Prove Them Wrong: Stanford After Three Games

 

Stanford women were picked to finish in 13^th place in the ACC, two places below last year’s 11^th place finish.  With the loss of the team’s top four scorers from last year’s team, this should come as no surprise.  Hailee Swain is the only regular starter to return.  Swain averaged 10.2 points per game last season but ended the final games with an uptick in performance. 

Swain is very talented and a hard worker.  It should come as no surprise that she is averaging 23 per game in this season's first three contests.  In the disappointing opening loss to Arizona, Swain scored a career high 21points; in the home opener against Saint Mary’s, Swain broke that career record with 22 points; and in the most recent hard fought win against UC Davis, Swain did it again, scoring a career record 26 points.  By season’s end, I expect more career records.

Swain reminds me a bit of Candice Wiggins.  They are not the same players but share some key strengths.  Both are 5’11” and offensively minded players.  Strengths in shooting the three ball and creating off the dribble are common.  Wiggins left with some all-time great Stanford stats – I expect Swain to do the same.  Swain was not on the list of preseason ACC all-conference selections.  My message to Swain: “Prove them wrong!”  She’s smooth, she’s competitive, she’s demonstrating maturity, she’s a potential All-American.

Two other returning Stanford veterans started all three games so far.  Shay Ijiwoye was and is a spark plug who started 4 games last season but will be a vital part of this year’s team.  She is averaging 10.3 per game so far and leads the team in steals (9) and assists (12).  She’s a money player who does things that don’t show up on the stat sheet.  Against Saint Mary’s, she drew offensive fouls (5 according to TV commentator Mary Murphy) that resulted in lost possessions for the opponent.  Ijiwoye was all over that season high 87 points that Stanford registered.  Against UC Davis, Ijiwoye’s late fourth quarter driving lay up ended a Stanford scoring draught and spelled the beginning of the end for UC Davis.  Expect more from this fiercely competitive player.

Alex Eschmeyer is the other returning Stanford veteran in the starting lineup.  She started 8 games last season, averaged 5.1 points and shot 32% from long distance.  Eschmeyer is the real deal.  As a 6’5” player who can run the floor, block shots, make post moves, and shoot from outside, she is averaging 9.7 points so far and leading the team in boards (6 per game).  She will be a vital part of the team’s success this season.

Looking to returning Stanford veterans, now comes the most surprising story.  Last season, 6’2” Nora Ezike played in only 9 games, averaging just over 4 minutes in those games.  Her stats were, well -- not impressive.  Injuries may have been an issue, but it was hard to look at this record and predict much for the coming season.  There were, however, a few notable things about Ezike: her speed, her athleticism, her strength, and her competitive nature. 

Three games in, I’d say Nora Ezike is way ahead in the most-improved-player category. Coming off the bench and averaging 23 minutes per game, Ezike is the second leading scorer (averaging 12.3) and second in steals (8).  She is shooting 50% on three-pointers.  On a per minute basis, Ezike is the team leader in steals and one of the best in rebounding and shooting.  Her free throw shooting at 17% (1 for 6) is miserable, but, given her three-point shooting record, seems likely to improve. 

Ezike made memorable steals that would make highlight videos in the games against Saint Mary’s and UC Davis.  Against Saint Mary’s, Ezike put up a career high 18 points, including knocking the ball away from a perimeter Saint Mary’s player, recovering it, and then dribble driving a half-court length to put away an uncontested layup.  When replaced near the end, a smiling Coach Paye stood to greet her.  The television feed showed Ezike sitting down next to a smiling and welcoming Eschmeyer.  Nice chemistry.

Against UC Davis, in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, Ezike jumped into the passing lane to intercept a pass and once again made the long dash for an uncontested layup.  That play was a killer, giving Stanford a decisive lead that UC Davis could not overcome.  Ezike still has to show this kind of performance against tougher opponents, but the potential is there.  And it’s exciting.

Player development excitement goes on.  Kennedy Umeh is averaging just under 10 minutes per game and leads the team with 6 blocks while averaging 4 points and 2.7 boards per game.  She will provide a different post presence for opponents to defend and can offer vital rest for Eschmeyer. 

