LAS VEGAS – Four scored in double-figures, the Cardinal shot 56 percent and No. 14 Stanford opened the Play4Kay Showcase with a 79-54 win over Kent State at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on Thursday evening.
DiJonai Carrington, who was 10-of-14 from the floor and made all eight of her attempts from inside the arc, scored a career-high 24 and added 10 boards to collect her second double-double in the last three games. Alanna Smith scored a season-high 15 on 7-of-11 shooting to go along with eight rebounds while Nadia Fingall put in 11 in just 14 minutes of action. Marta Sniezek scored all 10 of her points in the first quarter, tied a career high with eight rebounds and handed out seven assists in her best performance of the season.
Kent State (3-2) had its only lead after Jordan Korinek made consecutive 3-pointers for a 25-20 edge early in the second quarter. Stanford (3-2) responded with a 24-0 run over the next 5:22 with 10 points from Carrington and nine points from Smith during the spurt. The rally ended when an extra pass from Sniezek found a wide open Carrington for one of the Cardinal's eight 3-pointers to make it 44-25 with just over a minute until halftime.
The lead remained in double figures, though Kent State got within 10, 55-45, late in the third quarter with a 3-pointer and bucket by Ali Poole. Stanford quickly added plenty of cushion, outscoring Kent State 22-8 in the fourth.
Stanford shot 56 percent and outscored the Golden Flashes 40-10 in the paint.
The Cardinal built an early eight-point lead when Sniezek made a driving layup with 3:31 on the clock in the first, but Kent State scored the final six points of the period and took its five-point lead three minutes into the second before Stanford started its run.
Korinek scored 21 for the Golden Flashes and Poole had 14.
Stanford will face Belmont in the semifinals tomorrow at 8 p.m. The Bruins beat Gonzaga, 71-63, behind 21 points from Sally McCabe.
