Stanford Has the Perfect Mexican Road Trip

By: Joe Lami

The Stanford Cardinal wrapped up their three game road trip with a victory over the South Dakota State Jackrabbits on Thursday. The Cardinal were victorious in all three of their games as part of the Hardwood Tournament of Hope, with victories over Purdue, Florida Gulf Coast and South Dakota State.  The number six-ranked team moves onto a record of 7-1, and improves their winning streak to 6 games.

Stanford beat the Jackrabbits by the final score of 80-60.  Their first half was quite impressive as they held the Jackrabbits to only 19 points.  The Cardinal were leading 20-14 with about ten minutes left in the first half when they completely took over the game; Stanford then went on a 20-5 run to end the half.

Stanford came out of half time leading by the score of 40-19.  The game was completely in their hands.  The second half went back and forth and was really tight, but the 21-point lead going into the half would be more than enough for Stanford to earn the victory.

Chiney Ogwumike led the squad with 29 points in 29 minutes.  The pre-season All-American also added 12 rebounds to record her sixth double-double of the year.  Guard Amber Orrange also contributed 13 points, four assists and five steals.  Freshman Kaliee Johnson came off of the bench and had her second straight game where she found double digits in scoring with ten points.  Redshirt Senior, Mikaela Ruef helped out a lot as well, though she only recorded one point, she had 12 rebounds, seven assists, two steals and a block.

Ogwumike was also given the tournament MVP, as she averaged 26 points, 11 rebounds and shot nearly 78 percent over the three days.

Megan Waytashek led the Jackrabbits with 13 points, including nine from beyond the arc.  Forward Megan Stuart was the only other player to hit double digits in scoring, as she came off of the bench to add 11.

The Cardinal return back to the farm with a record of 7-1 and get a couple of weeks off for finals. They then return back to Maples Pavilion on December 14 to take on the Gonzaga Bulldogs.