Then there are the three transfer players, two of them starters in the first three games.  Ines Sotela Miguez is a slasher averaging 6.7 points and an impressive 10 assists, second only to Ijiwoye.  It's fun to watch her pass the ball.  Charlotte Tuhy is shooting 60% on three-pointers (3-5) and probably is the team leader in boards on a per minute basis.  At American University last season, she led her conference in rebounds.  Ilse De Vires, whom some predicted might be the most impactful of the transfers, is averaging 11 minutes per game.  If she finds her outside shot, the minutes will likely increase. 

Those are the 8 players who saw the most minutes in the first three games.  There are still many questions to be answered, including how to defend three-point shooters, improving free throw shooting, how to deal with the team's lack of depth at the guard position, and lessening turnovers.  Overall, there is exciting development of this young team.  Looking at Stanford’s projected 13^th place conference finish, I’d say to the entire team: “prove them wrong.”

New Season: Chemistry, Chemistry, and Congress?

A new season has begun.  Stanford played an exhibition against Pacific on Saturday, October 24, winning 72 to 54.  Only one regular starter from last season was on the floor: Hailee Swaine played 32 plus minutes scoring a team high 18 points with 4 assists, a block and a steal.  She was joined at guard by fellow veteran Shay Ijiwoye, who contributed 16 points with 3 assists and 3 steals.  That’s a powerful duo, but the team may lack depth at the guard position.  Highly touted freshman guard Jordyn Wheeler is out for the season with a torn ACL.

The other Stanford veteran in the starting lineup, Alexandra Eschmeyer, scored eight points including converting her only three-point attempt.  The other two starters were veteran transfers: Ines Sotelo Miguez from Spain via Michigan State and Charotte Tuhy, who transferred from American University.  Each played more than half the game and was a difference maker.  Miguez put up 12 points and Tuhy made a quarter-ending half court three-pointer.  The most remarkable stat from the game may be Tuhy’s 15 rebounds.  She accomplished this in just over 28 minutes, or an average of .53 boards per minute.  Tuhy was her team’s leading rebounder last year, so this stat is not a total surprise.  Consider, however, that playing just over 70% of the game, she grabbed more than 1/3 of the team’s total boards.  This writer did not see the game, but this sort of performance suggests that Tuhy is smart in positioning, quick on her feet, and highly competitive.

Two players with major minutes off the bench were Nora Ezike (19 plus minutes) and Kennedy Umeh (14 plus minutes).  This bodes well for Stanford’s interior depth.  Add to this transfer Ilse de Vires, from the Netherlands via Miami of Ohio.  De Vires is recovering from an injury and had no points and one board in just over ten minutes on the floor.  The hope is that once fully recovered, she can be a major contributor.

From what I’ve observed, this team may have the chemistry needed to have lots of Ws and a ticket to the big dance (after a two-year absence).  Ijiwoye, a quick, energetic, and fierce competitor, could be a leader in sparking that chemistry.  The team had its own retreat (with no coaches present) to reinforce bonding. 

On the national front, the Senate, with bipartisan support, passed a college sports bill before the midterm recess.  In its current form, the bill would limit most players to one transfer during their college careers (a second transfer would require sitting out a year and no player could participate in college sports for more than 5 years).  There is no certainty about action by the House, which could decide not to take any action or could alter the provisions of the bill.  For several reasons, this legislation is unlikely to have a major impact on Stanford WBB.  Of the 8 Stanford players who transferred over the past two seasons, only 2 of them, neither regular starters, transferred for a second time.   Stanford needs to focus on rebuilding its record of performance and success, a record that makes players want to stay with the program.  NIL compensation is part of that, but so too is team chemistry.  Here’s hoping that Stanford wins the Nobel Prize for team chemistry.   

Mark Twain on Mistakes --June Thoughts on Stanford Women's Basketball

 

Warren Grimes

It’s been a turbulent Spring.   The team has lost seven players who transferred, four of them who were starters for most of the year (and a fifth who was in the regular rotation).  Public accounts suggest that at least some of the players felt mal treated.  Discontent at whatever level may have been exacerbated by the NCAA chaos generated by NIL and open transfer rules.  Congress is considering legislation to address some of these issues, but Stanford must focus on what it can control.

