McPhee and Fingall key in Stanford rout of Utah, 70-49
The Stanford Cardinal remain perfect at home in Pac-12 play
STANFORD, Calif. The Stanford Cardinal (17-8, 10-2) seem unbeatable inside Maples Pavilion, at least in conference play (7-0), after defeating the Utah Utes (15-9, 6-7) in dominating fashion Friday night, 70-49.
“We love playing here. We have a great crowd, great energy….We want to keep it going,” Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer said about the team’s recent success. “We’d love to finish the home schedule undefeated, for Pac- 12.”
The contest was never in question, as the Cardinal, ranked at No. 15 in the Sport Tours/Hoopfeed poll, had the scoring advantage nearly the entire 40 minutes, except for two early ties. They led by as much as 29 points in the fourth quarter. However, to the chagrin of VanDerveer, her team was outscored 34-31 in the second half by the Utes.
Senior guard Brittany McPhee led Stanford with 18 points, including nine straight in the first quarter. Senior point guard Marta Sniezek was perfect from beyond the arc (3-3) and from the free throw line (2-2) tallying 11 points, while also dropping four dimes.
“Marta’s a great shooter! She doesn’t look for her shot as much, but if they leave her open, she’ll make them pay, and she did that really well,” VanDerveer exclaimed about her point guard.
Freshman forward Nadia Fingall contributed 10 points and six rebounds off the bench. She shot 100 percent from the field (4-4), with half of her buckets coming from three-point land. She expounded on being perfect from the field and if she should shoot more.
“The thing about our offense is letting things flow and come to you,” Fingall said. “So, I won’t be asking for it more, but if the ball does swing my way, I will take the shot.”
Utah had two players in double figures. Junior wing Daneesha Provo scored 14 points while senior forward Emily Potter, added 12 to the effort.
The Cardinal will host the Colorado Buffaloes Sunday, February 11, and the California Golden Bears, Thursday, February 15. The contest against Cal will be the first part of a home-and-home Battle of the Bay matchup.
The Utes trek across the Bay to take on Cal on Sunday before returning back to Salt Lake City to host the Washington schools.
By the Numbers
