A lay-up from Erica McCall starting the scoring for Stanford on Friday night.
Then, a three-pointer from Briana Roberson. A jumper from Brittany McPhee. Another three, this time from Karlie Samuelson. McPhee for two more. A jumper from Kaylee Johnson. Lay ups from McCall and McPhee. Another three from Samuelson.
By that point, it was 21-0 Stanford.
“I thought we just came out and jumped on them,” said Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer.
Washington State got no closer than 12 the rest of the night.
Guard Karlie Samuelson tied a career-high with six three-pointers, and led Stanford with 21 points as the Cardinal advanced to the Pac-12 semifinals with a 66-36 win over the Cougars.
“Unfortunately for us, I think we were running a little bit on fumes today, and it showed,” said WSU head coach June Daugherty.
Ivana Kmetskova had 10 points to lead Washington State, as the team’s only player in double figures.
“They did a very good job of keeping McPhee on [Alexys] Swedlund,” Daugherty said. “They were denying her the ball. She was one of the big factors in us getting going last night offensively, and she has been most of the season.”
Nike McClure jump started the WSU offense after Stanford’s hot start, scoring the team’s first eight points. With an 8-0 run midway through the second quarter, the Cougars made it 29-17, but was outscored 10-2 over the final three minutes to trail by 20 at halftime.
That margin grew to 24 by the end of the third, and was at its highest (30) at the end of the game.
With the game well in hand, Stanford was able to rest its starters, with none playing more than 27 minutes.
“I think it’s really comforting knowing that you don’t have to depend on just five players to play the entire game,” said forward Kaylee Johnson. “Knowing that we have six other players on the bench that we trust.”
Washington State shot just 25 percent for the night (16-for-65), and went 0-for-16 from beyond the arc. The Cougars did most of their damage off turnovers, turning Stanford’s 20 into 22 points on the night.
“I don’t have a problem with our shot selection tonight,” Daugherty said.
WSU ends its season with a 12-19 record.
Stanford will take on the winner of Washington-Oregon on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. for a chance to play for the Tournament title.
Dribbles:
Nike McClure tied the Washington State single-season record with her 104th offensive rebound of the year … Brittany McPhee finished with six assists, a career-high for the Stanford junior … Friday was the first time Washington State was held under 40 points since Feb. 19, 2016, when the Cougars scored 39 against the Sun Devils … Karlie Samuelson’s six 3-pointers is third most in a Pac-12 Tournament game.