I have no inside information on the source of the discontent.  Coaches are people and, like everyone else I know, make mistakes.   As a life-long teacher, I made my share of them.   I was fortunate to learn and benefit from them.  As Mark Twain said: "Good decisions come from experience. Experience comes from making bad decisions."

So can the current head coach and her staff learn from past mistakes?  Coaching for a high profile team means operating in a fishbowl.  Teachers are judged by their students.  So too with a coach, but coaching is less tolerant and less forgiving of mistakes.  Yes, players will be acute observers of a coach’s performance, but those who pass judgment on a coach  include players’ families, athletic administrators, alumni, fans, future recruits, the press, and probably Emily Post (if she follows basketball).  Tolerance for a coach’s mistakes will be much lower than for most teachers.

The one plus that a coach has is that if she wins, tolerance for mistakes suddenly becomes much greater.  Mistakes will be ignored and the AD will instead offer a contract renewal with a salary hike.  I’m sure that Tara VanDerveer made her share of mistakes – and probably learned from many of them.  Meanwhile, she was winning games at a very high rate, along with league and tournament championships. 

In the one extended conversation I had with VanDerveer, she told me that she could never have coached at Stanford the way that Pat Summitt coached at Tennessee.  At the time of the exchange, Summitt had just locked her players out of a new locker room, intending this as an incentive for more intense practices.  That wouldn’t work at Stanford, VanDerveer said -- the players wouldn’t put up with it.  What Coach VanDerveer said a decade or more ago must be truer today, when players are free to transfer with no penalty.

So for Coach Paye, the key is building morale, chemistry, and a winning team.  She will have the benefit of a new Assistant Coach, said to be skilled at player development, and seven new players, three transfers and four freshmen.  The five returning veterans include one starter (Swain) and two regular rotation players (Eschmeyer and Ijiwoye).  All three of the transfers either started or were major rotation players for their former teams.  Jordyn Wheeler, a freshman guard, is performing very well for Team Canada this summer.

I hope that Coach Paye and her staff will favor carrots over sticks and can build the team chemistry and morale needed to be a tournament team next season.  No guarantees, but I’m with Mark Twain. 

Reflections on the Season: Uncertainty and Hope for the Next

Warren Grimes

Stanford’s season ended with the team’s 76-61 loss to BYU in the WBIT quarterfinals.  Stanford played to seed but did not play its best against BYU.  The team shot only 16% from distance and was outboarded 53 to 36.  On the plus side, the team had only six turnovers (to BYU’s 15), had 9 steals (to BYU’s 2).  Two players showed consistent post-season grit:  Courtney Ogden had 26 points (and averaged 18.3 in the three WBIT games).  Chloe Clardy had 17 points and 3 steals (and averaged 16.3 points in the tournament).  In the early fourth quarter, Stanford trailed by just one, but ran out of gas and was outscored 26 to 12 in the quarter. 

Stanford modestly improved its record over last season but did not play up to preseason predictions and hopes.  A key disappointment was the failure to make the NCAA tournament for the second straight season.  Going into next season, Stanford has, in theory, all of its late season starters coming back.  Ogden’s and Swaine’s late season improvements are encouraging.  Clardy is a money player, and so is Agara.  Somfai was an ACC all freshman team selection and probably next in line (after the Syracuse player) for the ACC rookie of the year selection.  Stanford was tested on depth, particularly when Somfai chose not to participate in the WBIT tournament.

The transfer portal is on everyone’s mind, and I mean everyone (players, coaches, and fans).  At least one of the team’s starters, Somfai, is said to be open to discussions with other teams.  The transfer portal is an issue not just for Stanford but for most teams, including the high performing UCLA team.  In an LA Times story, head coach Cori Close said: “I’ve never been as tired as I’ve been in the last two years.”   Close went on to say: “How do we now figure out this transfer portal?  Let’s not complain about it.  Let’s have solutions.” 

Close’s team benefitted from the transfer of former Stanford player Lauren Betts and two other UCLA starters who transferred from other schools.  While professing to support NIL for players, Close says that the sport needs boundaries, needs infrastructure, needs competitive equity, and needs transparency.  I’ll second that. 

