Stanford University Preview

Stanford is 9-5 on the year and 2-1 in conference, most recently having lost 67-57 to Arizona on the road. The Huskies have now beat Stanford the past 6 times in a row over the last two years thanks to playing Stanford in the Pac-10 tournament both of those years.

UW is currently 4-0 in conference play for the first time since '84 and has won 11 straight conference games going back to last season, the most since the '53-'54 seasons.

Stanford runs a 9 to 10 man rotation with 6 players getting 20+ minutes a game.

Stanford is led by Jeremy Green, a solid 6-4 guard who took the backseat last season to Landry Fields. He is currently leading the team in scoring with 15.9 points per game. Green is a good shooter with a nice outside shot, currently 38 of 88 (43.2%) on the year. Green averages nearly 32 minutes per outing. He also averages 1 assist per game and 1.9 turnovers per game.

The starting Stanford guards combine for 5.5 turnovers and 6.7 assists per game. Aaron Bright, 5-11, is putting up 2.6 assists and 1.1 turnovers, while Jarrett Mann is sitting at 3.1 assists and 2.5 turnovers per game.

Josh Owens is a solid 6-8 forward/center who is second in scoring at 12.0 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game, 1st on the team. Owens also leads the team in steals with 1.1 per game.

Dwight Powell is the last starter for the Cardinals. At 6-9 and 227lbs he is a fairly big forward and is third on the team in scoring with 8.8 points per game and second in rebounding at 4.2 boards per game. As a team the Cardinals grab 34.2 rebounds per game. Powell reminds me a bit of Gant in that he is 4 of 9 from range. He doesn't always take the long ball shot, but he makes a high percentage when he does. This makes him a dangerous assignment and potential x-factor if he has a great game.

Stanford has an 81-60 win over Virginia who UW beat 108-63 in Maui.

Perhaps the most telling stat is that Stanford averages 2 more turnovers than they do assists. They also shoot free throws as terribly as us with both Stanford and UW shooting 65.3% on the year.

Starting Line Up Predictions

Stanford

Aaron Bright 5-11 175lb G
Jarrett Mann 6-4 190lb G
Jeremy Green 6-4 198lb G
Josh Owens 6-8 230lb F/C
Dwight Powell 6-9 227lb F

Washington

Isaiah Thomas 5-9 185lb G
Venoy Overton 6-0 185lb G
Justin Holiday 6-6 185lb F
Matthew Bryan-Amaning 6-9 240lb F
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb C

Keys to the Game

Rebounding

MBA continues his conference domination in the post, averaging a double double with 17 points and 10 rebounds per game. In his last outing he went into beast mode and put up 24 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. I think he was channeling Marshawn Lynch. If he can continue to play that way and our team continues to support him, rebounding should be no problem. Josh Owens is a solid post player with an ability to get the ball off the glass. With Powell assisting and Andrew Zimmerman coming off the bench, our bigs will need to play hard. As an aside, I still get giddy every time I watch MBA throw down over Zimmerman and am quite anxious to see another.

Passing

UW plays its best game when they are dishing the ball out and finding the open shot instead of forcing it. With Isaiah averaging nearly 5 assists per game and has 26 assists in the last three games alone, its easy to see why our team has been so solid. Overton is also performing quite well with 4.2 per game and an assist/turnover ratio of 2.8. These two begin the attack, but without the support of our wings the ball doesn't move as well. This is where Holiday, Ross, Wilcox, Suggs, and even Gant and MBA come in. They don't necessarily need to get the assist, but the better they pass around and use their field vision to find open shots, the better we are.

Perimeter Defense

Jeremy Green is a good shooter. Powell shows potential. Anthony Brown and Aaron Bright both have 13 makes on 36 and 37 attempts respectfully. UW cannot afford to let them get hot like OSU was able to do in the first half against us. With 3 or 4 good outside shooters it is important to move our feet well, transition off of screens, and get a hand in their face. Prevent the outside shot and prevent Green from lighting us up. That's where our defensive game plan should start.

Free Throws

Stanford is a terrible free throw shooting team like us. Bright and Green are their best FT shooters and they shoot pretty well with Bright leading at 91% and Green near 80%. Keep them off the line and make our shots and the game will have one less way for Stanford to stay in it. We have had problems getting to the line this year, something the Dawgs thrived on in '08-'09. Each one is big and that makes them extremely important whether we are up a bunch or in a close game.

Work the Post

With MBA riding a hot streak and Aziz drawing all sorts of pressure, an inside out game plan is a great basis for our starting attack. MBA and Aziz don't need to take the shot, but if they at least get a look or two and are able to move the defense about our perimeter shooters will have an easier time of getting into open space. Also look for I.T. and Overton to drive the lane and create space that way.

Keep Their Head in the Game

With the off court issue currently going on, it is easy to see the Dawgs not being as focused as usual. They need to forget about everything outside the game as Stanford has been known to be a tricky arena for us. This SHOULD be an easy game and the Dawgs SHOULD outscore Stanford by 15 or more, BUT if they aren't focused and don't bring their A game the Huskies could easily slip up and drop this one. I don't want to see that happen, I don't foresee it happening, but there is always a chance.

Final Thoughts

Stanford doesn't bring a ton to the table, but they are an improving team and can be dangerous if we don't do our jobs. They played a semi close game with Arizona, losing by 10 on the road. Nothing to be ashamed of there, UA is a good team and road games are always tough. MBA and I.T. need to lead the attack and get our offense rolling early. Holiday and Overton need to create turnovers and get steals to get our transition game started. Our team runs really well and that's where we can best avoid Stanford's tough defense. It also brings the tempo onto our side as Stanford tends to be a slow, half court offense type of team.

Final Score Prediction

UW-85 Stanford-68