STANFORD, Calif. – Erica McCall had 18 points, eight rebounds and four blocks and No. 11 Stanford stymied another foe, this time limiting visiting Chattanooga to 21.1 percent shooting and 30 points in a 43-point win in Maples Pavilion on Monday night, 73-30.
The Cardinal was able to exact a bit of revenge on UTC (8-5), which prevailed in the programs' first meeting a year ago in Tennessee, 54-46. On Monday, the Mocs didn't score more than nine points in any quarter, were forced into 21 turnovers and were dominated in the paint, 41-10.
Lili Thompson (11) and Karlie Samuelson (10) joined McCall in double figures and Briana Roberson handed out a team-high five assists. Kaylee Johnson and Alanna Smith put up impressive lines off the bench, with Stanford's sophomore forward scoring eight and grabbing six rebounds while its Australian freshman had seven and seven in 15 minutes of action.
Stanford (10-2) begins its Pac-12 slate on Saturday, January 2 at Arizona (9-3) in the Cardinal's first of 17 Pac-12 Networks broadcasts. Mini plans and single-game seats for Stanford's remaining home schedule are available by calling 800-STANFORD or visiting gostanford.com/tickets.
TURNING POINT » Stanford raced out to a 15-2 lead in the first six minutes and never looked back. Briana Roberson, who was a perfect 3-of-3 from behind the arc, sank two in the opening frame. Moses Johnson nabbed UTC's first basket with 7:20 on the clock, but the Mocs went scoreless for the next four minutes, misfiring on just two attempts from the floor due to five turnovers.
EXTENDING AND FINISHING » The Cardinal absolutely slammed the door shut with a 22-0 run over the third and fourth quarters that lasted over nine minutes and gave the team a 69-25 advantage when Tess Picknell capped the stretch with her first of two field goals late in the fourth. Queen Alford was successful on a pair of free throws with 1:51 on the clock in the third quarter to get Chattanooga to 25 points. The Mocs wouldn't score again until Jasmine Joyner made a jumper with 2:47 to go in the game. UTC missed 10 straight shots during the run and went just 4-of-27 (.148) from the field in the second half.
MAKING IT DIFFICULT » Stanford entered the game fourth in the nation in field goal percentage defense and put together yet another lockdown effort at that end of the floor. Chattanooga made just 12 of its 57 shots all night (.211), the Cardinal's third straight sub-23 percent performance. Stanford's 30 points allowed are the sixth-fewest in program history and the lowest total since it gave up 28 to Long Island on Nov. 19, 2005.
APPLYING PRESSURE » The Cardinal has held 11 of 12 opponents this season below 40 percent shooting, five below 30 percent and one below 20 percent. Stanford is now limiting its foes to convert at only a 30.6 percent clip, the second-best mark in the country. Its last three opponents (Tennessee, Cornell, CSU Bakersfield, Chattanooga) have combined to go 59-of-250 from the field (.236), 18-of-71 (.254) from deep and have averaged just 41.0 points.
THIEVES » Kaylee Johnson tallied a career-high four steals and Stanford's 11 as a team were a season high, as were its 27 points off 21 UTC turnovers. The Cardinal hadn't scored more off of opponent miscues since Feb. 23, 2014 at UCLA (33).