The details of what boundaries and transparency look like are up for debate.  Some stability and reward for player loyalty must be part of the system.  Here are two suggestions.  Some sort of modest penalty should be imposed on transfers.  It could be the old rule that a transferring player must sit out a season (with or without a lost year of eligibility).  Or perhaps a player could be benched for just a half-season, allowing a transferee to start playing for her new team on January 15.  A second suggestion is that all amounts paid to a player by the school or by outsiders under NIL arrangements would have to be reported to the school and made public.  These changes, however modest they sound, might have to be approved by the Antitrust Division of the Justice Department or by congressional legislation. 

Coach Paye has emphasized that players who sign with Stanford benefit from the team’s reputation and the value of a Stanford education.  Will that be enough to persuade all of this year’s players to return?  I genuinely hope that it will be, but every player is free to decide what’s in her self-interest.  Fans want their players to come back and be part of a long-term, unselfish and high-achieving unit.   Team loyalty is good for the sport, good for the coaching staff’s restful nights, and probably good for the players in the long term.  In terms of player development, building chemistry, and fan support, the transfer portal is a major distraction, and a perverse one.  Attracting dedicated and qualified coaches could be undercut if a team has to be reconstructed every year.  

To Lara Somfai, and any other Stanford player considering the portal, we don't get to vote, but we'd love to be your best and most loyal fans next season.

The WBIT: A Window Into Stanford's Future?

 

Warren Grimes

Stanford is a #2 seed in the WBIT starting this Thursday.  That’s not where Stanford wanted to be, but every game and every tournament is a new opportunity.  Stanford can make major noise in this tournament – even win it – but to do so the team must be methodical, resilient, and relentless.  One game at a time.  A strong tournament showing could be a great morale boost for the team going on to the next season.

For the most part, I liked the way the season ended.  Stanford played great team basketball in decimating Clemson in the last regular season game.  Against Miami in the ACC tournament opener, Stanford showed resilience and great three point-shooting (44% for the game).  The fourth quarter comeback, outscoring Miami 18 to 5 to force overtime, was almost a Cinderella story.   Courtney Ogden’s 22 points, and Hailee Swain’s 17 (4-7 three pointers) were the kind of post season play that makes history.  Alas, the Cardinal could not stop Miami’s monster center (Ra Shaya Kyle had 25 points on 10 for 12 shooting).  Stanford ran out of gas in the overtime.

The seven-player rotation against Miami illustrates a continuing concern with depth – just six players had over 95% of the playing time in this overtime game.  That’s an issue in a single elimination tournament with up to 5 games played in a 13-day span.   Still, in many ways, this Stanford team has achieved what was expected.   The season records show three top scoring juniors (Nunu Agara, Courtney Ogden, and Chloe Clardy) followed closely by the three top scoring freshmen (Lara Somfai, Hailee Swain, and Alex Eschmeyer).  Five of those six are averaging over 10 points per game.  There is genuine diversity in the Stanford offense and multi-faceted challenges facing the defending opponent.  Stanford could play its large lineup, with Eschmeyer, Somfai, Agara, and Ogden, all 6’1” or taller, or it could go smaller with quickness featuring Ogden, Swain, Clardy and Shay Ijiwoye. 

In late season, two players have shown improvement and exceptional moxie: Courtney Ogden (who has been the top scorer in several recent contests) and Hailee Swain (who is playing her best basketball and played all but 13 seconds of the Miami overtime game).  They were the high scorers against Miami.   To win its way into the end game, the team needs these two late bloomers and each of the other major contributors to put it together.  If one player gets doubled, the others must exploit and dismantle the defense.  Shay Ijiwoye is another key.  Her intensity and quickness can inspire the defense and unravel an opponent.

My fantasy is for a rematch against Miami in the end game, this time with a different ending. As far as next year, I am hoping Stanford can take an example from the Duke women's team.   After a disappointing season, Duke went on to be a dominant ACC team in the following two seasons.

 

Stanford Finds Its March Offense: A Seven Player Juggernaught?

