Recap: Stanford Women’s Basketball falls to BYU in WBIT
On Thursday, Stanford women’s basketball fell to BYU on the road in the quarterfinals of the WBIT by a final score of 76-61. BYU guard Delaney Gibb was the top scorer for the Cougars with 27 points, seven rebounds, and four assists while guard Brinley Cannon had 15 points and four rebounds. Stanford wing Courtney Ogden was the top performer for the Cardinal with 26 points and five rebounds. BYU advances to the final four of the WBIT to face Kansas while Stanford’s season ends.
BOX SCORE: Stanford at BYU-Thursday, March 26th
At the end of the 1st quarter, BYU led 19-18. Lara Rohkohl was leading the Cougars with six points while Gibb had five points. Ogden was up to seven points for the Cardinal. BYU was shooting 8-17 from the field, 1-3 from 3-point range, and 2-2 from the foul line. As for Stanford, they were 8-18 from the field and 2-5 from 3-point range, yet to take a foul shot.
At halftime, BYU led 38-32. Brinley Cannon (12 points & 3 rebounds) and Delaney Gibb (10 points, 4 rebounds, & 4 assists) led the way for the Cougars, while Courtney Ogden (11 points & 3 rebounds) and Chloe Clardy (9 points) paced the Cardinal. Stanford was shooting 2-of-10 from deep, while BYU was 3-of-10. If the Cardinal could have gotten some threes to fall, they would have been right in this.
Stanford would rally in the 3rd quarter to outscore BYU 17-12, making it a 50-49 game at the end of the quarter. The Cougars were only up by one point. Ogden was up to 21 points and four rebounds for the Cardinal after knocking down a pair of clutch free throws to end the quarter. Chloe Clardy (12 points) and Nunu Agara (10 points) were also in double figures for the Cardinal. With some momentum, the Cardinal looked like a team that had a chance to maybe steal this game.
Unfortunately, the Cardinal would run out of gas in the 4th quarter as the Cougars won by a final score of 76-61, outscoring them 26-12. Gibb scored 11 of her 27 points in the 4th quarter, saving her best for last. She was simply too good in this game.
For Stanford, this is a disappointing loss given they wanted to win this tournament. That said, given the absence of Lara Somfai, they should feel good that they were able to win a couple games without her and play BYU tight for three quarters on the road. BYU came in hot having won their first two games of the WBIT with ease. Stanford gave BYU a much tougher time than their previous two opponents did. Stanford battled all the way until the end and that’s all you can ask for if you are head coach Kate Paye.
Up next for Stanford is the offseason. It’ll be interesting to see how that goes for the Cardinal in terms of player retention. Especially since the expectation was to make the NCAA tournament. If they are able to keep their core group together, they will absolutely be favored to make the NCAA tournament next season. They’ll just have too weapons not to.
To touch more on Paye, she’ll be entering his third season as head coach. There will be a lot of pressure on her to get Stanford back to the tournament. It very well could be a make or break season for her.
There are lots of storylines and things to ponder if you are Stanford as you look ahead to the offseason. The program appears to be at an inflection point. How will they respond and will they get back to being the program they feel they should be? That’s the question.
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