Polk pours in 21, grabs 19 boards

The crowd was hot and so were the Wildcats in what was possibly the biggest win in Arizona women's basketball history.

The Wildcats knocked off No. 7 Stanford 88-83 last night in front of 4,111 McKale Center fans that refused to sit down in the final minutes.

The Cardinal matched the highest-ranked opponent Arizona has ever beaten. The Wildcats beat seventh-ranked Washington Jan. 10, 1998.

"This (win) is about character," said UA head coach Joan Bonvicini. "Life is about opportunities. So is sports. No one gives you things - you've got to earn it. You've got to pass the test."

UA sophomore center Shawntinice Polk had 21 points and a career-high 19 rebounds, including nine on the offensive glass, and junior guard Dee-Dee Wheeler added 19 points, five rebounds and four assists for the Wildcats (17-5, 9-2 Pacific 10 Conference). All five Wildcat starters scored in double figures.

The win pushed the Wildcats' record home winning streak to 24 games, tied for second longest in the nation. The crowd tied for seventh largest in school history.

"I want to compliment our fans. They did awesome," Bonvicini said. "We want to make McKale the most feared place (to play)."

Arizona's notched its second straight win over Stanford in McKale. The Wildcats beat then-No. 9 Stanford in Tucson last season.

Arizona is a half-game behind Stanford for first place in the conference, tied with the Cardinal in the loss column.

"We really wanted to get back into first place," Wheeler said. "Every game from here on out is a must-win."

"At home, on the road, we've just got to take care of business," added Polk.

Stanford senior forward Nicole Powell, the Pac-10 leader in points and rebounds per game, was held scoreless in the first half but poured it on in the second.

Powell finished with a game-high 22 points, but was just 6 of 17 from the field and committed six turnovers. Arizona turned the ball over a season-low eight times.

"I don't want to say we weren't ready, but we didn't come out and execute," Powell said. "We didn't bring it."

Arizona made 12 consecutive free throws in the final minute, all by Wheeler and senior guard Aimee Grzyb. Wheeler and sophomore guard Natalie Jones were both 9 of 10 from the line, while Grzyb was 6 of 6.

Jones finished with 17 points before fouling out with four minutes left. Grzyb scored 13 and freshman forward Shannon Hobson added 10.

After the Wildcats went on a 17-4 run to open up a 51-38 lead with 14:40 to play, Stanford began to feel it from the outside. The Cardinal hit three 3-pointers, including a pair from Powell, to tie the game at 58 with 9:40 left.

But Stanford never took the lead in the second half.

"We just fought through it," Polk said. "We all just gutted it out and played 40 minutes of basketball."

After picking up two fouls in the first two minutes of the game, Polk was did not foul in the final 38 minutes, allowing her to score 11 points in 18 second-half minutes.

A pair of free throws by Jones put Arizona up for good, 64-62, with 6:15 to play. But the Cardinal wouldn't go away. A Powell 3 - one of eight Stanford treys in the second half - cut Arizona's lead to 77-73 with 1:03 remaining.

Then Stanford started to foul, and the free-throw barrage began. A pair by Wheeler put the Wildcats up by six with 58 seconds left, and Stanford didn't get closer than five in the final minute.

"This team is a very poised team down the stretch," Bonvicini said.

Arizona out-rebounded Stanford 40-35, including 19-11 on the offensive end.

"Different people contributed. They really got on the (offensive) boards well," said Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer. "I think Arizona earned the win."

A 6-0 Stanford spurt cut Arizona's lead to 34-32 heading into halftime, the closest the Cardinal had been in nearly eight minutes. Arizona led by as many as eight in the first half. Stanford's last lead of the game was 19-17 just over 11 minutes into the game.

VanDerveer said the teams will meet again in the Pac-10 Tournament."There's going to be a rubber match. We'll play again," she said.

Arizona will try to improve its home win streak to 25 when it hosts California tomorrow at 4 p.m.