The No. 2. Stanford women's basketball team, which closed out its second consecutive undefeated Pac-10 regular season one week ago and received a double-bye in the Pac-10 tournament, will play Arizona tomorrow in the semifinals at 12 p.m. PST.
The fourth-seeded Wildcats will be playing their third game in three days. Arizona squeaked by No. 9 seed Oregon, 90-89, on Wednesday, and defeated No. 5 seed USC, 72-61, tonight. On the other side of the bracket, No. 6 seeed Cal will play No. 2 seed UCLA. The first and second rounds of the women's tournament, which is being held in conjunction with the men's tournament for the first time, were played at USC's Galen Center. The semifinals and finals will be played at the Staples Center.
Davellyn Whyte has carried the Wildcats this week. After averaging 15 points per game during conference play, the sophomore has scored 47 points over the last two days, including seven 3-pointers.
Stanford had little trouble with the Wildcats in the teams' two meetings this year. Nneka Ogwumike scored 24 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in the Cardinal's 87-54 win at Maples Pavilion on Jan. 6. Chiney Ogwumike and Kayla Pedersen registered identical double-doubles (11 points, 11 rebounds) and Stanford shot 70% from the field in the second half to pull away. The Wildcats, who boast the Pac-10's second-best scoring offense, were 4-for-20 from 3-point range.
Arizona didn't put up much more of a fight in the rematch in Tucson on Feb. 5. Jeanette Pohlen scored 17 points to lead five Cardinal players in double-figures and Stanford cruised to a 91-61 win. Arizona senior Ify Ibekwe, who led the Pac-10 in scoring (16.7 ppg) and rebounding (10.0 rpg), had 19 points in defeat.
The Cardinal should enjoy a sizable advantage on the glass and benefit from a full week of rest. Tomorrow's game will be broadcast on CSN Bay Area. You can also listen live on KZSU 90.1 FM.