SAN ANTONIO — Stanford is three for 3.
The Cardinal received its third NCAA girls’s nationwide title, and first in 29 years, by beating Pac-12 rival Arizona 54-53 on Sunday night. It was the Cardinal’s third win over Arizona this season, however way more aggressive than the earlier two, determined by a mixed 41 factors.
The championship capped a grueling yr for top-seeded Stanford, which spent all the season on the street due to native COVID-19 restrictions. The title additionally got here the identical yr as coach Tara VanDerveer became the all-time winningest women’s coach, now with 1,125 victories. VanDerveer additionally has the most important hole between titles, males or girls.
Stanford made only one subject aim within the final 6:02, however it was an enormous one. Haley Jones scored on a floater and was fouled by Bendu Yeaney. She made the free throw to transform the three-point play and provides Stanford a 54-50 lead, which was sufficient for the Cardinal to carry off a final frenzy from Arizona.
Aari McDonald went three-for-four from the road, and the Wildcats harassed Stanford right into a shot-clock violation with 6.1 seconds left. But the Cardinal wouldn’t give Arizona an inch, and McDonald’s last-second heave didn’t come shut.
Jones led three Stanford gamers in double figures with 17 and received Most Outstanding Player. The Cardinal overcame 21 turnovers by outrebounding Arizona 47-29 and maintaining McDonald in test. After averaging 30 factors within the earlier three video games for the Wildcats, McDonald had 22 however was simply 5-of-20 from the ground.
Follow reporter Nancy Armour on Twitter @nrarmour
