Nov. 13, 2012
Game #3
No. 4/4 Stanford Cardinal (2-0)
- vs. -
No. 1/1 Baylor Bears (2-0)
Jack in the Box Rainbow Wahine Classic
Friday, Nov. 16, 2012 - 4:30 p.m. PT
Stan Sheriff Center (10,300) - Honolulu, Hawaii
Series History: Baylor leads 3-1
Last Meeting: April 1, 2012 (Baylor 59, Stanford 47) - Denver, Colo.
TV: None
Webcast: None
Radio: 90.1 KZSU (P-x-P: Preston Chin)
Game Notes vs. Baylor 
STANFORD, Calif. - One of the most anticipated meetings of the young campaign takes place Friday in Honolulu as No. 4/4 Stanford and No. 1/1 Baylor meet at the Jack in the Box Rainbow Wahine Classic at 4:30 p.m. PT. The rematch of last year's national semifinal in Denver will be available on the radio at 90.1 KZSU with Preston Chin on the call.
Last Time Out
The Cardinal finished its opening weekend perfect, earning a 92-57 road win at Santa Clara Sunday. Stanford came out hot and maintained that pace throughout the entire 40 minutes, shooting 63.5 percent (40-for-63) from the field and limiting the Broncos to just 37.0 percent. Preseason All-American Chiney Ogwumike followed up her 23-point, 17-rebound outing against Fresno State with 22 points and seven rebounds in 25 minutes against Santa Clara. The junior forward averaged 22.5 points and 12.0 rebounds while shooting 67.9 percent from the field over the opening weekend. Senior forward Joslyn Tinkle scored 19 points on 9-of-11 shooting Sunday to finish her weekend averaging 19.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game, and sophomore point guard Amber Orrange scored 18 points with six assists in another smooth running of the Cardinal machine.
About Baylor
Baylor (2-0), the unanimous No. 1 team in both national polls and defending national champion, opened its defense with an 80-34 rout of Lamar last Friday before downing No. 6 Kentucky 85-51 Tuesday night. The Bears, with head coach Kim Mulkey in her 13th season at the helm, are powered by reigning consensus national player of the year Brittney Griner as well as All-America point guard Odyssey Sims.
Against Baylor
Stanford and Baylor have met just four times overall, with the Bears holding a 3-1 edge. The first meeting between the two schools came back on Dec. 2, 1983, with Baylor capturing a 63-59 victory in Las Vegas. Friday's Jack in the Box Rainbow Wahine Classic contest at the University of Hawai'i will mark the third time in five total meetings that the Cardinal and Bears have played on a neutral court. The second such occasion occurred at last year's Final Four, where Baylor defeated Stanford 59-47 at the Pepsi Center in Denver en route to its second national title.
Stanford In The National Polls
After the opening weekend of the 2012-13 campaign, Stanford remains in the No. 4 spots of each national poll. A total of (HOW MANY) 2012-13 Cardinal opponents are ranked in the polls this week, with Baylor retaining its top spots, Connecticut holding onto both No. 2 slots, California moving up to (NUMBER) in the Associated Press Poll and to (NUMBER) in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll, and Tennessee, despite a weekend split, hanging on to (NUMBER) in the AP poll and (NUMBER) in the Coaches' poll.
In The Pac-12 Rankings
One weekend into the season, Stanford ranks in the top three of five statistical categories amongst Pac-12 schools: scoring (82.0 ppg - first), field-goal percentage (56.3 - first), scoring margin (+23.0 - second), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.35 - second) and blocked shots (6.5 bpg - third). Individually, Chiney Ogwumike is tied for the conference lead with 12.0 rebounds per game, ranks third in scoring with 22.5 points per game and tied for fourth with teammate Joslyn Tinkle with a 67.9 field-goal percentage. Tinkle also ranks sixth in the Pac-12 with 19.5 points per game. Amber Orrange is fourth with 5.50 assists per game and Toni Kokenis is sixth with a 66.7 field-goal percentage.
Final Four Rewind
Friday's contest against top-ranked Baylor is a rematch of last year's national semifinal at the Final Four in Denver, which was won 59-47 by the Bears. Stanford's double-teaming of player of the year Brittney Griner slowed the Bears down all game, as the Cardinal became one of just three teams to hold Baylor to under 60 points in 2011-12. Stanford led 23-21 with three minutes to go in the first half, and the contest was deadlocked at 31-31 with 16 minutes left in regulation, but a 15-3 Baylor run over the next eight minutes helped the Bears take control of the contest. Stanford's defense helped hold Griner to just 13 points on 3-of-9 shooting but it was 13 points and key shots from Terran Condrey that made the difference for the Bears.
For Stanford, three-time All-American Nnemkadi Ogwumike ended her college career with 22 points and nine rebounds while Toni Kokenis scored nine points.
