Cats play full 40 in 24th-straight home win
In a battle of runs, the Wildcats outlasted and outdueled the Stanford sharpshooters.
The key to victory for the Wildcats last night was simply ridding themselves of some bad habits they have had all season. Many times this season, the Wildcats would open the game ice cold, only to come out in the second half and roar to victory.
Head coach Joan Bonvicini has preached the need to play 40 minutes of good basketball all season, never believing the team had attained that goal thus far.
Tonight, the Wildcats were not hot or cold - just consistent.
"Being a second half team is great when you are ahead at the half, but we needed to put together 40 minutes of Arizona basketball - certainly against Stanford - and we did that tonight," Bonvicini said.
Another tragic flaw for the Wildcats has been foul trouble - namely, the foul troubles of center Shawntinice Polk. Fouls contributed to the loss at Arizona State Saturday in Tempe, and have caused problems for the team in many away games this season.
After committing two fouls in the first two minutes of the game, it seemed that once again Polk would be watching the game from the bench. But Polk never got called for another foul in the game.
"It was wonderful," Polk said of not having to worry about fouling out. "I forgot what it was like to play a lot in the second half."
By halftime, Polk already had a double-double, with 10 points and 13 rebounds. She finished the game with 21 points, and her 19 rebounds was the best night for a Wildcat in that category since 1992.
After the ASU game, in which Sun Devil guard Kylan Loney racked up 32 points, the Wildcats had to do better in defending the Stanford standouts. Sophomore guard Natalie Jones was in charge of All-American and Phoenix native Nicole Powell for much of the first half, holding her scoreless with three rebounds in the first 20 minutes.
Powell and guard Susan Borchardt had great nights overall - 22 and 13 points, respectively -but Powell's pointless first half was definitely the difference between victory and defeat for the Wildcats.
"Natalie really took that assignment personal," Bonvicini said.
Jones' other specialty seems to be drawing the foul and sinking her shots from the stripe. She is the Wildcats' best free throw shooter at 80 percent, and went 9 of 10 for the game, scoring at crucial times to save the Wildcats from losing the lead when Stanford began to get close.
Other Wildcats made foul shots when they needed them down the stretch to put the game away. Senior guard Aimee Grzyb went 6 of 6 from the line and junior guard Dee Dee Wheeler went 9 of 10 as well. Not counting Polk's 3 of 10 night from the line, the Wildcats connected on 24 of 26 free throws.
"This is a very poised team down the stretch," Bonvicini said. "Great teams have to have an opportunity and you have to seize it - and we did."