Cardinal women rout Cougars

Nnemkadi Ogwumike posted her seventh 20-plus point game of the season, leading both teams with 22 while picking up 13 rebounds. Stanford is now 49-0 all time against Washington State.

The Cardinal (14-1, 4-0 Pac-10) all but locked down the game on the defensive side to open, holding the Cougars (5-11, 0-5) to just 18.4 percent shooting in the first half. Stanford, meanwhile, found the basket on 54.8 percent of its shots during the first frame.

“I think people tried to work hard defensively, and we were a lot bigger than them,” said Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer. “I think we could affect their vision and affect their shots. Our team has been working hard defensively, and I think we’ve played well defensively every game this season.”

Stanford’s dominant first half was led by an eight-for-10 effort by Ogwumike. The sophomore guard nearly earned her eventual double-double in the first half with 16 points and nine rebounds, and provided one of the game’s most exciting moments with a mid-air put-back off a missed Kayla Pederson lay-up.

“[Ogwumike] is a phenomenal athlete, just a gifted young lady who’s really improved her skills,” said Washington State head coach June Daugherty. “It looks like she’s just living in the gym here at Stanford, and she’s very difficult to guard. She can hit the step-back or square up; it’s not just a drive and rebound game like in the past. Her skill package makes it really, really tough to guard.”

Stanford had a fairly comfortable control over the game coming into the second half, leading 42-19, but an injury to Jeanette Pohlen would ignite their offense and lead to them putting the game away. Two and a half minutes into the second frame, the junior guard went down hard near the basket and had to be carried off by two trainers, keeping weight off her right foot.

“Jeanette sprained the same ankle that she sprained in the Cal game [two weeks ago],” VanDerveer said. “We’re gonna have to let it heal up.”

Her teammates, who had yet to score since halftime, would respond with a marked increase in tempo and intensity.

Captain and senior Jayne Appel, who had only six points until Pohlen’s injury, immediately became more involved in the game, pulling down two rebounds and taking more aggressive shots over the next two minutes. She ended the game with 14 points and nine rebounds. Point guard Rosalyn Gold-Onwude took initiative as well, picking up two quick three-pointers after a scoreless first half.

“I think that they did step up big . . . Everyone’s attention was gotten at the point, and I think Jayne really said, ‘Wow, I gotta get to work in here,’” VanDerveer said. “Jayne’s a competitor, and she always posts up big . . . Ros had been playing really well, too, and she helped us especially when Jeanette went out.”

Gold-Onwude, long praised for her leadership and pesky perimeter defense, has been contributing a lot on the offensive end recently as well. On the heels of a career-high 18-point effort at UCLA last weekend, the redshirt senior put up 11 points against the Cougars last night.

“I think she’s playing really confidently right now, she’s coming out and looking to take her shot, and I think that’s the main difference-maker for her right now,” Appel said. “She’s run this offense for five years now, so I think it kind of comes with her role that we expect.”

As Stanford built its lead, VanDerveer was able to move deeper into her bench. Seven non-starters got at least four minutes of time on the court, their contributions highlighted by an uncontested Ashley Cimino three-pointer that electrified the crowd.

Statistically speaking, the one dark spot for the Cardinal last night was in turnovers. The Cougars stole the ball nine times and forced 16 turnovers, compared to seven steals and 12 forced turnovers for the Cardinal.

“We definitely have things to work on,” VanDerveer said. “We need to take care of the ball better, and I think we can get on the O-boards better. I thought we were a little bit sloppy sometimes, [but] we also have a lot to build on.”

The Cardinal will continue its first full homestand of the conference season tomorrow afternoon, hosting the Washington Huskies at 2 p.m. at Maples Pavilion.