Stanford, Boise State Clash In CBI First Round Contest Wednesday


Stanford, Boise State Clash In CBI First Round Contest Wednesday
Courtesy: Stanford Athletics  
Release: 03/17/2009

March 17, 2009

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Stanford Cardinal (18-13, 6-12 Pac-10)
vs.
Boise State Broncos (19-12, 9-7 WAC)

  • Wednesday, Mar. 18, 2009 • 7 p.m.
  • Maples Pavilion (7,329) • Stanford, CA
  • Series History: First Meeting
  • Radio: KTRB AM 860 (PBP: Dave Flemming, Color: John Platz)
    KZSU 90.1 FM (PBP: Chris Fitzgerald)
  • TV: none
  • Webcast: www.gostanford.com

    The Opening Tip
    For the 16th consecutive season, Stanford (18-13, 6-12 Pac-10) has qualified for the postseason. But for the first time in school history, the Cardinal will be participating in the 2009 College Basketball Invitational (CBI). Stanford has been rewarded with a home game in the first round of the Midwest Regional and will host Boise State (19-12, 9-7 WAC) on Wednesday, Mar. 18, at Maples Pavilion in a 7 p.m. tip. Stanford will be playing its first home game since Feb. 28.

    Media Memo
    Wednesday's game can be heard live on KTRB AM 860 and Stanford's official athletics website, www.gostanford.com, featuring the chemistry-rich tandem of Dave Flemming (play-by-play) and John Platz (analyst). KZSU 90.1 FM provides coverage with Chris Fitzgerald (play-by-play). There is no television coverage for this game, but a webcast is offered at www.gostanford.com.

    About The College Basketball Invitational (CBI)
    Now in its second year, the CBI features a single-elimination, 16-team field with the first three rounds of competition to be played at campus sites. The championship is a best-of-three series, with both finalists guaranteed at least one game on their home court. First round contests are slated for Mar. 17-18. Last year, Tulsa captured the inaugural CBI championship with a pair of wins over Bradley in the best-of-three series. Of the CBI's 17 possible games, 11 will be televised nationally on HDNet.

    Stanford Against The CBI Field
    Oregon State is the only team in this year's CBI field that Stanford has already faced. The Beavers swept the regular season series with a pair of double-digit victories before the Cardinal posted a 62-54 win in the Pac-10 Tournament play-in round.

    Stanford Against Other Postseason Fields
    While Stanford's potential CBI opponents are relative unknowns (there are eight opponents in the tourney that the Cardinal has never faced in its 94-year history), the same cannot be said for at least two other postseason tournaments. Stanford faced off against seven of this year's NCAA Tournament participants, posting a 5-9 record. Of the 32 teams selected for the NIT, Stanford faced two squads and came away with a 2-1 mark. Stanford did not play any teams that qualified for this year's CollegeInsider.com Postseason Basketball Tournament.

    Scouting Boise State
    One year after reaching the NCAA Tournament and capturing both the WAC regular season and tournament championships, Boise State (19-12, 9-7 WAC) returns to the postseason for a second straight year after placing third in the conference. Boise State notched a 12-3 record through its first 15 games of the year, but finished 7-9 over its final 16 contests. Boise State's best stretch of the year was a season-high six-game winning streak before the first of two losses to Nevada on Jan. 15. Boise State, 6-8 in road games this year, averages 72.7 points per game while shooting 47.2 percent from the field and 34.7 percent from beyond the arc. However, the Broncos are allowing 71.6 points per game and 43.7 percent shooting from the field while committing 14.6 turnovers per game. Keep an eye on: Mark Sanchez (13.2 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 51.5 percent from the field, 71 assists), Paul Noonan (10.4 ppg, team-best 54 three-pointers, 84.7 percent from the free throw line) and Anthony Thomas (9.6 ppg, 146 assists, 40 steals).

    Stanford All-Time vs. Boise State
    Stanford and Boise State will be meeting for the first time on the hardwood.

    Stanford/Boise State Common Opponents
    Stanford and Boise State both registered victories over their two common opponents: Colorado State and Cal State Bakersfield. Stanford defeated Colorado State in Fort Collins 74-63 one week after Boise State downed the Rams 85-76 in Boise. Stanford routed Cal State Bakersfield 85-50 at Maples Pavilion, while Boise State squeaked out a 66-62 road win against the Roadrunners.

    Stanford All-Time vs. WAC
    Stanford owns a commanding 84-31 all-time record against WAC opponents. Aside from a 3-3 record against Utah State, the Cardinal has a winning record against every other WAC foe: San Jose State (38-12), Nevada (20-9), Hawai'i (8-3), Fresno State (8-1), Idaho (6-3) and Louisiana Tech (1-0).

    Stanford All-Time In The Postseason
    Advancing to the postseason for the 16th year in a row, Stanford has compiled a 28-19 record in 21 postseason appearances. The Cardinal, which sports a 21-15 record in 16 NCAA Tournament appearances, captured the 1942 championship, reached the Final Four in 1998, advanced to the Elite Eight in 2001 and moved on to the Sweet 16 in 1997 and 2008. Stanford is also 7-4 in five NIT appearances. The Cardinal most recently played in the NIT three years ago and also claimed the 1991 championship.

    16th Straight Winning Season In The Books
    Stanford managed to extend a pair of lengthy streaks with its 75-63 rout over USC back on Feb. 28. That triumph clinched a winning record for the 16th consecutive season and gave the Cardinal at least 16 wins for the 16th straight year. Now the Cardinal enters the postseason having won three of its last five overall. Recent victories during that stretch included a 74-64 road upset at No. 21/21 Arizona State and a 75-63 win over Pac-10 Tournament champion USC. The Cardinal finished non-conference play 11-0 and also posted impressive victories over No. 22/23 California (75-69) on Jan. 17, Northwestern (65-59) on Dec. 20 and Arizona (76-60) on Jan. 4.