 

Warren Grimes

Last year, on Sunday, December 14, Stanford defeated California in its first conference game of the season.  Stanford was 9-2 overall.  Preseason predictions had Stanford finishing the season in 6^th place in the ACC.  That seemed an overly cautious prediction given Stanford’s recruiting class that included three high school All Americans.  An NCAA tournament birth seemed assured.  The freshmen, two of whom had started all 11 games, seemed destined to get even better.

If someone had told me then that Stanford would finish the conference season in 13^th place, I would have been quite disappointed – and a bit incredulous. 

There’s another side to this story.  If, on December 14, I had settled down for a long Winter’s nap – I mean a Rip Van Winkle-type nap that lasted for weeks – only to wake up at Maples in time to see the March 1 game against Clemson, I would have slept through all of the Sturm and Drang of the mid-conference season.  Watching the Clemson game, I would have thought, just as predicted, that Stanford had become an elite, top-ten team.   Stanford methodically dismembered Clemson, winning by 35 points and racking up 87 points against a team that had held opponents to an average of 58 points per game.    

If someone next to me told me that in the previous game, Stanford had bested SMU by 30 points, I would have nodded and said to myself, “Yup, just as expected.”  If the same person happened to mention that freshman Lara Somfai had four times been selected for conference freshman of the week, my thought would have been “yes, that’s not surprising.”

Of course, once I had fully awakened from my Rip Van Winkle-sleep, I would have realized that the journey to the last two games was vastly different, and much more of a Cinderella story.  Stanford, after losing Nunu Agara and Talana Lepolo to injury, had lost 8 of the last 9 conference games before winning the last three.  Stanford had finished with an overall losing record in the ACC (8-10).

Stanford found its offensive rhythm in the final conference games thanks to a seven-player rotation that included its three top scoring juniors (Agara, Chloe Clardy, and Courtney Ogden) and the team’s next three highest scorers (freshmen All-Americans Lara Somfai, Hailey Swain, and Alexandra Eschmeyer) plus sophomore Shay Ijiwoye.   Crisp interior passing and lots of movement led to many uncontested layups.  That’s Stanford’s March basketball pedigree.  A notable change for the last three games was Ijiwoye’s insertion into the starting lineup as the point guard.  Against Clemson, Ijiwoye had only 4 points, but garnished that with 4 boards, 5 assists and a steal against only 2 turnovers.  Another positive was Hailey Swain's 20 points, the most a freshman had scored this season.

All of this looks good for the ACC tournament.  To be a true Cinderella story, Stanford has to get to the Big Dance.  You can’t lose your glass slipper unless you go to the dance.  

Preview of the Miami and Florida State teams

Miami is the higher ranked team but both teams have similar ACC records.  With Nunu in the rotation we have a much better chance of winning these two road games.  Miami has played FSU twice and they each won at home.  The condensed game highlights from the game played in Miami is included below.

Feb 18 at 5 pm PST vs Miami

Miami Website

Miami is 13-12 and 5-9 in league play. Their net ranking is #56 vs Stanford at #43.

Ra Shaya Kyle, 6-6 Grad Student Center,  is averaging 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Gal Raviv, 5-9 Soph Guard,  is averaging 13 ppg. 

Amarachi Kimpson, 5-8 Jr Guard,  is averaging 12 ppg.

Miami shoots 30% from three. 

10:56 Condensed Game in Jan - Miami 89 FSU 73 at Miami

For Miami, Ra Shaya Kyle scored a career-high 30 points to go with 10 rebounds. Gal Raviv finished the game with 13 points, nine assists, and two rebounds. Amarachi Kimpson made four three-pointers and scored 17 points. For Florida State, Sole Williams had 19 points, four rebounds, three assists, and a steal.

 

Feb 22 at 11 am PST vs Florida State.  

FSU Website

Florida State is 9-17 and 4-10 in league play.  Their net ranking is #108.

Sole Williams is, 5-9 Jr Guard, is averaging 15 ppg. 

Jasmine Shavers, 5-8 Sr Guard, is averaging 12 ppg.  

8 of the 10 players are transfers. 

Amaya Bonner transferred from Cal and is averaging 6 ppg. 

