Stanford (15-2, 4-0) found its way into the Coaches Poll for the first time in 5 years this week. They can no longer fly under the radar, and aren’t likely to catch teams by surprise. But that doesn’t matter when you play this good of basketball.
This was just their second true road game of the year. Pauley Pavilion is as storied an arena as there is in college hoops, and its hallowed halls haven’t seen a Stanford victory in a decade and a half. The star freshman duo of Tyrell Terry and Spencer Jones had never played in any hostile arena at this level. But all that went out the window the moment the jump ball was thrown.
Every scouting report of Stanford has a big red circle around Spencer Jones’ name. The sharp-shooting wing leads the conference in made threes, and he is not to be given room to breathe. But the Bruins must’ve glossed over that part of the plan, and he made them pay with triples on each of Stanford’s first three possessions.
The Cardinal led by as many as 9 early and seemed bound to bust the contest wide open. But UCLA surprisingly found cracks in the defense and took advantage. It certainly helped that Oscar da Silva had to sit with foul trouble and Daejon Davis was hobbling his way around. They isolated Jaime Jaquez on Isaac White, Davis, and others, and gave him room to work. The freshman was once a coveted target of Jerod Haase, and showed why in the early going.
UCLA also crashed the offensive glass effectively. They entered the game ranked 11th nationally in Offensive Rebounding Percentage, and grabbed 7 more in the first half. They used those extra chances to go on an extended 20-4 run, and take a 29-22 advantage. But the Cardinal didn’t bat an eye, and anyone who did missed the lead evaporate instantaneously. Stanford came roaring back and took a 33-31 lead into the break.
Between the last five minutes of the first half and the first eight of the second, UCLA mustered just 10 points. The Stanford defense has been much vaunted as of late, and that stretch really showed why. The Bruins couldn’t find good shots, and in many cases, couldn’t find shots at all. But the Cardinal couldn’t get going offensively, and the lead was just 1 point with 15 minutes to go.
They made an adjustment, and it made all the difference. Instead of swinging it around the perimeter with five out in hopes of downhill action, they worked on exploiting the spacing to enter the ball into the post, over the top of a fronting defender. Lukas Kisunas, Jaiden Delaire, and Oscar da Silva were the beneficiaries, and it sparked a 12-2 run. For good measure, Tyrell Terry also heated up.
Terry set a career high in scoring last weekend against Washington State, and pushed it higher today. The freshman showcased most every tool in his arsenal, getting into the paint, finishing over and around length, and splashing quick twitch threes that a certain other Bay Area sharpshooter would appreciate. He was named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Week for his play during last week’s home stand, and submitted an early argument for repeat honors.
Stanford led by as many as 19 on their way to the 15 point road victory. There are a lot of people who are turning their noses up at this team’s 11th place spot in the NET rankings. But if they keep playing like this, none of those doubts will matter.
The Cardinal were led by Terry’s 24 points, including 4-7 from three. Spencer Jones added 14 of his own on 4-6 from distance. Bryce Wills chipped in 10, and Davis hobbled his way to 6 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists. Oscar da Silva was limited to just 18 minutes due to foul trouble, but the bench bigs had some bright spots in his stead.
Jaquez paced UCLA with 15. Jalen Hill and David Singleton were the only other Bruins in double figures, with 14 and 11 apiece. They’ve now lost 6 of their last 7, and are struggling mightily under new head coach Mick Cronin.
Stanford will put its undefeated conference record on the line this weekend against USC at the Galen Center. The Trojan front line will be a unique challenge.
Comments
Yet, this wasn't Stanford's best shot...
Daejon Davis is hampered by that facemask, which inhibits his confidence in shooting, plus he’s nursing some kind of ankle/foot injury that he’s trying to play through. Seemingly, Haase is aware of Davis’ situation because he didn’t pull Daejon as soon as an initial reinjury occurred and an obvious limp appeared. Davis’ return after several minutes seems to confirm that the training staff and the coaches are aware of the nature and degree of injury. When the gimpy Davis first returned, UCLA’s offense tried to go at him but didn’t have much success. It also appeared that Bryce Wills has a similar issue, as he was limping whenever he went to the bench.
