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NewsvineStanford basketball enjoys its last weekend at home and the lowest-profile game left on its regular season schedule when struggling Washington visits tonight.
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Washington (15-13, 6-9 Pac-10) lost to No. 8 Stanford (22-4, 11-3), 65-51, in Seattle four weeks ago, and has dropped six of its last nine to fall out of contention for a bid in the NCAA Tournament. Only woeful Oregon State (6-21, 0-15) has a worse conference mark than the Huskies.
But just three games separate ninth-place Washington from their in-state rivals, third-place No. 22 Washington State (21-6, 9-6) in the Pac-10 — a conference whose players, coaches and media are quick to call the nation’s best (the RPI ranks it third to the ACC and Big XII, however). And what the league may lack at the top (with just two top-20 teams), it certainly makes up for in depth: its top nine squads each have 15 wins and NBA talent sprinkled across the rosters.
For Washington, senior guard Tim Morris, a Stanford transfer, might make for the most compelling storyline, but it’s junior forward Jon Brockman (18 points, 12 rebounds per game, 54 percent shooting) who promises Stanford sophomore centers Brook and Robin Lopez a battle down low and guards Ryan Appleby (11 points) Justin Dentmon (10 points) who will try to out-quick their Stanford counterparts by driving to the hoop.
“Explosive, quick, playing better, defending better,” coach Trent Johnson said Tuesday of the Huskies. “Any time a team can beat UCLA, that says enough.”
So then why is Stanford a strong favorite to beat Washington for the 15th straight time at Maples Pavilion? Like fellow Pac-10 would-bes Oregon and Cal, the Huskies treat defense like it’s recess. The 69.3 points and 45 percent shooting allowed are among the conference’s worst, and an abysmal 59 percent accuracy rate from the free throw line doesn’t help matters either.
Meanwhile, Stanford is among the conference’s top three in scoring defense (58.3 points), field-goal percentage allowed (38.3 percent), three-point percentage allowed (32.2 percent), and rebounding margin (+10.0). It has launched the Cardinal to a top-ten ranking, second place in the league, just one game behind UCLA, and a probable top-four seed come the NCAA Tournament.
“Some guys will check Bracketology or whatever they’re saying,” senior forward Taj Finger said of his teammates. “But we’re more focused on the Pac-10 championship, more focused on the games coming up.”
After tonight’s 7 p.m. tip, Washington State will visit Maples Pavilion on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Cardinal has won two of its last three against the Cougars, who started the season 14-0, then dropped five of eight, but have won four of their last five.
However, both Stanford victories came in overtime, 67-65 in Pullman, Wash. this year, and 71-68 at Maples last year, with the Cougars’ defense, regularly the conference’s best, giving Stanford a 45-minute headache. Stanford’s last win in regulation? 39-37 in Pullman two seasons ago, in a game every bit as ugly as it sounds.
Saturday’s contest will be Senior Day, the last home game for Finger, center Peter Prowitt, forward Fred Washington and guard Kenny Brown. It will also be the last opportunity for Stanford to catch its breath, with the Pac-10 title potentially being decided in L.A. next weekend, and the Pac-10 Tournament and NCAA Tournament coming up in the following weeks.
None of that matters right now to Finger, though. He doesn’t want to be looking past Washington tonight, let alone Washington State.
“I’ll just be thinking about beating WSU Saturday,” Finger said. “[If] you get caught up in all that stuff, you’re not going to play as well.”
One game at a time. Given the results this season, it’s hard to argue.