STANFORD, Calif. – A monster game from Erica McCall and a furious comeback in the fourth quarter were not enough and No. 13 Stanford fell to No. 9 Arizona State on a buzzer-beater in overtime on Sunday, 63-61.
McCall finished with 22 points on 11-of-14 shooting, with fellow junior Karlie Samuelson adding 14, but the Sun Devils (22-4, 13-1 Pac-12) prevailed on last-second jumper by Sophie Brunner.
Stanford (20-6, 10-4 Pac-12) went down 6-0 early on two threes from Arizona State, and trailed by four at the end of the first. A lay-in from Samuelson capped a 6-0 Cardinal spurt that narrowed the Sun Devils' lead to two midway through the second. But Lili Thompson missed two free throws that would've tied the game, and Arizona State went on an 11-0 run to end the half, maintaining a 13-point advantage heading into the final period.
That's when the Cardinal made its comeback, going on an 8-0 run to start the fourth, ultimately pulling ahead by one with 26 seconds left. Key to the comeback was the team's defense, which held ASU to 6-of-23 shooting in the second half. Brunner made it to the foul line with nine seconds remaining, and made one of two to send the game to overtime. Peace Amukamara and Brunner scored all eight Sun Devils points in the last five minutes, with Brunner nailing a turnaround jumper in the lane off a feed from Elisha Davis as time expired to send Arizona State to its fourth consecutive regular-season victory over Stanford.
Brunner totaled 14 points and 12 rebounds, and Katie Hempen finished with 12. Kelsey Moos also had 12 boards, helping her team to a 47-30 rebounding advantage over the Cardinal.
Samuelson and Briana Roberson (nine points) accounted for all six of Stanford's 3-pointers, four of which came in the second half and overtime. Thompson tallied four points, five assists and three rebounds before fouling out early in the extra period.
TURNING POINT » Down 17 early in the third and 13 to start the fourth, the Cardinal outscored the Sun Devils 19-6 in the final quarter to force overtime. Three straight baskets from McCall and a driving floater off the glass by Thompson to begin the fourth trimmed Stanford's deficit to five with 6:43 remaining. Briana Roberson's trey brought the Cardinal within one at the 1:34 mark, and Samuelson's 3-pointer gave the team its first lead of the game at 55-54. Thompson and McCall had opportunities in the waning seconds to win the game for Stanford, but were unable to convert. In the extra period, McCall's lay-up put her squad up two with just over a minute left, but Brunner scored the game's final four points--including her turnaround jumper at the buzzer.
TARA VANDERVEER » I'm really proud of our team's fight and how we battled back, especially in the fourth quarter. I think our defense really stepped up. Unfortunately, we dug ourselves a hole. We just needed to execute better at the end. I thought we had some good looks. But I think this game will help us grow. It was a very hard-fought game, and there's no shame in losing to Arizona State. They have an excellent team. We can build on the good things that we did, and we need people to be honest about some of the things we can improve on.
SCORCHER FROM MCCALL » McCall set a career high in made field goals (11), and just missed tying her career-best in points (23) against the Sun Devils on Sunday. She did most of her damage in the second half and overtime, leading her team out of a 17-point hole with 18 points--including eight in the fourth quarter--on 9-of-12 shooting.
ERICA MCCALL » Tara said that we were going to go into the bigs, and I'm proud of the way my teammates and I executed. I really think that helped us build some energy. I knew it was [the bigs'] responsibility. We haven't carried the weight throughout the season, and so I thought this would be great time for us to show the country what we're all about. I'm glad that we executed that way.
TARA VANDERVEER II » I thought Erica showed so much heart. She laid it all out there and gave us everything: offensively, defensively, rebounding. This was a great big step for [McCall]. We went to her, and she delivered. This a breakout game. We have never said 'We're going to her.' It's time, and she's delivering. This will be more of what we'll see.
KARLIE IN THE CLUTCH » Samuelson poured in eight points in the first half, but went scoreless in the second before draining a trey with under a minute remaining in regulation to give Stanford its first lead of the night. She nailed another shot from distance early in overtime to put her team up 58-57, and finished 4-of-8 from beyond the arc, her fifth game this season hitting four or more triples.
FREE TIME ON THE FARM » Sunday marked Stanford's second overtime game this season, and the first since its 71-65 win against Purdue in the Gulf Coast Showcase championship game on November 29. The program is now 3-2 in overtime games over the last two years.
