It was expected that in a year or two, the Stanford men’s basketball team would really be something. Coach Trent Johnson had put together back-to-back solid recruiting classes and with a bit of experience, the Cardinal might challenge for a conference title.
No one told the players they’d have to wait that long, though. And they’re not.
Stanford, which was picked to finish seventh in the preseason media poll, has won six of its past seven games – including four against ranked opponents. It is 6-3 in the Pac-10 and tied for third place, and at 14-5 overall, is ranked No. 23 in the Associated Press poll.
“They’ve gotten better and are getting really good and they are going to be a really good basketball team,” said Oregon coach Ernie Kent, whose team beat Stanford by six points earlier this season. “It seems like week-to-week they only get better.”
That makes sense. Stanford is led primarily by a group of talented sophomores and freshmen who are learning to play in the Pac-10. Sophomores Lawrence Hill and Anthony Goods are the Cardinal’s two leading scorers and sophomore Mitch Johnson is a key distributor. Of course, there are 7-foot twins Brook and Robin Lopez, who are emerging as forces in the league already, and freshman Landry Fields also plays a regular role.
But Johnson said he isn’t satisfied yet by what he’s seen.
“We need to be more consistent in all phases of the game,” Johnson said. “We have a lot of basketball to play.”
This is certainly a different team than the one that lost by 34 to Air Force and by 16 at home to Santa Clara. Stanford’s current run began with a one-point win at Virginia and in its most recent game, the Cardinal upset No. 3 UCLA. Now, Stanford gets another chance to prove itself against a quality non-conference opponent, hosting Gonzaga today.
“It’s another opportunity, another stiff challenge for our basketball team,” Johnson said. “We’re excited for it.”
Stanford’s surge coincided with the return to health of Brook Lopez, who was named the Pac-10 Player of the Week for last week. Lopez averaged 12.5 points, 9.5 rebounds and 6.5 blocks in the wins over UCLA and USC. Against the Trojans, he had the first triple-double in the program’s history, getting 18 points, 11 rebounds and a school-record 12 blocked shots.
“He’s only had one dominant game,” Johnson said. “For the most part, Brook has been pretty inconsistent. … Brook Lopez is a long way away. Two or three games aren’t going to make him one of the premier players in the country.”
A tough loss: Washington State’s depth took a hit with the season-ending loss of freshman guard Nikola Koprivica, who tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during Saturday’s loss to Oregon. Koprivica was averaging 4.6 points in 14.2 minutes a game.
“He was having a solid year as a freshman who was coming on,” WSU coach Tony Bennett said. “He’s a versatile player who can move without the ball. … We’ll have to have other players step up.”
Bennett said he doesn’t think his team will have too tough a time recovering from the adversity of losing a player and also falling at home to Oregon.
“With younger kids, their memories are pretty short,” Bennett said. “The coaches hang on to them longer than the kids. What you must do in league play is put it behind you and move on.”
No fun for Brooks: It wasn’t the way Oregon senior point guard Aaron Brooks wanted to spend his final collegiate trip to his hometown. Brooks, a leading candidate for Pac-10 Player of the Year, was suspended for the Ducks’ loss to Washington last week and wasn’t allowed in Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Instead, he watched the game on television.
“It was really hard on him,” Oregon coach Ernie Kent said. “He watched the game from his aunt’s house. He almost walked away from it. He tried to text our point guard at halftime. It was really, really difficult on him.”
Brooks’ attempt to send a text message to freshman point guard Tajuan Porter at halftime of the UW loss failed because reception wasn’t good in the Oregon locker room.
Have some fun, Beavers: Oregon State coach Jay John doesn’t know exactly what to do. With a team that can’t do one of the simplest of basketball maneuvers – making a free throw – John is searching for an answer. The Beavers are making just 59.3 percent from the foul line, and during their trip to the Washington schools last week, Oregon State was a staggering 18-for-51 (35.3 percent).
John said he’s never seen a worse performance from the foul line in back-to-back games, but said he’s not going to rip his team for its performance.
“We have to go back to a basic routine,” John said. “Concentration and walk up to the line with a smile on your face before you get the ball. We can’t brow-beat them.”
Hardin looks doubtful: California coach Ben Braun said he doesn’t expect to get center DeVon Hardin back this season. Hardin has been out most of the season with a knee injury.
“The best-case scenario might be that he gets back at the end of the year,” Braun said. “It’s a long shot but it’s still a possibility.”
Braun said once Hardin is cleared, he would still have to practice for a couple weeks before he could play, which means he likely wouldn’t be able to return until the Pac-10 tournament.
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