Stanford at Syracuse on Sunday

THE GAME: Stanford (15-4, 4-2 ACC) plays at Syracuse (15-3, 5-2 ACC) on Sunday, Jan. 18 at 2 p.m. ET. Mark Neely and Angel Gray have the call on ACC Network and Tim Swartz will handle radio on GoStanford.com, the Stanford Athletics app and Learfield’s Varsity Network.

THE RUNDOWN: Stanford is No. 34 in the NET rankings through games as of Jan. 15 and has played the nation’s 36th-toughest schedule ... Stanford, Louisville and Syracuse are the only ACC schools with multiple nonconference wins against Power 4 opponents ... Stanford is 13th nationally in free throw percentage (.784) ... The Cardinal has had 68 individual double-digit scoring efforts across its 19 games with only seven 20-point performances ... Stanford’s leading scorer and second-leading rebounder, Nunu Agara is one of six Power 4 players averaging 15.0 points and 8.4 rebounds ... Lara Somfai is one of four freshmen in the country averaging 9.9 points and 9.1 rebounds ... Her five double-doubles are the most for a Stanford freshman since Kaylee Johnson had five in 2014-15 ... Chloe Clardy is one of 52 players in the country averaging 10.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.9 steals, but is one of only two to do it coming off the bench ... Courtney Ogden is averaging 14.9 points on 55.7 percent shooting, 5.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.2 steals in the last nine games ... Stanford has the fewest transfers on its roster among all 68 Power 4 programs (1) ... The Cardinal boasts a roster of coaches that features four WNBA veterans, more than any other program in the country.

VS. SYRACUSE: The Cardinal beat the Orange at home last season, 79-58, behind 14 points, 12 assists, zero turnovers and five steals from Chloe Clardy. Before that, No. 3 Stanford beat No. 18 Syracuse 77-59 on Nov. 29, 2019 at the Greater Victoria Invitational in British Columbia. Despite this being only the third game between the schools, their athletic departments made a trade in 2013: Stanford’s previous Twitter handle (@SUAthletics) for a collection of local goods, including oranges.

OPENING TIP »

• Stanford picked up its second ranked win of the season on Jan. 4, knocking off then-No. 16 North Carolina on the road in overtime, 77-71. It was the Cardinal's first Top 25 win on the road since a 67-63 result at No. 11 Oregon State on Feb. 29, 2024.
• Coupled with a 67-62 home win over then-No. 22 Washington on Dec. 19, the Cardinal has won its last two games against the AP Top 25. Prior to the victory over the Huskies, Stanford had lost 10 consecutive games against ranked opponents.
• The Cardinal has won 15 games this season. Last season, Stanford did not win its 15th game until Feb. 27 against Miami (86-69). Its 16th win didn’t come until March 2 against Georgia Tech (87-82).
• The Cardinal is No. 34 in the NET rankings through games as of Jan. 15 and is 26th in the country in the NCAA’s new Wins Above Bubble (WAB) ranking at +2.31, a results-based assessment that shows how many more (or fewer) wins a team has than an average bubble team would have against the exact same schedule. It does not factor in margin of victory or efficiency, only results.
• Stanford has a pair of Quad 1 wins over Oregon (NET 23) and North Carolina (NET 24). The Cardinal is one of 26 teams with multiple Quad 1 wins.
• Stanford, Louisville and Syracuse are the only ACC schools with multiple nonconference wins against Power 4 conference opponents. The Cardinal has its two Big Ten victories on its resume, Louisville beat Colorado and Tennessee, and Syracuse has wins over Utah and Auburn.
• The Cardinal is 13th nationally in free throw percentage (.784) and 15th in rebound margin (+10.2).
• Stanford’s offense hasn’t relied on just one person this season. The Cardinal has had 68 individual double-digit scoring efforts across its 19 games with only seven 20-point performances.
• Stanford’s 68 double-digit scoring efforts are tied for 20th nationally, while its seven 20-point performances are tied for 164th in the country.

ON THE ROAD »

• With a 4-1 mark in true road games, Stanford has already surpassed its road win total from all last year. The Cardinal went 14-4 at home in 2024-25, including 14-1 against unranked opponents, but only managed two road wins at Wake Forest on Jan. 16 and at Virginia Tech on Feb. 20.
• Stanford was 2-9 in road games last year. The Cardinal’s only other sub-.500 road record over the previous 37 seasons was in 2000-01 (6-8).