Ogwumike Joins The 1,000-Point Club
Sunday's win at Santa Clara had a bit of history attached to it, as junior forward and preseason All-American Chiney Ogwumike surpassed the 1,000-point threshold to become the 33rd member of Stanford's 1,000-Point Club. Entering the game with 988 career points, Ogwumike hit a jumper with 16:25 to play to put her over 1,000 points. She currently stands at 1,010 career points, tied for 32nd with Bethany Donaphin (1998-2002) on Stanford's all-time scoring list.
Fourth Pac-12 Player Of The Week Honor For Ogwumike
Joining the 1,000-Point Club wasn't the only honor of Chiney Ogwumike's weekend, as the Cypress, Texas native earned her fourth Pac-12 Player of the Week honor Monday afternoon. Ogwumike captured the first weekly honor of the season after averaging 22.5 points and 12.0 rebounds in addition to shooting a scorching 69.7 percent (19-for-28) from the field over wins against Fresno State and Santa Clara. She opened the season with 23 points and 17 rebounds, just one short of her career high, along with four blocks in Friday's 72-61 win over Fresno State, then followed up with 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting and four steals in Sunday's 92-57 win at Santa Clara. Last year, Ogwumike earned three straight honors from the Pac-12 (Jan. 16, 23, 30).
Stanford Extends Nation's Longest Home Winning Streak
Friday's 72-61 victory over Fresno State extended Stanford's national-best home winning streak to 80 games. The Cardinal went 16-0 at Maples Pavilion last season and has posted five straight undefeated home seasons. This season Stanford plays at least 13 and up to 15 games at home, including a Dec. 29 non-conference tilt with No. 2 Connecticut.
Tinkle Comfortable In Leadership Role
Forward Joslyn Tinkle knew heading into the 2012-13 season that she would need to step into a leadership role as one of Stanford's two fourth-year players, and if the opening weekend was any indication then she will do an excellent job. Over Stanford's opening-weekend wins against Fresno State and Santa Clara, Tinkle led with her play, averaging 19.5 points and 6.0 rebounds while shooting 67.9 percent (19-for-28) from the field, as well as her veteran savvy. The Missoula, Mont. native was one of the Cardinal's most vocal leaders over the two games, shouting out assignments and directing her younger teammates on defense, while blocking a total of four shots and making a pair of steals.
Orrange Is On Point
One member of the Cardinal who will be a key factor in Friday's matchup against top-ranked Baylor is sophomore point guard Amber Orrange. One of the fastest-rising point guards in the nation, Orrange has opened her second campaign showing no signs of the "sophomore slump," averaging 16.0 points and 5.50 assists over Stanford's opening weekend. The catalyst of head coach Tara VanDerveer's speedier, pick-and-roll offense, Orrange demonstrated how deadly she can be in the system, shooting 50.0 percent from the field while passing out 11 assists over the two wins. Orrange's rapport with posts Chiney Ogwumike and Joslyn Tinkle has bloomed early, as well, with the post pair combining to score 42.0 points per game and shoot a combined 67.9 percent (36-for-56) from the field last weekend.
The Ruef Is On Fire
Redshirt junior forward Mikaela Ruef, the second of Stanford's fourth-year players (with Joslyn Tinkle), has stepped up her role since returning from foot injuries that derailed her 2011-12 season. After playing only three games last November before sitting out the rest of the season, Ruef has made herself a valuable reserve, passing out a pair of assists against Fresno State then going 3-for-3 from the field at Santa Clara for six points with seven rebounds. In Ruef, the Cardinal has an energetic, experienced player who can make hustle plays to pick up the Cardinal's momentum.
Also Happy To Be Back
Another player who redshirted last season due to injury, guard Jasmine Camp, returned to the starting lineup Sunday at Santa Clara. Camp, who started four of the eight games in which she appeared last season before a stress fracture in her foot ended her season, scored four points with three assists in 24 minutes against the Broncos. Last season, Camp showed glimpses of her potential, especially with a 14-point performance at Connecticut.
New Looks For The Cardinal
Sunday at Santa Clara, Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer sent out a different starting lineup from Friday's five. Chiney Ogwumike, Amber Orrange and Joslyn Tinkle remained in the starting five, but VanDerveer inserted Jasmine Camp and Erica Payne to replace Taylor Greenfield and Sara James. Should VanDerveer retool her five starters once more ahead of Friday's contest against Baylor, it would mark the first time since 2004-05 that the Cardinal head coach had gone with three different starting lineups in the first three games. That season, VanDerveer stuck with Candice Wiggins, Kelley Suminski and Sebnem Kimyacioglu over the first three games, but rotated Brooke Smith, T'Nae Thiel and Azella Perryman in and out of the starting five.
James Takes Advantage Of Her Chance
Many players have benefitted from the expansion of the Cardinal rotation early this season, and one of those players is junior guard Sara James. The El Dorado Hills native made the first start of her collegiate career Friday night, playing 11 minutes, then came off the bench Sunday to score eight points, going 2-for-3 from 3-point range. A member of the Oak Ridge High School state championship team in 2010, James has patiently worked her way up the depth chart of crowded Cardinal backcourts over the past two seasons, and this year has a chance to carve out some solid minutes and put her long-range capabilities to use.
