Amber Orrange leads No. 7 Stanford in rout of Santa Clara, 82-43
STANFORD, Calif. – After a two-week break to study for exams, No. 7 Stanford returned to their home court to defeat Santa Clara 82-43 at Maples Pavilion Sunday night despite shooting just 40 percent from the field.
“We played really well together,” said senior guard Amber Orrange on facing competition again after so many days off. “We just focused on what we wanted to do as a team.”
Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer expressed that she had no concerns that her team would be ready after not playing for an extended period.
“I don’t believe in that rusty stuff.”
Overall she was pleased with her team’s efforts but pointed out areas that need improvement.
“We had some different people helping us….We need more scoring and more production from our post game.”
With a 39-point win over a team that defeated Louisiana State earlier this season, VanDerVeer said her team performed “better than I thought they would.” Santa Clara (5-3) lost its seventh straight in the series with Stanford (6-2).
The Broncos earned an early lead and held the edge for nearly five minutes. Both teams struggled offensively in opening minutes with five missed shots between them. However, Stanford amassed a double-digit lead with a 19-10 run that started at 15:32 with layup from sophomore guard Karlie Samuelson. At the half, Stanford led 40-21.
The Cardinal widened their lead after the break with a balanced effort from Samuelson, Orrange, Erica McCall and Lili Thompson.
Orrange led the Cardinal with 20 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals. Senior forward Bonnie Samuelson and freshman guard Brittany McPhee had 11 points each. McPhee also contributed four rebounds and was back in action after missing seven weeks early in the season with a stress reaction in her foot.
Freshman forward Kaylee Johnson pulled down 22 rebounds to go with nine points. It was the freshman’s second 22-rebound performance. Chiney Ogwumike is the only other Stanford player to have more than one 20+ rebound performances. She had four in her career.
“She’s all over the boards, all over the place,” said Orrange about Johnson.
Reigning West Coast Conference Player of the Week Nici Gilday paced the Broncos with 17 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Santa Clara is a young squad and rebuilding under first-year coach JR Payne.
“A 40-point loss is a major reality check no matter who you’re playing against, so that stings,” said Payne.
Stanford travels to face Chattanooga on Dec. 17 followed with a trip to No. 11 Tennessee on Dec. 20. Santa Clara also goes on the road to play Oregon on Dec. 18. Payne will face a familiar face in former Gonzaga coach Kelly Graves in his first year leading the Ducks. She played for Graves at Saint Mary’s and coached under him at Gonzaga.