    Cardinal Strong In Non-Conference
    Stanford finished non-conference play 11-0 and is one of seven teams in NCAA Division I competition carrying an undefeated non-league record. The only other programs who have yet to lose a non-conference game this year are: North Carolina (14-0), Clemson (14-0), Wake Forest (13-0), Pittsburgh (13-0), Connecticut (12-0) and Minnesota (12-0). Prior to this year's 11-0 mark, Stanford last went undefeated (9-0) during the non-league portion of its schedule in 2003-04. Stanford's non-conference numbers this year were very impressive. Seven of the 11 victories were decided by double-digits, the club's margin of victory stood at +17.0, four different players averaged at least 11.0 points per game and Stanford reached the 100-point plateau twice while averaging 79.7 points per game.

    Home Sweet Home
    Stanford sports a 13-4 record at home this year and reached the 10-win mark at Maples Pavilion for the 16th consecutive year with a 77-55 win over Oregon back on Jan. 22. In 2007-08, the Cardinal set a record for home victories (16) in a single season. Additionally, the Cardinal is 29-5 in its last 34 home games dating back to the start of last year.

    Goods, Hill Earn All-Pac-10 Recognition, Green Named To Freshman Team
    Seniors Anthony Goods and Lawrence Hill received all-conference honors for the second time in their careers while Jeremy Green earned a spot on the Pac-10 All-Freshman Team, highlighting Stanford's selections among the 2008-09 Pac-10 men's basketball award winners. Both Goods and Hill received Honorable Mention recognition, with Goods receiving the honor for the second straight season and Hill adding to his All-Pac-10 honor from two years ago. Goods is averaging a team-best 16.3 points per game to go along with 3.4 rebounds per game. He has led the Cardinal in scoring on 14 different occasions, registered a career-best nine 20-point games while scoring in double-figures 28 times. An All-Pac-10 honoree two years ago, Hill ranks second on the club in scoring (13.3 ppg) and rebounding (5.6 rpg) and has scored in double-figures in 22 contests. Stanford's first All-Freshman selection since Brook Lopez in 2007, Green is averaging 6.0 points and 2.2 rebounds per game in 31 contests. Green has quickly developed a reputation as one of Stanford's most dangerous three-point shooters, connecting on 41-91 (45.1 percent) tries.

    Cardinal In The Pac-10, National Statistics
    Stanford ranks second in the Pac-10 in turnover margin (+2.3) and fourth in the following categories: scoring (72.9), three-point field goal percentage (38.1), three-pointers per game (7.3), assists per game (15.0) and assist/turnover ratio (1.2). In the latest edition of the national rankings, the Cardinal also ranks 29th in three-point field goal percentage, 40th in assist/turnover ratio and 54th in turnover margin. Anthony Goods is the Pac-10's fifth-best scorer (16.3 ppg) and ranks fourth in threes made per game (2.2). Mitch Johnson ranks fourth in assist/turnover ratio (1.8) and seventh in assists per game (4.4). Meanwhile, Landry Fields ranks sixth with 6.7 rebounds per game.

    Pac-10 Tournament Recap
    One year after falling to UCLA 67-64 in the Pac-10 Tournament championship game, Stanford finished 1-1 at this year's event. Appearing in the play-in round for the first time in school history, the Cardinal posted a 62-54 win over Oregon State after the Beavers had swept the season series. Stanford then met up with No. 13/10 Washington, the tournament's top seed, in the quarterfinals. After a tight first half, the Huskies pulled away for an 85-73 victory to eliminate Stanford from tournament play.

    Stanford Opening Up On Offense
    Coming into this year, head coach Johnny Dawkins promised a more up-tempo offensive attack due to increased team speed and experienced guard play. And he's been right on as Stanford ranks fourth in the Pac-10 at 72.9 points per game. Stanford scored at least 70 points in five straight games to begin the year, representing the first time that has happened since a five-game stretch at the end of the 2001-02 campaign. Stanford sports a 13-5 record when scoring at least 70 points.

    Finding Scoring Balance
    In what is becoming an almost nightly occurence on offense, Stanford has placed at least four players in double-figure scoring on 16 different occasions, doubling last year's total of eight. Stanford is 10-6 in such games.

    Hot Start, Undefeated Record Highlight First Half
    Stanford reeled off 10 victories in a row to begin the year, matching the seventh-best start to a season in school history and best overall since the 2003-04 club opened the year with 26 consecutive wins. In addition, the 10-game winning streak was Stanford's best since that same 26-0 stretch four years ago. Even more impressive, Stanford was one of six unbeaten teams remaining in Division 1 competition (joining Clemson, Illinois State, Pittsburgh, North Carolina, Wake Forest) prior to suffering its first loss on Jan. 2.

    Moving Up The Charts
    With five assists against Washington on Mar. 12, Mitch Johnson increased his career total to 518 and moved into sole possession of second place in the school record books. Only Brevin Knight has recorded more assists (780) in Stanford men's basketball history. Johnson is also averaging 6.7 points and 2.6 rebounds per game while making 29 starts.

    Green's Rookie Year Ranks Among The Best
    One of Stanford's most dangerous three-point shooters, Jeremy Green ranks second in three-pointers made (41) and attempted (91) among freshmen all-time at Stanford. Only Casey Jacobsen (74-170) tallied higher marks in his rookie season on The Farm.