Iowa State vs. Stanford: NCAA Women’s Tournament Preview and Prediction
Here is everything you need to know about Iowa State and Stanford in our Cyclones vs. Cardinal NCAA Women’s Tournament second-round preview.
No. 7 Iowa State (21-11) vs. No. 2 Stanford (29-5)
Time, TV: 9 p.m., Sunday, ESPN
Location: Maples Pavilion, Palo Alto, Calif.
All-time series (Stanford 3-0): Stanford won the last meeting, 74-53, on March 30, 2009, in the NCAA Tournament.
Winner: Advances to the Sweet 16 in the Portland Region.
Projected starting lineups
Iowa State: G Emily Ryan, G Hannah Belanger, G Arianna Jackson, C Audi Crooks, F Addy Brown.
Stanford: G Hannah Jump, G Elena Gosgana, G Talana Lepolo, F Cameron Brink, F Kiki Iriafen.
Players to watch
Iowa State
C Audi Crooks
You saw what she did in the first-round win over Maryland, right? She scored 40 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. In doing so, the All-Big 12 First Team selection made some NCAA Tournament history. Per ESPN Stats, she was the first player in the last 25 years to score 40 points or more in her tournament debut. Her debut tied for the second-most points all-time (Barbara Kennedy with 43 points) and she was the first player in NCAA Tournament history to score 40 points on 90% shooting. She was also the first freshman to score 40 points or more in an NCAA Tournament game.
Stanford
F Cameron Brink
The 6-foot-4 forward has declared for the WNBA Draft, so she won’t be haunting defenses at the college level after this season. But she’s had an impressive career at Stanford, one that has included a national championship in 2021. She has nearly 2,000 career points and more than 1,000 career rebounds. She’s also blocked more than 400 shots. This season has been her best, as she’s averaged 17.8 points and 12.0 rebounds, the first time in her four-year career that she averaged a double-double in a full season.
Key storylines
Iowa State
Bill Fennellly did a coach-of-the-year type of job this season, even if he didn’t get the award in the Big 12, after integrating three freshmen into his starting lineup, two more into his bench and two transfers into his rotation, including starter Hannah Belanger. The Cyclones managed to get through nine games without guard Emily Ryan and are now riding a wave of momentum into this tournament, in spite of the loss to Texas. The Cyclones are making their fifth straight NCAA Tournament appearance in a full season (excluding 2020).
Stanford
Excellence is expected at Stanford. Coach Tara VanDerveer is the game’s winningest coach (men’s or women’s) and has won three national titles with the Cardinal. She even took a season off from college basketball to coach the U.S. team that would become the 1996 U.S. Women’s Olympic team in Atlanta. But VanDerveer wants to get Stanford past the second round after faltering here last year, losing to Ole Miss on her home court. Stanford might have been a No. 1 seed had it not lost to USC in the Pac-12 Tournament title game.
Prediction
Stanford 67, Iowa State 60. I know Stanford lost in this round last year, but Brink is on a mission and VanDerveer is a master strategist who can figure out how to contain Crooks — but it won’t be easy.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
