Coming off of a 69-59 win at Cal on Wednesday, the Stanford men’s basketball team (12-4, 4-1) is confident and eager to take on reigning 2014 National Champion UConn (9-6, 2-2) at the Farm this Saturday.
Against the Bears senior guard Chasson Randle scored 25 points, making for his eighth 20-point game this season. Fifth-year senior center Stefan Nastic came through with 9 rebounds and 15 points.
“My seniors were terrific tonight,” said head coach Johnny Dawkins after the game. “Those guys have all stepped up. Whether it’s a big defensive play for us, scoring the basketball, they seem to always come up with that play that’s needed.”
The seniors haven’t been the only clutch performers this year though. Junior forward Rosco Allen has shot 83.3 percent from the free throw line and helped Stanford defeat USC earlier this week with a career-high 18 points coming off the bench and knocking down four 3-pointers.
In terms of rebounding the Cardinal will continue to miss the contributions of freshman forward Reid Travis, out with a stress fracture, against UConn. The freshman averaged a team-high 6.9 rebounds and 7.5 points per game in his 11 starts for the Card, including pulling down a career-high 14 rebounds in the Card’s win over then-No. 9 Texas. This will be the sixth consecutive game that Travis will be sidelined by injury .
In addition to the victory over Cal, the Cardinal also enjoyed a road victory this past Sunday over another significant in-state rival, USC, helping secure their current spot at second in the Pac-12. The Trojans played a tight game, but with 21 points and 10 rebounds, fifth-year senior guard/forward Anthony Brown led the men to a nail-biting 78-76 victory.
While the Card enter the weekend’s matchup with two hard fought wins under their belts, UConn comes into Maples rattled after a 66-58 loss to Tulsa on Tuesday despite an impressive rally late in the game and a double-double by freshman Daniel Hamilton.
In response to the loss, UConn coach Kevin Ollie said, “It’s easy to play hard when you’re down by 15. There’s no pressure then. We need that same effort from the start. We’ve got to play hard, consistent basketball for 40 minutes.”
While UConn may have experienced a step back with the loss, it is still a very solid and competitive reigning national title team, so Stanford will have to play hard and avoid errors as much as possible. In particular, the Cardinal will have to be sure to control senior guard Ryan Boatright who showed his ability to shift a game’s momentum by leading the Huskies to victory against Cincinatti this past Saturday. Also, freshman guard Daniel Hamilton has proven to be a consistent offensive threat and may be an issue if not carefully guarded.
Nevertheless, with an abundance of talent and a nice balance of experienced veteran leaders and young, hungry up-and-comers, the Cardinal will undoubtedly be able to put forth an impressive, wholehearted performance. UConn is 4-1 all-time against Stanford, and the Card will look to turn the tables and come out on top.
Tipoff is Saturday at 6 p.m. at Maples Pavilion and will be aired on ESPN.
Contact Sam Schwager at sams95 ‘at’ stanford.edu.