UCLA
Stanford
Stanford Withstands Late Bruin Rally for 67-62 Victory
March 07, 2015 | Women's Basketball
SEATTLE – No. 6 UCLA gave No. 3 Stanford a run for its money, but the Cardinal withstood a late rally by the Bruins to advance to the semifinals of the Pac-12 Women's Basketball Tournament on Friday afternoon at KeyArena, 67-62.
UCLA redshirt freshman forward Paulina Hersler had a chance to tie the game in the closing seconds with a contested three-pointer, but her attempt fell well short. Stanford sophomore guard Lili Thompson collected the rebound and knocked in both free throws with 0.7 seconds left to seal the win.
“I don't think that was the person they wanted taking that shot,” said Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer. “She was well-guarded, too.”
UCLA coach Cori Close indicated the ball ideally would have gone to junior guard Nirra Fields or redshirt sophomore Kari Korver, but the Bruins failed to execute a series of screens away from the ball to free them.
“We were trying to get three looks at the three-point shot,” Close said. “(Fields) coming off all the way to the three, (Korver) coming off the stagger and then Hersler off the last screen on a flair. That was the goal. That didn't happen.”
Senior guard Amber Orrange poured in 13 second-half points to lead Stanford with 18, Thompson added 14 and sophomore forward Erica McCall contributed 10 and eight rebounds.
The Cardinal (22-9) held a seemingly comfortable 53-41 edge with about 11 minutes remaining before UCLA went on a 15-3 run and tied the game at 56 when redshirt junior forward Kacy Swain buried a mid-range jumper.
“That had kind of been the way the game had been going,” VanDerveer said. “We got them down in the first half and they came (back). They're just extremely aggressive… it was an extremely physical game and we just have to adjust to that if that's the way it's going to be.”
They did at the most critical moment. Orrange answered Swain's bucket with a three-pointer, and after the Cardinal recorded a defensive stop, freshman forward Kaylee Johnson scored to cap a 5-0 burst to make it 61-56.
In a way, this was business as usual for the 19th-ranked Cardinal.
Stanford began to pull away in Friday's first half when it went on a 15-4 run to extend its lead to 33-21. But the Bruins closed the final 90 seconds with seven straight points, as Korver hit a mid-range jumper from the baseline moments before the buzzer to cut the Cardinal lead to 33-28 at halftime.
Korver led UCLA with seven points in the first half, though her teammates labored offensively. The Bruins made just 12-of-39 shots (31 percent) before the break, but made 12-of-30 attempts (40 percent) in the second half. Freshman guard Jordin Canada led the Bruins with 15 points and eight assists. Korver finished the game with 12 points and five rebounds.
UCLA actually held a decisive 48-34 advantage on the boards, but it wasn't enough to advance.
Said Close of the Bruins' superior inside presence: “What you saw tonight should be who we are all the time.”
