Big offensive numbers from freshman guard Tyrell Terry and sophomore forward Jaiden Delaire helped Stanford men’s basketball (3-0, 0-0 Pac-12) claim a 86-58 win over Long Beach State (1-2, 0-0 Big West) on Tuesday. With the victory, the Cardinal moved to 3-0 on the season, with wins last week over Montana and Cal State Fullerton.
Tyrell and Delaire finished with 14 points each, while junior forward Oscar da Silva added 12 of his own. For Delaire, the performance was a career high — two more than his previous personal best of 12 against Washington State last season — but just another day of carrying out the mentality stressed in practice.
“The message has been simple,” Delaire said. “Play as hard as you can, very consistently, and that’s what I personally have been trying to do.”
The effort and talent Delaire showcased in his 25 minutes on the court were impossible to miss, but nothing less than expected by head coach Jerod Haase.
“He [Delaire] played how he practiced,” Haase said of Delaire’s performance against the 49ers. “He’s working harder and harder and having more success in practice and that carried over to the game today.”
While Terry’s 14 points set a career best, his double-digit performance against Long Beach was his third in a row. In addition to dealing out six assists for another career high, the guard also snagged two steals and three rebounds on the defensive side of things.
“Coach made it clear to us that if we come with energy on defense, it’s going to give us a good chance to win ball games,” Terry said. “[The] only way to keep yourself in the game is to play defense.”
Though the strong Cardinal offense may have been responsible for the team’s season-high 86 points, it was the team’s defense that secured the victory. The 49ers shot a sad 33.3% in the first half, and an even sadder 30.5% from behind the arc the entire night. Long Beach sophomores Michael Carter III and Chance Hunter — who went into the game averaging 17 and 20 points per game, respectively — were held to less than 10 each.
Looking ahead, Stanford will face Santa Clara University on Saturday in the fourth of six straight home games. Cardinal vs. Bronco action tips off at 7 p.m. PT at Maples Pavilion.
Contact Savanna Stewart at savnstew ‘at’ stanford.edu.