinal proceeded to score seven straight, including a 3-pointer from Pickens, to take its first lead since early in the game.
The Lions held a 31-19 lead after Ayodeji Egbeyemi hit a free throw with 3:41 remaining in the first half.
“Where they might have stolen the momentum back was inside of 3 minutes left in the first half, because we had four turnovers inside of that time frame that gave them some life,” Dunlap said. “The tempo of the game was one we like, but turnovers kill you.”
Stanford scored the final eight points of the half to draw within 31-27 heading into the intermission.
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NOTES: Stanford and Loyola Marymount were meeting for the first time since Dec. 21, 1984, when the Cardinal recorded a 67-59 victory … Chasson Randle notched his fifth career 30-point game … Randle’s consecutive free throw streak (39) trails only Ryan Mendez (49) and Todd Lichti (41). Randle, who made his final four free throws of last season against Dayton, passed Arthur Lee (38) after making two free throws in the first half. He is now 42-44 (95.5 percent) on the season … Randle also came up with five steals, increasing his career total to 128 and moving into a tie with Keith Jones for seventh place in the school record books … For the first time this season, Anthony Brown failed to reach double-digit scoring. He grabbed five rebounds and matched a career high with five assists … Stanford’s 11 steals were its most since also totaling 11 at USC last January … The Cardinal committed only eight turnovers and entered tonight’s game with 77 overall, good for seventh-fewest in the nation … Dorian Pickens knocked down a pair of three-pointers and is 5-10 from long distance this season … After missing the first seven games, Grant Verhoeven made his return to the hardwood and finished with four points and two rebounds in nine minutes. Verhoeven has been rehabbing from hip surgery … Stanford next faces BYU in Provo on Saturday, Dec. 20.
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Stanford Head Coach Johnny Dawkins
“Being down double digits in the first half and needing to bounce back in the second was the difference. Effort was what won the game for us. I’m proud about my guys’ effort because they picked it up in the second half, which lead to easy baskets.”
“We have to be a very good defensive team. We need to buy more into that and it’s going to be key for us, especially when playing against other good opponents. Just like tonight, turning up the effort on our defensive end led to a lot of easy points.”
“We’ve played a challenging schedule but I feel good about our performance thus far. This team has a lot of room for growth and potential, which is what you want at this point in the season, but we lack in experience.”
“Chasson has been adjusting to his new role and new teammates this season. The guys are all good but just inexperienced compared to last year’s team. Chasson needs to be a little more vocal and a leader, which he showed that tonight, especially the way he came out in the second half, full of intensity and effort. To get 31 points from him tonight was great to see. He always rises to the occasion.”
Stanford Senior Chasson Randle
“I think our intensity on the defensive end that was key. We needed more defensive intensity in the first half. In the second, we picked it up, which was what we needed to do after the first half. We can’t start games like that if we want to continue to win. Establishing more defensive pressure led to more turnovers, which was key for us.”
“Turning up the pressure was very important for me tonight, especially in the second half. Creating more steals, rebounds and turnovers was key.”
Loyola Marymount Head Coach Mike Dunlap
“I saw two big things. One, some untimely turnovers and also that you have to give Randle full credit for doing some things that we didn't do. He just played a great game.”
“Where they might have stolen the momentum back was inside of three minutes left in the first half, because we had four turnovers inside of that time frame that gave them some life. The tempo of the game was one we like, but turnovers kill you.”
“Randle is a talented one. Coach Dawkins is probably trying to incorporate him so there's some balance, because they know that when they get into the tall timbers of the Pac-12, there are going to be some guys who are going to lock him down. You've got to have other people to help him.”