STANFORD, Calif. (AP) — Anthony Brown was happier about Stanford’s assist total than its points total, though he’ll take a win any way he can get it.
Brown scored 16 points, including four 3-pointers, in helping the Cardinal beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff 74-39 Monday night.
Brown also had five of Stanford’s 22 assists on 25 made baskets. The Cardinal also dished out 22 assists in a victory over Delaware last month.
“That was big,” Brown said. “Twenty-two assists has to be among the highest since I’ve been here. It’s also nice to hit shots.”
Stefan Nastic added 13 points for the Cardinal (8-3), which has won four of its past five games, including last Tuesday's 74-71 overtime upset over then-No. 9 Texas in Austin.
Chasson Randle had 11 points for Stanford, including a 3-5 effort from long range. Randle has made 240 career 3-pointers, one shy of Dion Cross' school record. Stanford knocked down 11-17 form three-point territory, including a 9-12 clip in the first half.
“They play zone as well as anybody and our guys were patient,” Stanford head coach Johnny Dawkins said. “We were moving the ball and sharing it.”
Marcel Mosley scored 25 points to lead the Golden Lions (3-11), who have lost two straight and three of four overall.
Mosley has scored at least 20 points for the sixth time as Arkansas-Pine Bluff fell to 0-13 against Pac-12 teams and 0-2 against Stanford.
“It’s making us tougher,” Golden Lions coach George Ivory told the Pine Bluff Commercial. “This will make it easier when we get to SWAC play. After playing these teams, we know what we have to do against our conference teams. I mean, we won’t play teams as skilled or athletic the rest of the way.”
Stanford held the Golden Lions to a single basket through the first 8 ½ minutes of the second half and the Cardinal eventually took a 40-point edge with just over 10 minutes to play.
“Any time you hold a team to 39 points, I don’t care who you are playing, that’s a heck of a job,” Dawkins said. “We played well in a number of phases of the game. We were pretty sharp.”
The Golden Lions missed their first seven shots, scoring their first basket with 11:50 remaining in the first half on Mosley's jumper, cutting Stanford's lead to 19-3.
The Cardinal led by as many as 34 points before settling for a 45-14 advantage at the intermission.
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NOTES: Stanford limited Arkansas-Pine Bluff to just 14 first-half points. It was the lowest total since the Cardinal held Connecticut to 13 second-half points last December … Stanford forced 25 turnovers, its most since also forcing 25 against Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 12, 2012 … Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s 39 points were the fewest for an opponent since Stanford routed Pacific 79-37 on Nov. 28, 2011 … Arkansas-Pine Bluff finished with 13 field goals, the fewest allowed by Stanford since Feb. 2, 2012, when Arizona State converted 13-38 from the floor … Reid Travis scored all five of his points from the foul line … Christian Sanders made his second consecutive start, totaling five points, four rebounds, four steals and three assists in 20 minutes … Stanford received 24 points from its bench … The Cardinal finished with 13 steals, its most since also totaling 13 thefts against Pacific on Nov. 28, 2011 … Earlier in the day, Anthony Brown was named Pac-12 Player of the Week for the first time in his career … Stanford opens Pac-12 play on Friday (12 p.m. PT, Pac-12 Networks) against Washington State.
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Stanford Head Coach Johnny Dawkins
“I thought our guys played well. Especially coming off the Christmas break, since one never knows how the guys will come out. But tonight they played well and I’m proud of them. We were patient, moved the ball well, shared the ball and that showed a lot of maturity from them.”
“Any time you hold a team to 39 points, I don’t care who you are playing, that’s a heck of a job,” Dawkins said. “We played well in a number of phases of the game. We were pretty sharp.”
“We’ve had a terrific nonconference season that included a lot teams with different styles and tough road games, so I think we’ve had good preparation for our conference. Every night (conference play) is going to be good. It’s going to be a grind and that is going to make us be more successful and on top of our game.”
Senior Anthony Brown
“The biggest thing tonight was defense. We played great defensively and it was good to get a win. Tonight was one of our better defensive games we played so far. We were creating a lot of forced turnovers, which led to more points.”
“Every minute is important. There are going to be games where the score is closer, so it’s important for the guys to keep the flow alive, especially when coming off the bench.”
“Every Pac-12 game is always competitive, so this weekend is going to be a great test for us.”