Sweet 16: Cardinal outrun the Buckeyes

This game was way closer than the final score indicates. The Cardinal were ahead the entire second half, but the Buckeyes kept coming back and were down by just four with 5:39 left to play. Then the Cardinal went on an 18-4 run and finished 84-66. Jayne struggled in the first half, but kept fighting and finished with the game-high 25 points and 11 rebounds.

Jillian added countless hustle plays, 16 points, six assists and four steals. She capped the Cardinal's run at the end with a three-point swish.

Nneka is no longer under the radar. Although heavily guarded, she had 15 points and seven rebounds.

Ros had her best offensive game in a long time with two 3-pointers and a total of 10 points. Perhaps more importantly, she harassed the Buckeyes' dynamo freshman, Sammy Prahalis, for 22 minutes and held her to just 19 points.

Jeanette pushed the ball hard for 39+ minutes and had seven points, four assists, two steals and 10 rebounds — her career high.

So — on to the Elite Eight against Iowa State on Monday. We beat the Cyclones badly last November in Hawaii. We're a better team now and they probably are too. Looking forward to a rematch.

• Game reports:
  • No. 2/2 Stanford Topples No. 9/10 Ohio State in Berkeley Regional Associated Press
  • Cardinal crack the Buckeyes by Michelle Smith, San Francisco Chronicle
  • When lead got small, Stanford came up big by Mark Purdy (!), Mercury News
  • Stanford moves on to regional final by Elliott Almond, Mercury News
  • Jillian, Jeanette and Jayne help stop the Buckeyes by Rick Eymer, Palo Alto Online
• Slide show from Bay Area News Group
• Box score and play-by-play