Dec. 10, 2012

STANFORD, Calif.- Exactly one month ago from yesterday, Stanford opened the 2012-13 campaign with a 74-62 victory over San Francisco at Oracle Arena.

Stanford has since navigated through its challenging early-season schedule at an NBA-like pace, never enjoying more than four days off at any point.

The Cardinal sports a 6-3 record as the traditional extended break for final exams continues. After suffering back-to-back losses in mid-November, Stanford has won three of its last four to regain momentum.

We recently checked in with KNBR 1050 AM's insightful radio duo of John Platz and Drew Shiller to get their thoughts. Platz, a reserve guard at Stanford from 1982-84 who also serves as the sideline reporter for football broadcasts, is in his third season as the team's play-by-play announcer after 21 years as the club's color analyst. A three-year letterwinner with the Cardinal from 2008-10, Shiller is in his third season as the club's color analyst.

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PLATZ: Our record is within a game of where I thought it would be, given the injuries to Aaron Bright and Anthony Brown. You can't lose two starters from last year's NIT championship run and not be impacted negatively. The loss to Missouri, which is a top-15 team, probably qualifies as a "good loss", if one must resort to that term. I view the Minnesota game as a painful learning experience, rather than a talent-level-reflecting loss. Belmont, on the other hand, is an example of a team Stanford will have to learn to beat if it wants to have another successful postseason run. The guys know that.

SHILLER: I thought the team would be 7-2, possibly even 8-1 at this point. The Belmont and Minnesota losses are ones that I'm sure our guys wish they could have back. However, even standing at 6-3, I think Stanford is still in a very good position with two upcoming opportunities (next week's road trip to No. 25 NC State and Northwestern) for a very good non-conference slate.

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PLATZ: Dwight Powell's ability to take over a game and Chasson Randle's ability to make plays even when exhausted or the distance jumper is not falling. Against Minnesota, it wasn't just that Powell scored 18 of the final 23 points and made a brilliant open-court defensive play in the final seconds, it was the way he did those things. On offense he showed it all: three point shots, post-up plays on the block, slashing moves from the wing and even Dr. J-like swooping finishes at the rim. Powell then sold out defensively on Minnesota's final possession, extending his body to tip the pass and then diving at the sideline to tip the ball into the backcourt so that the clock might run out. Meanwhile, Randle just puts his head down and keeps grinding. He averaged more than 33 minutes a game in back-to-back-to-back games, not an easy thing to do considering the quality of guard opposition in Nassau. Randle's shot was not falling early but he is scoring in other ways (in the paint, on the break, at the free throw line). Stanford has needed Randle to be a consistent double-digit scorer, and he has delivered.

SHILLER: This team can compete with anybody in the country -- seriously. The difference between winning and losing in college basketball is such a fine line -- a few plays here and there really make all the difference. Against Missouri, a team that has moved up to No. 12 now in the rankings, you're down by a bucket with just over two minutes remaining and fall short. Against Minnesota, which is now ranked No. 13 in the AP poll, you're up by four with just over five minutes remaining and can't finish them off. Really, this should make Stanford fans very optimistic about this year's squad. A couple plays here and there, and we could be talking about a nationally-ranked Stanford team.

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PLATZ: I'll go with Dwight Powell's 27-point (9-14 FG, 7-9 FT), seven-rebound, zero-turnover game in the opener against San Francisco at Oracle Arena. Putting up that kind of sterling stat line in your first game of the season tends to suggest you've got a determined mindset for the coming year. Remember when Chris Hernandez dialed up a 30-point night--in the same arena and also against San Francisco--in the season opener of the 2004-05 campaign? Remember what kind of year Chris had (First Team All-Pac-10) and the Cardinal had (NCAA Tournament berth)? The same thing could happen for Powell in 2012-13, on both fronts.

SHILLER: Although it came in a tough loss, I would say Dwight Powell's second half against Minnesota in Stanford's third and final game at the Battle 4 Atlantis. He was absolutely spectacular with 18 points (6-7 FG, 5-5 FT) in 14 minutes in the final period and did everything in his power to try and lead the Cardinal to a win. Let's not forget that he nailed two clutch free throws with Stanford trailing by two and 14 seconds remaining in the game. Powell eventually finished with a team-high 22 points and was 7-7 from the line. Also, who could forget his emphatic driving dunk?

