Following the Cardinal’s first Midday Madness—an afternoon that featured meet-and-greets with players and coaches, skills contests, player-led karaoke and a dunk competition—the Stanford men’s basketball team made its season debut in the annual intrasquad Cardinal-White Scrimmage.
Playing two 12-minute halves, the Cardinal squad bested the White squad, 35-25. Sophomore forward Dwight Powell registered the first points of the game on a dunk while fellow sophomore forward Stefan Nastic sank two free throws on the other end of the floor. The Cardinal squad controlled the remainder of the scrimmage, going into the half with a 17-10 advantage and leading by as much as 33-16 following a three-pointer from sophomore guard Robbie Lemons with just over four minutes remaining.
Nastic and sophomore forward Josh Huestis, the winner of the afternoon’s dunk competition, led the Cardinal team with six points apiece, while Nastic went 4-for-4 from the line and Huestis grabbed five rebounds. True freshman point guard Chasson Randle also picked up six points for the Cardinal in his Maples Pavilion debut, and junior guard Gabriel Harris dished three assists.
For the White squad, Powell and sophomore forward John Gage led with six points, and classmate Anthony Brown had three points and eight rebounds.
“It was a good chance for the players to play in a real game with refs and for the crowd to be able to watch us,” said redshirt freshman Andy Brown, who did not play in the scrimmage but suited up and is expected to return from multiple ACL injuries this season.
Stanford will play its first exhibition game on Nov. 5 against Ryerson at Maples Pavilion.
– Caroline Caselli