Stanford Cardinal Basketball 2015: Stanford throttles Charleston Southern

Two days removed from their thrilling overtime victory on opening night, the Stanford Cardinal didn't lose any steam Sunday night against Charleston Southern.

Holding the lead from tipoff until the final buzzer, the Cardinal throttled their Big South opponent 93-59 en route to a 2-0 start.
Four Stanford starters finished with double figures in scoring, which included a career-high 19 points from senior forward Roscoe Allen and a career-high 20 points from sophomore guard Dorian Pickens, who also finished with 6 boards and 8 assists

Sophomore forward Michael Humphrey posted his second double-double so far this year, adding 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds in the dominating win. Patrick Wallace finished with a team-high 13 points for the Buccaneers in the losing effort.

Consistent shooting was arguably the reigning NIT champions' biggest asset of the night, as the team finished the contest shooting 58.2% (32-55) from the field. Charleston Sothern's subpar 34.7 % (17-49) shooting kept them in Stanford's rearview mirror from start until finish.

Aside from converting a bevy of more open looks than the Bucs, who fired from beyond the charity stripe more than often (28 3-point attempts, only 9 made), Stanford won the battle in every major statistic. The Cardinal were far more aggressive on the boards, logging 45 rebounds compared to the Buccaneer's 23. Stanford also led in points in the paint (48-14), second-chance points (16-5), and points off turnovers (20-3).

One major takeaway in Sunday's action for the Cardinal is their improved security of the ball. The team finished only with 8 turnovers against the reigning Big South champions, 13 less than Friday against Green Bay.

Stanford capitalized early on the Buccaneer's shooting woes and poor presence in the paint, taking a commanding 46-21 lead at the end of one half. While the second half's score was far closer (47-38, Stanford), Johnny Dawkin's depleted roster was able to maintain their composure and push their lead at its highest to 37 with under four to go in the second half.

Stanford looks to continue their hot start Thursday night in front of the home crowd, taking on the American Conference's SMU Mustangs at 8:30 PM PT.