OGDEN ON FIRE »

• A 43.5 percent shooter as a freshman and sophomore, Courtney Ogden is making 57.0 percent this season (86-of-151).
• In her last nine games, the junior is averaging 14.9 points on 55.7 percent shooting, 5.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.2 steals.
• She had zero 20-point games in her first 72 career outings and now has three 20-point performances in her last nine.
• On Thursday at Boston College, Ogden had 13 points, nine rebounds and six assists, the first Stanford player with that line in a road game since Cameron Brink had 14 points, 12 rebounds and six assists at Utah on Feb. 25, 2023.
• She was named ACC Co-Player of the Week on Dec. 15 after scoring a career-high 25 points on 10-of-12 shooting to go with seven rebounds, two assists and one block in the Cardinal’s 78-69 win to open ACC play against Cal.
• Her efficient performance is one of 45 in the country this season in which a player has scored 25 points on at least 80.0 percent shooting, but one of only nine to come against a major conference opponent.
• Ogden is the first Stanford player with 25 points on 80.0 percent shooting and seven rebounds since Cameron Brink against Arizona on Jan. 30, 2022 (25 points, 83.3 FG%, 15 rebounds). She became the first to have a line of 25 points, 7 rebounds, two assists, one block, and a field goal percentage of at least 80.0 percent in an ACC conference game since Georgia Tech’s Tyaunna Marshall at Virginia Tech on Jan. 23, 2014 (30 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks, 85.7 FG%). That is the only other instance in an ACC game in available records dating back to 2002-03.

SUPERB START FOR SOMFAI »

• Lara Somfai was selected as the Tamika Catchings National Freshman of the Week by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association on Nov. 25 and is a three-time ACC Rookie of the Week.
• Somfai is averaging a team-high 9.1 rebounds per game this season, good for fourth in the ACC. No ACC freshman has averaged 9.0 rebounds for an entire season since North Carolina's Janelle Bailey in 2017-18 (9.1). The Stanford record for freshman rebounding average is held by Kaylee Johnson in 2014-15 (9.6).
• She pulled down a career-high 18 rebounds in the win over Cornell on Dec. 18, the most for a Stanford freshman since Kaylee Johnson had 22 against Santa Clara on Dec. 14, 2014. They are also the second most in a single game by any freshman in the country this season (against DI opponents). American’s Charlotte Tuhy had 22 against Colgate on Jan. 7.
• Somfai is sixth in the country in defensive rebound percentage at 31.7 percent, a metric that shows how often a player collects available defensive boards, and is 10th in total rebound percentage (21.6).
• Her three conference Rookie of the Week awards are tied for the most in program history. Haley Jones was a three-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week in 2019-20 and Kaylee Johnson was a three-time winner in 2014-15. The Pac-12 Freshman of the Week award began in 2012-13.
• Also putting up 9.9 points per game, Somfai is one of four freshmen in the country averaging 9.9 points and 9.1 rebounds along with Arkansas’ Bonnie Deas (10.0 ppg, 9.1 rpg), Gonzaga's Lauren Whittaker (19.9 ppg, 10.0 rpg) and American's Charlotte Tuhy (10.9 ppg, 10.4 rpg).
• Somfai and Deas are tied for the national lead among major conference freshmen in rebounding.
• She is also tied for sixth in the ACC in double-doubles (5) and is tied for sixth nationally in double-doubles among freshmen. Her five double-doubles are the most for a Stanford freshman since Kaylee Johnson had five in 2014-15.

AGARA AGAIN »

• One of the country’s most improved players a season ago, Nunu Agara has picked up right where she left off. She is one of 50 players under consideration for the 2026 Naismith Women’s College Player of the Year and one of 20 on the watch list for the 2026 Katrina McClain Award.
• Stanford’s leading scorer and second-leading rebounder, Agara is one of six Power 4 players averaging 15.0 points and 8.4 rebounds along with Oklahoma's Raegan Beers, UCLA's Lauren Betts, Miami's Ra Shaya Kyle, Kentucky's Clara Strack and NC State's Khamil Pierre.
• Agara was voted ACC Player of the Week on Nov. 24 after averaging a double-double of 20.0 points and 10.5 rebounds in Stanford’s wins against UC Davis (70-45) and Lehigh (98-43). She shot 75.0 percent from the floor across the two games, making 15 of her 20 field goal attempts. It was Stanford’s first conference player of the week since Cameron Brink won Pac-12 Player of the Week on March 4, 2024.
• Against Lehigh on Nov. 23, Agara poured in 24 points on a perfect 10-of-10 shooting, tying the school record for single-game field goal percentage. Just last year, Elena Bosgana was 10-of-10 from the floor in a win over UC San Diego on Nov. 29. Kim Kupferer was 11-of-11 from the floor in a game against Pacific on Jan. 24, 1981. She is one of three players in the country this season to be perfect from the floor when attempting at least 10 field goals (Clara Silva - TCU; Grace Oliver - Wake Forest).
• A career 82.6 percent free throw shooter (199-of-241), Agara is sixth in school history in that category.

