Gutsy win by SC....very even battle but SC just executed and seemed to understand their identity more down the stretch. Down 60-56 I thought it was over but SC just calmly executed and rose to the moment. Boston proved she's the best player in the country down the stretch and finally found her stride after dealing with foul trouble and not making a big impact offensively until that point. Really nice play from Hall, Beal and Amihere. Rest of the lineup I thought was fine, though Cooke struggled again. I feel like I harp on Cooke a lot, but I genuinely don't understand how SC uses her as a bailout player since she rarely ever scores when she's trying to create for herself. At this point I'd rather see someone else take over that role since it's never worked IMO having Zia in the role. I'll give her credit for hitting the game clinching free throws though after SC was brick city down the stretch.
Brink was absolutely brilliant for Stanford. So smooth and can beat you in a variety of ways offensively. I don't know how many minutes she played but it couldn't have been more than 25-30. If she could avoid dumb fouls I genuinely believe she could be in the NPOY discussion. End of game execution for Stanford was beyond dreadful though. Jones had a few nice plays but overall was quite mediocre in the 2nd half. Poor decision making, a lot of missed shots and also missed a crucial free throw down the stretch. Loved their new PG Lepolo and thought Iriafen looked great (aside from the T down the stretch).
Both teams looked rough at times but I thought it was generally a well played and hard fought game. Wouldn't be the least bit surprised if we see this matchup again for a championship in April.
). Holy rollercoaster of emotions.