No. 5 Stanford avoids upset
STANFORD, Calif. — Haley Jones kept No. 5 Stanford in the game in the first half and then helped carry the Cardinal with a big second half.
Jones scored a season-high 21 points and had 11 rebounds to help Stanford beat UC Davis 67-55 on Saturday.
“We still didn’t box out well enough in the first half and our pace was not fast enough,” Jones said. “We came out in the second half with a lot of defensive intensity. Anna (Wilson) came out with a lot of fire and heart and when she gets going, we all feed off her energy.”
Lexie Hull hit two key three-pointers in the fourth quarter and finished with 14 points for Stanford (11-1), which was coming off its first loss of the season. Nadia Fingall added 11 points.
“This will get everyone’s attention on playing better defense,” Cardinal Coach Tara VanDerveer said. “We stepped up in the second half and Haley made some nice plays. She came to play. Defense was the difference.”
Freshman Evanne Turner made her first career start, replacing the injured Sophia Song, and scored 15 points to lead the Aggies (4-8), who lost their 14th in a row to the Cardinal.
“She’s been playing with a lot of confidence, so we went with her,” Aggies Coach Jenny Gross said of Turner. “It paid off. I’m proud of her. I think this game will give us confidence that we can play with anyone in the country.”
Katie Toole added 13 points.Cierra Hall added a team-high eight rebounds and scored six points.
Stanford ended the third quarter on a 10-1 run to take a 46-41 edge into the fourth. Jones scored five points, including a driving layup with 26 seconds left in the third.
“She is well beyond her years in terms of understanding the game,” VanDerveer said of Jones. “She’s very intelligent.”
Wilson, the younger sister of Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, hit a layup that gave Stanford a 17-7 advantage midway through the first quarter.
The Aggies outscored the Cardinal 21-5 over the next 8:41 to open up a 28-22 lead and carry a 32-30 edge into halftime.
Turner sparked the run with three consecutive three-pointers over the final 1:34 of the first quarter.
“I’m proud of the kids for stepping up and staying focused,” Gross said. “We executed our game plan.”
NO. 12 MARYLAND 70, NO. 23 MICHIGAN 55
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Kaila Charles had 23 points and 11 rebounds to help No. 12 Maryland beat No. 23 Michigan in the Big Ten opener for both teams.
Charles moved into ninth place on Maryland’s all-time scoring list, passing Christy Winters Scott (1987-90, 1,679 points) and finishing the game at 1,685 career points.
The Terrapins (10-2) led from late in the first quarter until the Wolverines (93) tied it at 34 on Kayla Robbins’ pair of free throws with 4:58 left in the third. Maryland responded with an 8-0 run to take the lead for good and steadily pulled away in the fourth quarter.
Taylor Mikesell’s three-pointer with 4:54 left in the fourth quarter was the first 3 of the game by either team, each having missed its first nine attempts from the arc up to that point. Blair Watson followed Mikesell’s three-pointer with another, making it 61-48 with 3:41 left.
Shakira Austin, Ashley Owusu and Stephanie Jones added 10 points each for Maryland.
Amy Dilk led Michigan with 18 points. Robbins added 16 and Naz Hillmon scored 15 for the Wolverines.
NO. 14 INDIANA 79, MICHIGAN STATE 67
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Ali Patberg scored 23 points and No. 14 Indiana took over in the second half to open Big Ten Conference play with a victory over Michigan State.
Mackenzie Holmes added 18 points off the bench, Grace Berger scored 16 and Aleksa Gulbe had 11 for the Hoosiers (11-2), who bounced back after a home loss to No. 10 UCLA.
Taryn McCutcheon had 15 points and reached the 1,000-point plateau for the Spartans (7-5), who dropped their third in a row. They were ranked until losing two at the Florida Sunshine Classic last weekend. Victoria Gaines and Nia Clouden added 12 apiece.
Indiana got off to a horrible start in the second quarter as a one-point deficit ballooned to 12 with the Spartans hitting 3 three-pointers in 15-4 run.
The Hoosiers were 10-of-14 shooting in the third quarter, closing on a 11-2 run to take a 54-49 lead. They made 7 of 9 shots in the fourth quarter, plus 11 of 16 free throws.