SETTING THE SCENE
Stanford reaches the midpoint of its five-game homestand to start the season, hosting Northern Arizona on Tuesday, Nov. 12 at 7 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.
THE STARTING FIVE
• The Cardinal is off to a 2-0 start with wins over Denver and Cal State Fullerton by 23 and 27 points, respectively. Stanford is one of seven in the ACC with a 25-point or better scoring margin to start the year.
• Stanford’s roster holds an exciting mix of returning players, transfers and freshmen, led by All-Pac-12 standout, and one of the top centers in the country, Maxime Raynaud.
• The Pac-12 Most Improved Player last season, Raynaud led the Cardinal with averages of 15.5 points and 9.6 rebounds, to go with 2.0 assists per game. He is leading the ACC in rebounding through Saturday, Nov. 9, with 13.0 per game to go with 15.0 points per night. He ranks ninth nationally rebounds per game.
• Four players are averaging double figures, paced by Benny Gealer's 16.0 points per game. Gealer, who ranks first in the ACC and eighth nationally with 10 made threes, leads Raynaud (15.0), Jaylen Blakes (15.0) and Oziyah Sellers (14.5) in the category.
• Kyle Smith joined the Cardinal from Washington State as the reigning Pac-12 Coach of the Year, where he led the Cougars to 25 wins and the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2023-24. Smith brought his entire staff from Washington State to the Farm along with program icon Eric Reveno, who was at Oregon State from 2022-24 and was previously on the Cardinal bench from 1997-2006.
FOUGHT OFF FULLERTON
Stanford rode a second half surge to move to 2-0 on the season, defeating Cal State Fullerton at Maples Pavilion, 80-53, on Nov. 8. Benny Gealer and Jaylen Blakes each recorded career highs, with Gealer scoring 20 points with six made threes and Blakes had 18 points to go with five assists and no turnovers. Maxime Raynaud tallied his second straight double-double to begin the year, tallying 14 points and 14 rebounds, while Chisom Okpara was also in double figures with 10 points and Ryan Agarwal had eight. The Cardinal ended the game on a 69-31 run.
FUN WITH SMALL SAMPLE SIZES
After six days of basketball across the country, the Cardinal has multiple league leaders in the ACC. Maxime Raynaud leads the conference in rebounds per game at 13.0 per night, while ranking ninth nationally, and he is the only ACC player with two double-doubles. Benny Gealer leads the league with 10 made threes, while ranking eighth nationally. Gealer leads the country in 3-point percentage (76.9%) among players with at least 10 made threes. Oziyah Sellers was one of three ACC players to score at least 24 points in a season-opener, and it stands as the second-most an ACC player has scored through games on Saturday, Nov. 9. Jaylen Blakes meanwhile ranks first in the ACC and sixth nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (11:1) and sixth overall in the conference with 5.5 assists per game.