SUPER SUB »

• The leading candidate for ACC Sixth Player of the Year, Chloe Clardy is one of 52 players in the country averaging 10.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.9 steals, but is one of only two to do it coming off the bench (MiLaysia Fulwiley - LSU).
• She is one of six ACC players with those averages along with Hannah Hidalgo (Notre Dame), Kymora Johnson (Virginia), Taina Mair (Duke), Indya Nivar (North Carolina) and Dominique Darius (Syracuse).
• Clardy is second in the country in minutes per game among players that have yet to start this season (29.5). New Hampshire's Maggie Cavanaugh averaged 29.6 minutes per game.

ESCHMEYER'S EMERGENCE »

• Freshman Alexandra Eschmeyer has been big of late. She scored 10 points, including seven in the fourth quarter and overtime, in the Cardinal's win at then-No. 16 North Carolina on Jan. 4, her first game scoring in double figures since Nov. 6 against Santa Clara.
• Eschmeyer followed that up with 11 rebounds and a career-high six blocks in the victory over Wake Forest on Jan. 8 and had 10 points, six rebounds and four blocks last Sunday against Duke.
• In her last four games, she is averaging 6.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.8 blocks after putting up 4.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 0.6 blocks in her first 15 outings.
• Her six blocks against Wake Forest were the most for a Stanford player since Cameron Brink had seven in the 2024 Sweet 16 against NC State and the most for a Cardinal freshman since Brink had six in the 2021 Final Four against South Carolina. She’s the first Stanford freshman with 11 rebounds and six blocks in available records dating back to 2002-03 and one of two freshmen in the country to have those numbers in a game this season (Maddison Krug - Lafayette; 18 rebs, 6 blks vs. Bucknell).
• The only other Stanford players with 11 rebounds and six blocks in records dating back to 2002-03 include Cameron Brink (nine times), Alanna Smith (two times), Chiney Ogwumike and Jayne Appel.
• Eschmeyer had 10 points, six rebounds and four blocks in a career-high 28 minutes against Duke on Sunday, the first Stanford freshmen with those numbers in a game since Cameron Brink in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against Oklahoma State in 2021.

A MUCH-IMPROVED DEFENSE »

• Stanford’s defense has held its 19 opponents to an average of 56.5 points on 36.1 percent shooting. The Cardinal is second in the ACC and is 31st in the country in scoring defense and third in the league and 31st nationally in field goal percentage defense.
• Stanford limited each of its 14 opponents of the season to fewer than 70 points, its longest stretch to open a season since 2021-22 (15).
• Of its 157 steals this season, 73 have come in Stanford’s last eight games (46.5 percent), including 11 each against Washington and Oregon and 17 against Cornell.
• Last season through its first 19 games, Stanford was 225th in field goal percentage defense (.410) and 254th in scoring defense (67.6) and had played eight of the same opponents (Cal Poly, Washington State, Gonzaga, UC Davis, Cal, NC State, Wake Forest, Duke).
• Stanford finished 261st nationally in field goal percentage defense (.421) and 286th in scoring defense (69.3) last season. Prior to 2024-25 and in available NCAA records dating to 2001-02, the Cardinal had never finished outside the top 50 in field goal percentage defense and had been outside the top 100 in scoring defense just twice.

AS GOOD AS ADVERTISED »

