Returning home from a narrow loss to No. 4 Syracuse, the Stanford men’s basketball team was on top of its game last night, dominating Pacific 79-37.

 

The Cardinal (6-1) was led by redshirt senior forward Josh Owens and freshman guard Chasson Randle, who both scored 14 points. However, it was defense that kept Stanford comfortably ahead of the Tigers. Pacific (2-3) did not attempt a free throw all game, as the Cardinal committed only nine fouls. The Tigers shot just 30.2 percent from the floor and 27.8 percent from the three-point line. Travis Fulton had 13 points to lead Pacific, but no other player scored more than six points.

 

On the other hand, 12 different Stanford players scored, and the Cardinal shot 51.8 percent from the field. Stanford led 38-23 at halftime on the strength of 11 points from Randle. For the game, the young point guard made four of his five three-point attempts.

 

Pacific got a quick three-pointer to start the second half and cut the lead to 12 at 40-28, but Stanford went on a 39-6 run over a 17-minute span to salt the game away.

 

“We had about eight bad possessions where we took six bad shots, and made some really poor decisions,” said Pacific head coach Bob Thomason. “When we did that, it really separated us in the score.”

 

Overall, the Cardinal outscored the Tigers 41-14 after the break to coast back into the win column.

 

The team will now travel to the Pacific Northwest to take on Seattle University on Thursday.

 

– Jacob Jaffe