It may not have been their prettiest game, but the No. 2 Cardinal came away with its sixth straight win Saturday afternoon after beating the Washington Huskies 66-51 at Maples Pavilion. Stanford forward Nnemkadi Ogwumike led both teams with 20 points and 13 rebounds, but at times struggled with the rest of the Stanford squad to find good shots, control the ball and contest Washington’s offense.

“It wasn’t exactly what I wanted to see,” said Stanford Head Coach Tara VanDerveer to open the post-game conference.  “I just thought it was a disappointing effort compared to my expectations for how I want our team to play. […] We weren’t moving the ball the way we wanted to; we weren’t aggressive on defense [or] going after loose balls. It just felt less than inspired. […] Overall, I think it points to [the fact that] we have a lot of work to do.”

The game opened at an uncharacteristically fast pace, with both teams taking a lot of shots and nearly every rebound going to the defense. The Huskies (8-8, 3-3) hung tough until Kayla Pederson sunk her second three-pointer at 13:25 to make it 16-8. While both teams showed less energy as the period wore on, Stanford (15-1, 5-0 Pac-10) managed to buffer its lead to 35-21 before heading to the locker room.

As the second half began, so did Stanford’s more serious troubles. Reigning Pac-10 player of the Year Jayne Appel committed her third foul of the game barely 90 seconds in and was replaced by freshman Joslyn Tinkle. Appel would finish the game with only six shots. Her teammates, meanwhile, couldn’t find the basket until Ogwumike’s left-handed lay-up at 17:09, extending the at-times fragile lead to 37-28. The Huskies continued to press, keeping it as close as 50-42 with 7:55 remaining.

While many of Stanford’s struggles against the Huskies were more subjective – a coach has the right to expect more energy from one of last year’s Final Four teams – the game’s final stats also suggest that the Cardinal may not have been firing on all cylinders.

The Cardinal gave up 17 turnovers to the Huskies and managed to grab 11 offensive rebounds (a relatively low total, considering that Washington primarily used a zone defense and that the Cardinal had 20 the last time they hosted the Huskies). Going back to the beginning of last season, Stanford hasn’t scored less than 66 points in any home game save one: a 58-41 win last February over then-No. 3 California. The 15-point margin of victory is tied for being their smallest of the year at home, matching that of a 67-52 win over another former No. 3 team, Tennessee. The last time the Cardinal hosted the Huskies, they ran them out of the building with a school and conference-record 112-35 scoring margin.

It might seem odd to fault a team while they’re winning, but Cardinal, seeking to earn its first National Championship after nine consecutive Pac-10 titles, has recently struggled to meet the admittedly high expectations of players, coaches and fans.

“Today’s game was definitely uninspired,” admitted redshirt senior Rosalyn Gold-Onwude. “I think there’s been a string of games now where we’ve won because we’re maybe bigger or more talented, not because we’re playing a more inspired game to win and I think we need to pick it up. I wouldn’t pick out just this one game as an anomaly – I think it’s a string.”

While the high standards for a team of Stanford’s caliber merit some criticism after such a performance, the Cardinal still played plenty of good basketball to come away with a victory. Stanford outshot the Huskies 47.1% to 30.6%, outboarded them 44 to 31, made 18 assists compared to the Huskies’ eight and stole the ball nine times compared to Washington’s six.

“Obviously we had to do some good things to win the game,” VanDerveer said. “I thought we had some good plays. Nneka got inside and made some good plays.”

Washington, meanwhile, had a few unusual troubles of its own. The Huskies got off to an impressive start, sweeping a talented pair of Arizona teams two weeks ago to earn a record of 8-6, 3-1. Highlighting the Huskie season is senior Sami Whitcomb, who (entering Saturday’s game) led her team with 14.0 points-per-game and 6.0 rebounds-per-game.

Some of the Cardinal’s struggles may have simply been caused by absent players. Both scratched from the game were point guard JJ Hones (with a swollen knee) and guard Jeanette Pohlen. It was the first time in 53 games that Pohlen, who injured her ankle against Washington State on Thursday, was out of the starting lineup and her first time missing a game altogether in the Cardinal’s last 92. Sophomore Lindy La Rocque started in her place.

“With Jeanette, I’m not counting on her [to be ready next week],” said VanDerveer. “JJ probably could’ve played tonight if it was an NCAA game or something, but she’s just trying to rest her knee more until it’s better.”

Although it’s never good to have several experienced players injured or struggling, there are certain bright sides to the Cardinal’s current situation.

“Until [everyone’s healthy and playing well], I think this is an excellent opportunity,” Gold-Onwude said. “I think there’s a lot of players who had 20 points and 10 assists and all that in high school – young players with an opportunity to really show themselves. I think we just have to embrace the challenge.”

One such player, at least on Saturday, was Joslyn Tinkle. The Missoula, Montana freshman posted two three-pointers and a steal, scoring eight points in only 17 minutes.

The Cardinal will take to the court again this Thursday, when it travels north to face Oregon State at 7 p.m. After battling the Beavers, Stanford will take on their counterpart at Oregon University, the Ducks, on Saturday at 11 a.m.