Stanford's 68-65 triumph over Utah wasn't the prettiest of wins, but it was a win nonetheless. It improved the Cardinal's record to 14-3 overall and 4-1 in the Pac-12, which places them tied atop the conference standings with Cal heading into Saturday's game against Colorado. If members of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee stayed up to watch college basketball last night, let's hope they didn't get CSN Bay Area (like me) or opted to watch St. Mary's pummel Gonzaga instead. Here's a look at three good and three bad things from the win.
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Andrew Zimmermann |
The Bearded One, who didn't play in Stanford's four-overtime thriller at Oregon State, came off the bench midway through the second half and sparked a 10-0 run that turned the game around. Zimmermann scored his first 4 points in conference play and added 3 assists, 2 rebounds and a steal. |
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John Gage |
Gage, who earned his second start, shot 3-for-3 from beyond the arc to raise his team-leading 3-point field goal percentage to 45 percent. More of that, please. |
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Josh Huestis |
"This was Josh Huestis' best game," Stanford head coach Johnny Dawkins said. "Not only did he score and rebound but he was vocal. He was engaged in the game." The sophomore scored a career-high 13 points and also had 10 rebounds and a block. With production like that, we'll overlook the three missed free throws. Speaking of... |
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FT Shooting |
For the love of Dwight Howard! Stanford was an atrocious 5-for-17 from the free throw line, which would've cost the Cardinal the game if Utah wasn't even worse (1-for-9). Has Stanford considered taking its free throws from the 3-point line? Howard was in town to play the Warriors and made 21 of his record-setting 39 free throw attempts. Maybe Dawkins should reach out to him. |
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Turnovers |
Stanford committed 18 turnovers against one of the worst defensive teams in the Pac-12, which kinda overshadowed Aaron Bright's career-high 7 assists. |
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Energy |
Perhaps it was to be expected coming off the Oregon State win, but the energy seemed to be lacking at Maples Pavilion last night. Granted, this is based on what I heard listening to the game on the radio. Stanford had a chance to deliver a knockout blow in the first half after the Utes missed 9 of their first 10 shots. Instead, the Cardinal allowed Utah to storm back and take the lead. This game should've been over by halftime. |