• Stanford’s freshmen have been as good as advertised to start the season. The group has accounted for 484 of the Cardinal’s 1,335 points, or 36.3 percent. They’re on pace to score 841 combined points this season, which would be the most for a Stanford freshman class since 1994-95 when Naomi Mulitauaopele (240), Kristin Folkl (227), Heather Owen (177), Olympia Scott (141), Vanessa Nygaard (94) and Regan Freuen (29) combined for 908 points.
• The Cardinal has two freshmen averaging at least 9.5 points per game in Hailee Swain and Lara Somfai, which is tied for second nationally (Saint Louis - 3). Stanford, LSU and Mississippi State are the only Power 4 schools with multiple freshmen averaging at least 9.5 points per game.
• Hailee Swain and Lara Somfai have been in Stanford’s starting lineup alongside upperclassmen Nunu Agara, Talana Lepolo and Courtney Ogden.
• When Swain and Somfai started against UNC Greensboro on Nov. 3, it was the first time the Cardinal had started two freshmen in a season opener since November 17, 2000 at Saint Mary’s when Nicole Powell and Susan King were in the starting lineup.
• Hailee Swain had the best performance of her young career with season highs of 14 points and seven rebounds against No. 19 Tennessee on Dec. 3. She is one of five freshmen guards in the country with those numbers against a ranked opponent this season (Jazzy Davidson - USC - 3x; Aaliyah Chavez - Oklahoma; Anna Becker - Drake; Lauren Olsen - Cal Baptist). Swain is the first Cardinal freshman guard with 14 points and seven rebounds against a ranked opponent since Candice Wiggins against No. 6 Michigan St. on March 29, 2005 (19 points, eight rebounds).

DIDN’T MISS MUCH »

• The Cardinal shot 66.7 percent from the floor (38-of-57) in a 98-43 win over Lehigh on Nov. 23, the third-best mark in program history.
• Stanford shot 67.3 percent against Oregon State on Feb. 20, 2010 and 67.2 percent against Eastern Michigan on Dec. 29, 1989.
• Stanford’s field goal percentage is the fifth best in the NCAA this year against a DI opponent. Vanderbilt shot 69.8 percent against Stonehill on Dec. 28, Oregon shot 67.9 percent against Oregon State on Dec. 3, LSU shot 67.6 percent against Southeastern Louisiana on Nov. 6, and Oklahoma State shot 67.2 percent against Mississippi Valley State on Dec. 6.

LEPOLO RETURNS TO ACTION »

• Talana Lepolo, who missed all but five games last season due to injury, led all scorers with 16 points against Santa Clara on Nov. 6 and was 4-of-6 from behind the arc. Her 16 points were her most since scoring a career-high 20 at California on Dec. 29, 2023.
• A career 72.2 percent free throw shooter coming into the season (39-of-54), she is 18-of-20 at the line this year (.900).
• Lepolo’s 323 career assists are the most for a Stanford player since Haley Jones had 396 from 2019-20 through 2022-23.

RETURNING PRODUCTION »

• Stanford is near the top of the ACC in returning production, welcoming back 54.2 percent of its scoring (1,221 of 2,255 points), 49.7 percent of its rebounding (583 of 1,172 rebounds), 57.4 percent of its assists (251 of 437 assists) and 56.9 percent of its minutes played (3,585 of 6,300 minutes).
• The Cardinal is third in the ACC in returning points (Duke - 67.7%, Virginia 61.6%, Virginia Tech 54.7%), second in returning rebounds (Duke - 64.1%), third in returning assists (Virginia - 70.7%, Virginia Tech - 68.5%, Duke - 63.0%), and third in returning minutes (Duke - 68.1%, Virginia Tech - 57.6%).

CARDINAL CONTINUITY »

• The Cardinal only has one transfer on its roster in junior Mary Ashley Stevenson, who is in her second year on The Farm after playing one season at Purdue.
• Stanford has the fewest transfers on its roster among all 68 Power 4 programs. NC State, Washington and Oklahoma each have two.
• Among Power 4 schools, Stanford and Washington tied for the least amount of portal movement this offseason (total number of transfers in + transfers out). The Cardinal had two outgoing transfers in senior Tess Heal (Kansas State) and graduate student Jzaniya Harriel (SMU). The Huskies, which had zero outgoing transfers, welcomed two incoming transfers in Avery Howell (USC) and Yulia Grabovskaia (Michigan).

AP TOP 25 »

• Stanford was outside the preseason AP Top 25 for the second consecutive year, the first time that’s happened since 1985-86 and 1986-87.
• Stanford has not been ranked since Nov. 11, 2024, a stretch of 29 consecutive polls that is the program’s longest stretch since it made its debut in the rankings on Nov. 23, 1987.
• When Stanford was ranked last season on Nov. 11, Kate Paye became the 16th person to both play on and be a head coach for an AP-ranked team at the same school (H/T Mel Greenberg).
• The Cardinal is the fourth-most ranked team of all-time and has appeared in 646 of 895 all-time AP polls over 50 seasons (Tennessee - 804, Texas - 652; UConn - 649).

