Stanford (13-11, 6-6 Pac-12) vs. UCLA (13-12, 6-6 Pac-12) | Saturday • Feb. 16 • 7:00 p.m.
Maples Pavilion • Stanford, Calif.
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Television: ESPN2 | Radio: Stanford Cardinal Sports Network
Game Notes: Stanford | Live Stats: GoStanford.com
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SATURDAY NIGHT SHOWDOWN
Stanford hosts UCLA Saturday night at Maples Pavilion, looking to move up in the Pac-12 standings. The Cardinal enters Saturday tied with the Bruins, USC and Colorado for sixth place in the conference at 6-6 with six regular-season games remaining. UCLA has won the last three games in the series, but the Cardinal has won the last two at Maples Pavilion.
PINK GAME
Saturday is Stanford's "Pink" game in support of the fight against breast cancer. The program will honor 11 breast cancer survivors during the contest and distribute pink t-shirts as well as pink pom poms to promote awareness and support for the fight against breast cancer.
HOME SWEET HOME
Stanford has played just 10 home games all season, the least among the Power 5 conferences, as well as the Mountain West, West Coast, Big East, Conference-USA, and American Athletic Association. By the time Stanford takes the court on Saturday, only three schools among that group of conferences will have played 11 or less home games - Stanford, Colorado and Tulane.
The Cardinal is 8-2 at home this season with four of its final six regular-season games on The Farm. Stanford posted a 14-4 record at home in 2017-18, and is 33-11 in the Jerod Haase era.
KZ OKPALA AMONG PAC-12'S BEST
Sophomore KZ Okpala, one of 10 finalists for the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award, ranks fifth in the Pac-12 in scoring (17.4 ppg) and 16th in rebounding (5.7 rpg). In conference play, the forward is third in scoring, averaging 18.3 ppg. Okpala scored a career-high 30 points in the win at California. He has 12 20-point games this season, the second-most in the conference.
BREAKING DOWN OKPALA'S PERFORMANCES
• 12 20-point games this season is the second-most in the Pac-12 and is eight more than last year
• Career-high 30 points at California is one of nine 30-point games in conference play this year
• Averaging 18.4 ppg in his last 14 games, after averaging 15.9 ppg in the first nine contests.
• Stanford is 4-1 when Okpala scores 23 points or more (only loss was by two to Arizona)
• Of the 18 performances of 29+ points in the Pac-12, only Okpala and Robert Franks have achieved the feat three or more times
OKPALA'S IMPACT AS A SOPHOMORE
Sophomore KZ Okpala leads Stanford in scoring (17.4 ppg) in 33.4 mpg in 23 games this season (missed Washington State game with an injury). In 23 games as a freshman, he averaged 10.0 ppg in 28.5 mpg.
AGAINST UCLA
UCLA leads the all-time series 146-95 and has won the last three meetings. However, Stanford has won the last two meetings between the California schools at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal won a double-overtime thriller, 107-99, last season on The Farm.
CARDINAL PLAYERS AGAINST UCLA
Twelve active Stanford players have faced UCLA previously. KZ Okpala has averaged 22.5 and 8.5 in his last two games against the Bruins. Sophomore Daejon Davis is averaging 19.3 ppg and 6.3 apg in three games against UCLA.
LAST GAME AGAINST THE BRUINS
KZ Okpala recorded his second double-double of the season, with 22 points and 10 rebounds, but it wasn't enough as Stanford fell to UCLA in its Pac-12 opener at Pauley Pavilion on Jan. 3. The Cardinal was within six with 13 minutes to go, but the Bruins closed the game with 42 of the final 68 points to win 92-70. Okpala finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Moses Brown led four Bruins in double figures with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Tied at 12 early on, Stanford went 7:25 without a field goal and fell behind by 14. The Cardinal used 10-0 run to cut it to four with 4:47 remaining in the opening half. Okpala's fastbreak dunk made it 48-42 with 13 minutes to go, but UCLA scored 13 of the next 18 points to regain its double-digit advantage.
YOUNG SQUAD
Eleven of Stanford's 15 players are in their first or second year playing. Only senior Josh Sharma and juniors Marcus Sheffield, Trevor Stanback and Rodney Herenton have more than two years of playing experience. Through 24 games, first and second-year players have accounted for 82% of Stanford's minutes (3,962 of 4,827), 81% of Stanford's scoring (1,410 of 1,745) and 79% of Stanford's rebounding (669 of 850).
