STANFORD, Calif. - No. 11 Stanford begins its 2016-17 season when it hosts UC San Diego in an exhibition on Friday, Nov. 4 at 6 p.m. in Maples Pavilion. A free live stream with Kevin Danna and Ted Enberg as well as free live stats will be available on GoStanford.com.
All youth (8th grade and under) accompanied by a paying adult can stop by the Maples Pavilion box office prior to the game to receive free admission. General admission tickets are $9, while reserved sideline seats are $18 and lower chairbacks are $24. Tickets are available by calling 800-STANFORD or visiting GoStanford.com/tickets.
The Tritons went 26-5 a year ago, one win shy of the program record set in 2006-07, and advanced to the NCAA West Regional title game. UCSD is led by fifth-year head coach Heidi VanDerveer, the 2015-16 CCAA Coach of the Year and younger sister of Stanford's Setusko Ishiyama Director of Women's Basketball Tara VanDerveer.
The two schools met in an exhibition two years ago on Nov. 8, 2014, a 74-51 Stanford win. Erica McCall poured in 18 points to lead four players in double figures and Kaylee Johnson grabbed 12 rebounds. Stanford shot 42.4 percent in the second half after connecting at just 29.6 percent over the first 20 minutes. The Cardinal also repeatedly cashed in at the line, converting 24-29 overall and 20-25 during the first half. Meanwhile, UC San Diego was just 4-7 on free throws.
Stanford poised for big season
by David KieferWith Stanford women's basketball, there are some things you can count on year after year:
- The Cardinal will contend for a conference title.
- Stanford will make the NCAA tournament.
- The Cardinal will do something shocking.
The Cardinal enters the new season without being the Pac-12 favorite, a handle awarded to UCLA in a coaches' vote. Stanford also is coming off its first season since 2000 in which it failed to win a conference regular-season or tournament title.
But last season still was successful. The Cardinal made its 18th trip to the Elite Eight, including its 10th in 13 seasons. Stanford reached the NCAA tournament for the 29th consecutive season and achieved 25 victories for the 15th consecutive campaign. Stanford became the seventh Division I program to reach 1,000 victories when it beat Oregon State on February 26 and was the third-fastest to reach that milestone.
To top it off, Stanford upset top-seeded Notre Dame, 90-84, in the Sweet Sixteen, continuing something of a tradition, to hand storied programs an unexpected loss.
The Cardinal did all this without a senior starter. Four starters return this season – forwards Erica McCall and Kaylee Johnson, and guards Karlie Samuelson and Briana Roberson -- from a team that went 27-8 overall and 14-4 in the Pac-12.
In addition, Stanford brings in three McDonald's All-Americans – guards Dijonai Carrington and Anna Wilson, and forward Nadia Fingall. Plus, sophomores seem poised for bigger contributions, including forward Alanna Smith, an Australian who is the first international recruit in program history.
Understandably, the team has lofty goals: "To win the Pac-12, make it to the Final Four, and hopefully more than that," Samuelson said.
McCall leads the way. The 6-foot-3 senior psychology major and team captain was a first-team All-Pac-12 selection last season and named to the conference's All-Defensive team. She averaged 14.9 points, 9.4 rebounds and blocked 66 shots. She also hit 11 three-point baskets and is encouraged to shoot more. Her averages were a big jump from the 5.6 points and 5.4 rebounds as a sophomore.
"Offensively, it starts with Erica McCall," said Tara VanDerveer, Stanford's Setsuko Ishiyama Director of Women's Basketball and Pac-12 Coach of the Century. "She has improved so much with her confidence and she's just going to continue to grow."
McCall closed her year by averaging 20.3 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.0 blocks in Stanford's last 10 games. She shot 55 percent from the floor and 41 percent from behind the arc over that span. She finished 10th in the Pac-12 in scoring, fifth in rebounding, third in blocks and fourth in field goal percentage. And carried a 3.53 GPA.
McCall has a couple of individual goals in mind. She's eyeing Jayne Appel's season blocks record of 84 from 2007-08 and is seeking her first triple-double, which seems inevitable. After all, she had 18 double-doubles last season.
VanDerveer also is closing in on a significant number: Her 1,000 collegiate coaching victory. She has 980 in 37 seasons, including 828 of Stanford's 1,004 all-time victories. The Naismith Memorial Hall of Famer approaches her 31st season at Stanford.
Samuelson, a senior with great range, averaged 9.8 points and hit 80 three-pointers while shooting at a .473 clip from beyond the arc – the third-best percentage in the country.
"Tara tells me all the time, 'You should shoot more of them,'" Samuelson said.
Stanford has established itself as an outstanding defensive team. Last season, its 211 blocks were a school record and its opponents' .338 field-goal percentage was third in school history. Stanford held opponents under 50 points 11 times.
Over the final 15 games of the season, now sophomore Marta Sniezek averaged 5.0 assists with a 2.9 assist-to-turnover ratio. She should take over the point guard role. Against Washington in the Pac-12 Tournament, she had 13 assists and no turnovers. Her assist total was a Pac-12 Tournament record and also the most for a Stanford player in a game since 1991.
"I'm really excited about the improvement of Marta Sniezek," VanDerveer said. "She's a very savvy point guard. She sees things, she can call things on the fly, and she's a very unselfish player."
For Stanford fans, that's only the beginning. There is a lot to be excited about in 2016-17.