Stanford Rally Sends UCLA Home

After six blowouts, there was finally a competitive game in the Pacific 10 Conference women’s tournament.

Unfortunately for UCLA, being competitive with Stanford is as good as it gets.

For the second straight year the top-seeded Cardinal eliminated the fourth-seeded Bruins in a semifinal, overcoming an 11-point second-half deficit to pull out a 70-66 win before 3,831 at the HP Pavilion. It was the largest comeback by a team to win a tournament game in the event’s three-year history.

Stanford has 11 consecutive victories over UCLA.

Still, Stanford Coach Tara VanDerveer sounded more relieved than satisfied after the Cardinal avoided the upset thanks to 18 points each from Nicole Powell and Kelley Suminski. Powell also had 11 rebounds.

“UCLA has some great young players, and they gave us as much as we could handle,” VanDerveer said. “They’re really a tough matchup with [Noelle] Quinn and [Nikki] Blue. But other people also stepped up for them.”

The Cardinal (23-6) has one rematch left. It plays second-seeded Arizona in the tournament championship tonight. Last year Stanford beat the Wildcats for the title, 59-49.

The Bruins (17-12), who received 18 points from Blue and 14 points and nine rebounds from Quinn, return home to sit by the phone hoping the NCAA selection committee has their number. UCLA has one less victory than last season but has a stronger argument to be included. The Bruins played a tougher nonconference schedule this season, beat two ranked teams (Ohio State and Arizona) and won nine of their final 12 games. Two of those losses were to Stanford.

UCLA finished tied for third in the conference with USC and Arizona State and was the only one of those teams that reached the semifinals.

“I know there are similarities to last year,” Bruin Coach Kathy Olivier said. “But I think the difference is we’re playing very good basketball right now. Anyone who saw the game today could see we were right in it with a very good team in Stanford.

“If they keep us out I would be shocked. We’re playing good basketball, and hopefully the committee looks at that.”

The Bruins made 15 of 27 shots in taking a 37-32 lead at halftime, getting the Cardinal to play at their racehorse pace. Still, even when UCLA led, 45-34, with 15:56 left in the second half, the Bruins had to know a Stanford run was coming.

Enter Suminski. The Cardinal’s junior guard made three three-pointers in a span of four minutes. (She had five for the game, tying her best.) Throw in the three-point play by T’Nae Thiel, and Stanford went on a 12-2 burst to tie the score at 49.

The Cardinal took the lead back, 53-51, on two Powell free throws with 7:10 left.

Arizona 77, Washington 55 -- Arizona (24-7) continued rolling to the tournament title game and past Washington a fifth straight time. The Wildcat defense limited the Huskies to 21-of-57 shooting. It also forced 20 Washington turnovers.

Wildcat center Shawntinice Polk had 19 points and 10 rebounds. Guard Aimee Grzyb had 14 points.

Giuliana Mendiola made 10 of 15 shots and had 24 points for Washington (17-12).

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The State Farm Insurance company will continue sponsoring the women’s Pac-10 tournament through 2007. The company’s final year of the first sponsorship agreement with the conference concludes with tonight’s championship game.