Stanford's starting lineup in seven games has been made up of freshmen and sophomores. In five games, sophomores Daejon Davis, KZ Okpala and Oscar da Silva have started alongside freshmen Cormac Ryan and Bryce Wills. Three freshmen - Ryan, Wills, Delaire - started at UCLA. Freshmen and sophomores have combined for 99 out of a possible 115 starts through 23 games. The Cardinal is one of only four teams in Division I that have started all freshmen and sophomores this season, joining East Carolina, Incarnate Word and Mount St. Mary's.
WINNING ON THE ROAD IN THE PAC-12
Stanford has won seven conference road games of its last 16 conference road games since the start of the 2018 conference slate. The Cardinal won just six conference road contests in 27 tries in a three-season span from 2015-17.
SHARMA ON TARGET
Senior Josh Sharma leads the Pac-12 in field goal percentage, shooting 67.2 percent from the field (88-of-131). In conference play, he leads the Pac-12 in FG percentage by five percent, shooting 73.8 percent (48-of-65).
JOSH JAMS
Of Josh Sharma's 88 field goals on the season, 41 have been dunks. He has 34 dunks in the last 19 games.
SHARMA SHINES IN LAST EIGHT GAMES
Over his last eight games, Josh Sharma is averaging 11.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.3 blocks, and is shooting 72.0 percent from the field. He averaged 7.8 ppg and 4.9 rpg in his first 16 contests of the season.
SENIOR SENDS IT AWAY
Josh Sharma owns 30 blocks on the year. He ranks ninth in the Pac-12 in blocks (1.3 bpg) overall and fifth in the conference in league action (1.4 bpg).
DAVIS DOES IT ALL
Sophomore Daejon Davis has averaged 14.6 pts., 4.2 asts. and 2.2 stls. in his last five games. The point guard has posted a season-best 19 points in three games, against Kansas, Eastern Washington and San Francisco.
Davis is fifth in the Pac-12 in steals (1.6 spg) and seventh in assists (4.2 apg). He is fourth in the conference with 4.9 apg during Pac-12 action.
The sophomore has recorded at least four points, four rebounds, and four assists OR four steals in a game six times this season. Against Colorado, the point guard recorded 16 points, six assists and four rebounds. Davis has posted at least four points, four rebounds, four assists AND four steals in two games this season against UNC Wilmington and Middle Tennessee.
13 FOR NUMBER 13
Stanford is 5-0 on the season when sophomore Oscar da Silva scores at least 13 points. He matched his career-high with 23 points (17 in the first half) to go along with nine rebounds and a career-best seven assists at Oregon State.
DA SILVA'S SECOND-HALF PRODUCTION
Oscar da Silva has had several notable second-half performances. He posted all 12 of his points at San Francisco, all 11 of his points at North Carolina, all seven of his points vs. Wisconsin and 13 of his 16 points against Eastern Washington after halftime.
CORMAC BACK
Freshman Cormac Ryan returned four games ago at California, after missing the previous four games and seven of the previous 11 with ankle injuries. He has recorded at least four three-point field goals in a game in five contests (6 vs. USC, 5 vs. Seattle, 4 vs. North Carolina, 4 vs. Florida, 4 vs. Eastern Washington), and has multiple three-point field goals in eight games. The freshman is shooting 31.4 percent from three-point range (33-of-105). Ryan's career-best six threes at USC (all in the second half) were the most threes in a game by a Stanford freshman since Chasson Randle (6) vs. Arizona State on March 7, 2012.
WILLS ONE OF NATION'S YOUNGEST PLAYERS
With a birthdate of October 13, 2000, Bryce Wills is the youngest player in the Pac-12 and one of the youngest in Division I. Wills is the seventh-youngest player in the nation. He has started the last eight games, and 16 overall.
In Pac-12 play, Wills is averaging 8.6 ppg and 4.7 rpg in 29.3 mpg. In Stanford's last seven games, the freshman is averaging 11.0 ppg and 5.1 rpg. Wills recorded a career-best 16 points at California. The freshman averaged 3.3 ppg and 2.6 rpg in 22.2 mpg in 11 nonconference games.
SHEFFIELD PROVIDES SPARK
Redshirt junior Marcus Sheffield, who injured his leg in practice a couple days before the 2017-18 regular-season opener and missed the season, is averaging 5.2 ppg in 14.2 mpg off the bench in 20 games this year. He scored a season-best 16 points, shooting 4-of-5 from three-point range in the win over USC on Wednesday. Sheffield knocked down three of those threes in the final 7:27. The forward scored 11 points in 23 minutes in the win at Washington State and totaled eight points in eight minutes in the victory at Oregon State. Sheffield played a season-long 29 minutes at Oregon. He averaged 6.7 ppg during his true sophomore campaign in 2016-17.