STANFORD, Calif. – Alanna Smith picked up another national award on Tuesday when she was named the U.S. Basketball Writers Association's Ann Meyers Drysdale National Player of the Week.
Yesterday, Stanford's senior was honored as both espnW National Player of the Week and Pac-12 Player of the Week for her performance in Stanford's win over then-No. 3 Baylor.
Smith scored 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including 5-of-9 from 3-point range, grabbed eight rebounds and had two blocks and two assists. Stanford knocked off previously undefeated Baylor, 68-63, on Saturday for its first win in the regular season against a top-five team since it ended No. 1 UConn's 47-game winning streak in overtime, 88-86, on Nov. 17, 2014. The Cardinal is now 9-1 in its last 10 home game against top-five opponents.
Smith also played a vital role in shutting down Baylor's inside tandem of Kalani Brown (16.4 ppg) and Lauren Cox (12.3 ppg), who came in averaging nearly 30 combined points per game. Together they went for just seven points on just 3-of-11 shooting (.273).
Baylor, which entered the game leading the nation in field goal percentage (.557), shot just 34.9 percent (22-of-63) against the Cardinal, its lowest since losing 88-69 to Notre Dame in the Elite Eight on March 31, 2014 (.338).
Smith is shooting 57.8 percent from the field (52-of-90), 50.0 percent from behind the arc (21-of-42) and averaging a team-high 18.5 points per game to go with 6.4 rebounds this season. She is the only player in the nation shooting better than 57 percent from the floor and 50 percent from deep using NCAA minimums of five made field goals per game and two made 3-pointers per game.
Smith is second in the conference and 31st in the country in field goal percentage, third in the Pac-12 and 11th in the country in 3-point percentage, seventh in the league in scoring and leads the nation's 6-foot-4 players in 3-point percentage and 3-pointers made.
No. 8 Stanford is at No. 9 Tennessee on Tuesday night (3 p.m. PT) in the first top-10 matchup between the longtime rivals since 2013.