Nunu brings energy and drive – and Stanford suffers tough Loss

 

Warren Grimes

In late January, Nunu Agara went out with her injury late in the Cal game and missed the next five games. Without Agara, Stanford rotated just 7 players and went 1-4.  Pittsburgh was the only W.  Making the Big Dance seemed a foregone conclusion before Agara went out.  Now, even with Agara back, it seems doubtful.

Agara came back for the Virginia game and played with energy and intensity.  It wasn’t enough.  It was a one possession game at the end.   But Stanford’s late fourth-quarter scoring draught sealed the team’s fate.

There were some things to like about the Virginia game.  The return of Agara is at the top of the list.  She scored 21 points while playing for 38 minutes.

Hailey Swain had a great all-around game with a team-leading 6 boards, 5 steals, and 13 points.  The steals stand out – more of those could contribute to a strong season’s end.

Ogden (10 points) and Clardy (12 points) were also in double digits.

The Stanford team, which seemed to have lots of depth at season’s outset, no longer does.  Stanford played four players for 31 minutes or more, with Agara, Swain, and Clardy all playing 35 or more.  Compare that to Virginia, which had only one player on the floor for more than 25 minutes (Kymora Johnson played for 37 and was Virginia’s top scorer).  Virginia had 36 points from the bench, compared to Stanford’s 6. 

The lack of depth was more of a factor because of Lara Somfai’s foul difficulties.  She had her first foul with just over 2 minutes gone in the first quarter.  She sat down, then came back in the second quarter only to draw her second.  Coming back at the end of the second quarter, she drew her third.  These issues might not matter except that Stanford really needs Somfai in the game.  Somfai is a strong candidate for conference rookie of the year, for good reason.  She managed to play for 25 minutes, but one wonders whether her contribution in the fourth quarter was constrained by the four fouls hanging around her neck.  Virginia, a physical team, outrebounded Stanford 37 to 27, a stat that might have looked different if Somfai had been in the game for more minutes.

Stanford shot under 20% from distance, another reason the team came up short. 

So what is the prognosis for the rest of the season?  I can’t comfortably predict an NCAA bid, but I very much want this team to show its best side in the next three weeks.  The team is hard-working, seems to have good chemistry, and is capable of winning its last four conference games.  Add one or two wins in the ACC tournament and you have an almost  Cinderella ending to a tough season. 

After Four Losses, What Will February Bring?

 

Warren Grimes

Stanford has lost four in a row, including the last two at Maples.  Fans may understandably ask, is this just a repeat of last year?   

Last season, Stanford began with a winning record, then hit the down button once the conference season began.  

Last season, Stanford was struggling in ACC competion, then, in mid-season, lost Nunu Agara, the top scorer and rebounder.

Last season, Stanford struggled in frustration against the ACC’s top teams.

Not much difference this year.

Well, there are some differences.  For one, this season, Stanford beat North Carolina in overtime, on the road.

This season, Stanford has started two freshmen from the get-go, and, in the last two games, has had three freshmen starters.  All three are on an improvement curve and are likely, barring injury, to play their best basketball in February.  Lara Somfai has struggled in her last two outings, but she is still a candidate for conference freshman of the year.

Call them explanations or excuses, but all four losses were against very good teams.  Louisville was #1 in the conference and #7 in the national poll.  Stanford played the last two games with a 7-player rotation (Haley Swain played 40 minutes in the last game). The game against Hidalgo & Friends (aka Notre Dame) featured a 37-point performance for Hidalgo (47% of the team’s points).  The Irish also had a seven-player rotation, but Hidalgo’s presence was like an extra player on the floor. 

How much were the last three games affected by Nunu Agara’s absence?  There’s no point in sugarcoating it: Agara has been a critical player for Stanford.  She tops the list in points and offensive boards.  When she is in lineup, opposing coaches must plan their defense to hold Agara in check.  That gives other players, including Somfai and Eschmeyer, more options to score.   It was no accident that, playing without Agara, Stanford got out-boarded by both Louisville and Notre Dame. 

