Can’t overlook last-place Bears
For the time being, the Stanford men aren’t going to waste time regretting that they received the fifth seed in the Pac-12 tournament despite their three-way tie for third in the standings.
In the back of their minds, they still might harbor hopes of an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament. In any case, they know they need to get past 12th-seeded Cal in the opening round in Las Vegas on Wednesday.
Considering how the Cardinal (17-14, 11-7 Pac-12) struggled in their split with the Bears (8-23, 2-16), Stanford can’t feel fortunate to draw the last-place team.
In a 77-74 loss to Cal at Maples, Stanford squandered a 17-point lead with 9:28 left. The Cardinal won the rematch at Berkeley but not before struggling mightily to preserve a five-point lead against the press after point guard Daejon Davis fouled out with 2:11 left.
“We’re at the point in the season that if there’s a concern of our guys being ready and motivated, the season’s going to be over pretty quick,” Stanford head coach Jerod Haase said.
Although Stanford won four of its last five, and its 11 conference wins were the most on the Farm in a decade, the Cardinal didn’t make out in the tiebreakers.
Utah was seeded third on the strength of a combined 2-1 record against the Cardinal (1-2) and UCLA (2-2). The Bruins, who split the season series with Stanford, received the final bye (the fourth seed) because of a victory over champion Arizona. The Cardinal lost both of their games to the Wildcats.
Forward Reid Travis, the Pac-12’s third-leading scorer (19.6 ppg) and fourth-leading rebounder (8.2 rpg), said the No. 5 seed wasn’t a source of frustration for him and his teammates.
But he said, “I though it was unfortunate that we wound up getting the fifth seed. It’s something we could have controlled throughout the season.
“We relish the opportunity to go play another game. Obviously, the path is a little easier when you’re trying to win three games as opposed to four.”
All season, the Cardinal have stressed the importance of not looking beyond the next game, and tournament week is no different.
Asked if they feel they need to win the tournament and get the automatic NCAA berth or be shut out, Haase said only, “If we make a run at this thing, do I think we’re an NCAA Tournament team? I do. What does the (selection) committee look at, I don’t know.”
Teams with 14 losses generally aren’t in demand in the Big Dance. Stanford’s RPI is only 75. On the other hand, it was shorthanded for almost the whole nonconference schedule, which included three ranked opponents. It went 6-7 in those games.
The Cardinal were without their top three-point shooter, Dorian Pickens (foot injury), for 11 games and promising freshman KZ Okpala (academics) for 12. It also missed Davis (illness) during a damaging loss at Long Beach State.
Would the selection committee look favorably on their 26th-toughest schedule and grant them a sympathy at-large berth? It’s doubtful, but the Cardinal can dream.
They’ll need to cope with Cal’s press and try to limit freshman Justice Sueing, who combined for 33 points in the two games. They’ll need to hit their threes; in conference play, only UCLA (40.3) shot better from distance than Stanford (39.5).