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PLATZ: Again, the absences of Aaron Bright and Anthony Brown show up in this statistic. Although Bright had been slumping from three prior to his injury, his career percentage from beyond the arc (40.3) suggests had he not been injured, he very likely would have started hitting 3's at a higher percentage. I also believe that Rosco Allen and Christian Sanders will become very good three-point shooters down the line. It's not happening for them right now because--as with virtually all freshmen--they are still adjusting to the speed of the college game, along with the size and strength of the opposition. This adjustment period can negatively affect a young player's shooting from deep in his first few games, and sometimes for a longer stretch. The good news is I see signs that Allen and Sanders are becoming more comfortable and confident about where on the court, and in what offensive sets, the three-point opportunities are likely to present themselves. I think you'll see their percentages increase.

SHILLER: I feel like the team is getting great shots, but just can't make them consistently. That should definitely change moving forward. Stanford led the Pac-12 in three-point percentage last year at 37.9 percent. This year? The Cardinal right now is dead last at 26.3 percent. The two guys who are clearly struggling from deep at this point are guards Chasson Randle (43.8 percent last year, 23.8 percent this year) and Aaron Bright (43.6 percent last year, 1-14 overall this year). That being said, I have the utmost faith that these two guys will snap out of their shooting slumps and catch fire very soon.

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PLATZ: Over 75 percent from the free throw line is an outstanding number. If--and it is a very big IF-- the Cardinal can maintain something close to that level of performance from the line, it will be a weapon in close games. This is why, as part of Johnny Dawkins' well-structured practice plans, free throw shooting practice is given lots of time. Whatever a team's talent level, winning can be maximized by being really proficient at the free throw line. Look at Stanford's great teams of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Generally speaking, those teams made their free throws at a percentage rate in the low to mid-70s. Players on this team need to practice free throws on their own time and strive to get better. Todd Lichti, Mark Madsen, Arthur Lee and Chris Hernandez all did that, to name a few. For inspiration to current Stanford players, here's a Stanford statistic likely to remain up there with Joe DiMaggio's hitting streak in terms of longevity: in five games of the 1998 NCAA Tournament, Arthur Lee was 35-35 from the line. That's what extra practice can do.

SHILLER: If Stanford continues to struggle from the outside, it will be imperative that the Cardinal shoots a high percentage from the free throw line. I am guessing there are going to be a LOT of close games once Pac-12 play begins, which means several contests could obviously come down to free throw shooting. But remember that it's not about free throw shooting solely down the stretch. A free throw at the 15:41 mark of the first half means just as much as one with 2:33 remaining in the game. Take a closer look at the Cal-UNLV game this past Sunday night. The Golden Bears lost by one point and shot 15-28 from the line! That explains why they lost right there and the importance of making your free throws...

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PLATZ: There's reason enough to admire Andy Brown, for his perseverance, long rehab hours and mental strength to endure three ACL injuries. But he's doing so much more than that now. He's clearly in the rotation and is demonstrating--in words I have used on the broadcasts--a Shane Battier-type skill set. Like Battier, at 6-7, Brown can play inside or outside, makes heady plays on both ends of the court, is exceptional in anticipating the next pass or shot and positioning his body accordingly, rebounds reliably, can hit the open three, is able to create a shot off the dribble and passes the ball about as well as any Cardinal player. Also, Robbie Lemons. On every team, there are guys who don't play much or may go several games without seeing action. A walk-on, Lemons has been in that category over the past two seasons. But ask these guys if they're burning to play in games, and instantly they'll say yes. They're waiting for that moment: coach looks down the bench in your direction, motions and gives you instruction and tells you to check into the game. Lemons' moment came in the Battle 4 Atlantis due to injuries to Bright and Brown, and he didn't miss his moment. He averaged 6.3 points and 22.0 minutes per game, while demonstrating he's learned some of the tricks necessary to play defense at this level. I believe his performance went a long way toward convincing the coaches he can be at least an occasional rotation contributor and three-point zone buster. It's been a great story and there may be more good chapters to come if Lemons can stay hungry in practice.

SHILLER: Well, first and foremost, I'd have to say Andy Brown. This is a guy who wasn't even sure if he was ever going to play in a basketball game again. Now, you can make a case that he's arguably been Stanford's most valuable player this season. He does so many little things that don't show up in a box score. I'm talking about good defensive rotations, taking charges, boxing out for another player to secure a rebound, deflections, passes that set up assists, etc. Then I'd also have to go with Christian Sanders. For a freshman, he might not be filling up the stat sheet as of yet, and may not even have many big statistical games this year. However, even though we've only seen him in nine games, you can see from his demeanor that Sanders is just a very smart basketball player. I expect him to contribute in many ways this season outside of his scoring.

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- Brian Risso, Athletic Communications/Media Relations