Stanford holds off Baylor’s late surge

STANFORD, Calif. — Alanna Smith had 21 points and eight rebounds, Shannon Coffee made a critical 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter and No. 11 Stanford held on to beat previously undefeated No. 3 Baylor 68-63 on Saturday.

Kiana Williams had 13 points and five assists, DiJonai Carrington scored 10 points, and the Cardinal (7-1) ended the Bears’ 36game winning streak in the regular season.

NaLyssa Smith and Chloe Jackson had 15 points apiece for Baylor (8-1). The Bears have defeated two Top 25 teams on the road this season but couldn’t overcome 15 turnovers against the Cardinal.

Stanford led comfortably through three quarters and was up 60-44 early in the fourth, then held off Baylor’s best run of the game.

After NaLyssa Smith made back-to-back buckets to pull the Bears within 65-58 with 3:44 left, Coffee brought the Maples Pavilion crowd to its feet with a 68 63 3-pointer as the shot clock expired. Officials reviewed the play and it was upheld.

Juicy Landrum’s 3-pointer made it 68-61, but she was later called for an offensive foul, and Baylor also committed a costly turnover down the stretch.

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Baylor: The Bears made a nice run in the fourth but it was too little, too late for Kim Mulkey’s team. Part of the problem stemmed from Kalani Brown being shut down most of the game. Baylor’s leading scorer was held to five points on 2-of-7 shooting. That spoke to the Bears’ problems as a team. They shot 34.9 percent from the floor and were held to 24 points in the first half for the second time this season.

Stanford: The Cardinal had been looking for a signature moment to their season and beating the third-ranked Bears definitely fits the mold. Smith’s shooting in the fourth quarter kept Stanford ahead, but Carrington and Coffee had their big moments, too. The Cardinal didn’t shoot very well and were beaten convincingly on the boards but made the plays when they needed to.