FIRST CLASS »

• Kate Paye’s first signing class as head coach was rated No. 3 nationally and included three five-star talents (Hailee Swain, Lara Somfai, Alexandra Eschmeyer) and two four-stars (Nora Ezike, Carly Amborn) according to espnW HoopGurlz, and four ranked in that publication’s top 100.

Player	HoopGurlz Rank	Stars	Ht./Pos.
Hailee Swain	8	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️	5-11 • G
Lara Somfai	12	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️	6-4 • F
Alexandra Eschmeyer	21	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️	6-5 • F
Nora Ezike	85	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️	6-2 • F
Carly Amborn	--	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️	6-2 • G

• Stanford’s three five-star signees tied for the national lead with Tennessee and LSU and the program’s most since it had four in the Class of 2019 (Haley Jones, Ashten Prechtel, Fran Belibi, Hannah Jump).
• Of the 24 women selected to be McDonald’s All Americans, Stanford (Eschmeyer, Somfai, Swain) and Ten­nessee had the most players suiting up next fall with three commits each. Stanford’s three McDonald’s All Americans were almost as many as the rest of the ACC combined (4).

SUPERB STAFF »

• Stanford boasts a roster of coaches that features four WNBA veterans, more than any other program in the country, in Kate Paye, Katy Steding, Erica McCall and Jeanette Pohlen. All are Stanford graduates.
• Paye played 79 games for Minnesota and Seattle from 2000-02, Steding 55 games for Sacramento and Seattle in 2000 and 2001, Pohlen 148 games for Indiana from 2011-2017, and McCall 122 games for Indiana, Atlanta, Minnesota and Washington from 2017-21.
• While not a coach, Karlie Samuelson, a 2017 honorable mention All-American who led the Cardinal to two Final Fours, has returned to her alma mater as an intern for the 2025-26 season.
• Back with the program while she rehabs from a left foot injury sustained in June, Samuelson has played for six franchises across seven WNBA seasons since her graduation from Stanford with a degree in human biology in in 2017.

PRESEASON ACC PROGNOSTICATIONS »

• The Cardinal was picked to finish sixth in the ACC in a vote of the league’s 18 head coaches and Blue Ribbon Panel. Stanford totaled 1,041 points from 70 voters to finish sixth in the predicted order of finish behind Duke, NC State, North Carolina, Louisville, and Notre Dame.
• An All-ACC second team selection last season, Nunu Agara was voted to the 10-person Preseason All-ACC Team. She was Stanford’s leading scorer (15.8 ppg) and rebounder (7.6 rpg) a season ago and is the ACC’s third-leading returning scorer (Hannah Hidalgo – Notre Dame; Kymora Johnson - Virginia) and its second-lead­ing returning rebounder (Jessica Peterson - Miami).
• Hailee Swain and Lara Somfai landed on the six-person Preseason All-Freshman Team and Stanford was the only school with multiple players on the list.

SEASON OF CHANGE »

• After making 36 consecutive NCAA Tournaments from 1988-2024, Stanford was not an at-large selection to the field in 2024-25 and appeared in the WBIT for the first time.
• Stanford was 49th in the NET rankings ahead of Selection Sunday, the fourth-highest rated program to not make the NCAA Tournament (No. 39 Minnesota, No. 46 Virginia Tech; No. 48 UNLV).
• The Cardinal was 50th in the final NET rankings after the completion of the NCAA Tournament.
• With a 16-15 overall record, Stanford posted a winning record for the 38th consecutive season, the fifth-longest active streak in the country.
• The Cardinal’s 16 wins were its fewest since 1986-87 (14) and its 8-10 conference mark was its first sub-.500 league record since the same year (8-10).
• Stanford played in a different league for the first time since Tara VanDerveer’s first Cardinal squad played in the Pac-West in 1985-86.

HOME OF CHAMPIONS »

• Stanford has won at least one NCAA team title in each of the past 49 years (dating back to the 1976-77 campaign), the longest streak in NCAA history.
• Stanford leads the NCAA with 137 team titles, including two national team championships during the 2024-25 campaign - women’s water polo and women’s rowing, increasing its overall total to 173.
• Stanford is one of six schools with at least one national championship in football, baseball, and men’s basketball, and the only school with at least one in football, baseball, men’s and women’s basketball.
• From 1995-2019, Stanford won 25 straight Division I Learfield Sports Directors’ Cups. The Cardinal enters the 2025-26 year with 26 of the 31 total Directors’ Cups, most recently capturing the award during the 2022-23 season.