SETTING THE SCENE
Celebrating its senior class with its final home game of the ACC season, Stanford welcomes SMU to Maples Pavilion on Saturday, March 1 at 2 p.m. The contest will be broadcast on ACC Network.
THE STARTING FIVE
• The Cardinal is off to a 18-10 start (10-7 ACC), including ACC wins over North Carolina, California (2x), Virginia Tech, Virginia, Florida State, Syracuse, NC State, Boston College and Miami, including two quadrant one NET wins. The Cardinal is 15-2 at home this season and 8-1 in ACC play.
• Stanford’s roster holds an exciting mix of returning players, transfers and freshmen, led by the premier center in the country, Maxime Raynaud. The Pac-12 Most Improved Player last season, Raynaud is 17th nationally in scoring at 20.0 points per game and third in rebounding with 11.1 per night. He is second in the ACC in scoring and first in rebounding, and his 21 double-doubles this season pace the nation. No other major conference player has more than 17 (Johni Broome, Auburn).
• Three players are averaging double figures, paced by Raynaud but also including Jaylen Blakes (13.6) and Oziyah Sellers (14.0). Both players are posting career-best numbers by a comfortable margin.
• Blakes has showcased his clutch gene this season with game winning baskets in the closing seconds against both Santa Clara and North Carolina. Blakes made national headlines on Jan. 18 with his last-second winner against the Tar Heels, while his sister, Mikayla, a freshman at Vanderbilt, scored a game-winner of her own less than 24 hours later against Tennessee.
• 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.
SENIOR SALUTE
Stanford will honor its senior class in a pre-game ceremony against the Mustangs, the first senior class under head coach Kyle Smith. The Cardinal will celebrate three players - Maxime Raynaud, Jaylen Blakes and Cole Kastner - as well as student manager Hawe Adugna. The Stanford senior class has helped lead the program to its most wins since the 2019-20 campaign.
THE DOUBLE-DOUBLE KING