Warren Grimes
Stanford has now played four games without a meaningful presence for its star Nunu Agara. It lost the first two on the road against Notre Dame and Louisville but picked up important wins at home against Syracuse and Boston College.
Agara played the opening minutes against Notre Dame before
going down with an injury, missed the next two games against Louisville and
Syracuse, then made only a token appearance against Boston College.
Agara has been a major presence for Stanford, leading the
team in points and rebounds. Her
versatility is part of the package – she shoots the threeball but can also
score inside with finesse and power moves.
She is also an assist leader. Her
abrupt departure in the first quarter is at least partly responsible for the
humbling defeat in the Notre Dame game.
In the loss against Louisville, Stanford figured out how to
play without Agara but still fell short in a fourth quarter comeback
attempt. Back home at Maples, Stanford
rediscovered its three-point shooting and found sufficient rebounding and inside
scoring to win, decisively against Syracuse and more narrowly against Boston
College.
Most of the scoring in the Maples games came from three starters
and one player off the bench: Elena Boscana, Brooke Demetre, Chloe Clardy, and
Tess Heal. Mary Ashley Stevenson started
both games and contributed valuable points, boards, and assists.
There is growth in the performances of all these
players. Boscana is still hitting a high
percentage of her outside shots while improving conversions on her improvised
inside drives. Demetre is notably
improving her shot blocking while converting her threes and fall-away inside
shots. Clardy is improving her assist
turnover ratio while still hitting from outside and on drives. Heal continues her torrid, above 50% shooting
from three-point distance.
Stanford remains a vertically challenged team. The team does not have the same inside game
-- height, power, and finesse -- of recent Stanford teams. In another sense, Stanford also needs a
stronger vertical game. The team can do
perimeter passing as well as anyone but needs to be able to move the ball
inside to draw defenders away from its three-point shooters. In the last two games, Stanford perimeters showed
increased ability to penetrate and still dish the ball back outside.
Agara is a player who can draw multiple inside defenders and
helps Stanford deal with these vertical challenges. The timing for her full recovery and return
to form remains uncertain.
Stanford understandably remains cautious in dealing with
head injuries. Female athletes have had
some unfortunate outcomes. Jamie Carrie,
after a promising first year start at Stanford, suffered a head injury and
ended up transferring to Texas when the medical staff there cleared her to
play. Career-ending head injuries to a
star soccer goalie and a hard-hitting volleyball player are part of Stanford’s
history.
I have my fingers crossed that Agara’s injury is one which will allow her a rapid and full recovery.