Not knowing Agara’s status, what will Stanford do in February with its seven-player rotation, starting Eschmeyer in place of Agara and Clardy in place of Lepolo?   Stanford still has options.  Various players stepped up in all three of the Bay Area losses.   All three of the freshmen scored double digits against Cal (Somfai 16, Eschmeyer 16, and Swain 10).  Somfai’s last second three-pointer took the game into overtime.  Eschmeyer, coming off the bench, had a career-high 16 points and 7 boards.  Against Notre Dame, she had a similar line. 

Agara’s junior classmates have continued to contribute, with Ogden offering 23 points and 10 boards against Notre Dame.  Ogden had 16 points against Louisville.  Clardy is always there, averaging 15.3 points in the last three games.

Replacing Lepolo is a challenge because of her steady leadership and defense, but Swain and Ijiwoye have stepped up.  Swaine has been in double figures each of the last three games, averaging 10.3 points.  Ijiwoye had 15 points against Louisville. 

So, Agara’s return would be a major plus, but Stanford in February will learn to adjust and be competitive in all its games, with (at least) seven players fighting to make it a winning month.  

The Coach as a Cheer Leader – How to Respond to Tough Losses

 

Warren Grimes

I’m a career teacher.  I’ve learned that enthusiasm is a key to good teaching.   If I announce that today’s class will be a yawner, students won’t be optimal learners.  Being a cheer leader is even more important for a coach.  Win or lose, staying optimistic and focused is vital if the coach hopes to motivate players to continue to work hard and develop their skills. 

In the past two weekends, Stanford split games, winning two against relatively weak opponents, and losing two hard-fought games against more elite teams.  The losses came against Duke (home) and Syracuse (away).  Both losses were deflating, in part because anyone watching those games could see the intensity of Stanford players.  That was evident, for example, in the rebounding statistics.  Stanford outboarded Duke 43-37 and had a 40-32 advantage against Syracuse.  Stanford players played with heart and focus and still came up short.

So what does a coach say to her team after difficult losses?  Anyone who has watched a losing coach’s press conference knows the drill.  The coach talks about what players can learn from the game and how to improve for the next one.   The goal is always to get the team to peak by season’s end. 

So is this Stanford team getting better?   There are obvious signs that it is.  Take rebounding.  Stanford continues to win rebounding battles, but with a difference.  Coming off the bench, Alexandra Eschmeyer had 11 boards against Wake Forest and 6 against Duke.  And the guards are seizing opportunities to grab loose balls while the bigs are blocking one another out.  Shay Ijiwoye has darted in from the perimeter to grab 5 boards against both Wake Forest and Boston College.  Chloe Clardy had 4 boards each against Duke and Syracuse.

Another example of improvement is Lara Somfai.  She had an off game against Duke, shooting 1 for 9 and playing less than 17 minutes.  Perhaps learning to take what the defense gives you, Somfai scored a team-high 17 points against Syracuse.  If the Syracuse defense is focusing on Nunu Agara, take advantage.  Somfai did exactly that.

Freshmen, with more to learn, generally have the fastest learning curve.  Hailee Swain had 15 points, 7 boards, 2 steals and an assist against Boston College.  The coaches deservedly gave her the most minutes of any player.  The next game against Syracuse was not so good – 0/6 shooting and 1 rebound in 22 minutes.  Swain will learn from these back-to-back experiences.  Her evolution will be critical for Stanford’s late season performance.

Alexandra Eschmeyer is still up and down as a freshman performer, but she too is showing signs of being a force.   Against Duke, she played 28 minutes, scored 10 points, had 6 rebounds, and is credited with 5 solo or assisted blocks. 

Meanwhile, the trio of juniors, Nunu Agara, Chloe Clardy, and Courtney Ogden, now occupy the top three spots in season scoring.  To make the offense more potent, each of those three and other players, including the three top-ranked freshmen, must learn how to seamlessly and quickly take what the defense is giving.  A lot of teams have followed NC State in clogging the middle.  Syracuse did that and occasionally used a zone.  By season’s end, the team needs to respond to defensive strategies quickly and without a word spoken.

Stanford now stays in the Bay Area for a road game against Cal and two tough at home matchups against Louisville and Notre Dame.  Here’s to continued improvement and some wins!