Weird observation…when Davis was initially, seemingly, lost in the first half, the team seemed to go a bit flat. That effect was reversed when Davis returned and they began a run to regain the lead by halftime. Something about Daejon’s presence on the floor, even if he’s not stuffing the stat sheets, seems to matter to the team chemistry. As touching as that may seem, it’s discomforting. Whenever Davis was lost to injury or illness last year, the team wasn’t as sharp and seemed to coincide with losses. And it isn’t cheery to think that Wills, the other iron man, is also gimpy. Having both somewhat healthy against USC will be critical. This a better Cardinal team than last year, but USC is better too, and on its home court.
By Candid One on 01.16.20 4:11am
Daejon is a real leader for this team
Jerod Haase has talked a lot about his magnetic personality, and his teammates have raved about how they feed off his energy. His presence is invaluable
By Grant Avalon on 01.16.20 3:43pm
Davis has confidence..that's the difference
Regardless of the sport, the thing that separates the winners and the losers (assuming similar abilities) is their mental fortitude, focus, and calm. Davis is not intimidated. Davis believes he can ball with anyone and that makes him a giant on the floor. Davis is like your big brother in a back alley fight. When he’s next to you, you’re not scared and you fight with purpose and you can go on the offensive. Terry is superlative, but nobody on the team has Davis’ moxie and it’s clear the other players are reassured by that.
At least that’s how I see it.
By Blackjoy on 01.17.20 1:03pm
Amen.
Daejon’s moxie is evident in his leading the team in floor burns. Last year’s late season injury that cost Davis, and Stanford, at least 3 games, was an ankle injury incurred at the bottom of a floor burn pile. However, last year, Daejon was still too much of a bystander on offense, as if he liked watching Okpala, da Silva, and Sharma at work. This year, he’s matured, and his quietly dynamic role in their motion offense is impressive. Both Davis and Wills are Terry’s primary assist guys…both his big brothers!
Growing consensus is that Davis is Stanford’s best defender. Several savvy analysts have been mentioning Daejon as a pro prospect, as much for his team attitude and for his occasional flashes of next-level skill. Daejon’s deference on offense hides how he was last year’s #2 scorer. Quietly, before his current facemask gig, despite media hype for Terry, Davis has had better 3-point accuracy, which makes his free throw problems more puzzling. Yet, Daejon has shown how he’s Terry’s capable backup if the wunderkind has an off game. It’s as if winning through Terry is good enough, unless Davis has to be Stanford’s next gear. Of course, it definitely helps to have Spencer Jones as another option?
By Candid One on 01.17.20 4:42pm
Depth is a real concern
The good news: Each of the starting five are excellent. Each one brings something valuable to the team.
The bad news: The dropoff from starters to bench is pretty dramatic. Keefe and Kisunas bring some defensive presence down low. White can get hot from outside on occasion, and Delaire is hopefully coming along.
But if any one of the starting five is lost for an extended amount of time, that would spell serious trouble for Stanford.
By Ed Halicki on 01.16.20 5:15pm
Complete Win
The team looked very poised last night and executed really well. Given that this game was on the road, I’d say it’s our most complete game of the season. Looking forward to Saturday. Go Card!
By StanfordRico on 01.16.20 8:31am
As usual, a tale of two halves
The first half Stanford squandered its early lead and fell behind – there were a couple sloppy turnovers and failing to secure defensive rebounds. Maybe it was a factor, as Candid One said above, of losing Daejon for a while. But the second half defense sucked the life out of UCLA (although, I must say that the refs were very vigilant on travel calls against UCLA; it almost felt like Stanford had an advantage with the refs for once!).
Good job by the backcourt. Oscar da Silva was a non-factor most of the game, and the other big men didn’t bring a lot to the table. Oscar needs to bring the intensity every game if he wants to be a leader. Yes, he had foul problems, but even before then he seemed pretty invisible. But overall, very nice game by the team!
Hopefully Daejon can recover for the USC game—they’ll definitely need his presence.
By worldblee on 01.16.20 11:32am