Stanford Cardinal Roll Past UC Davis in First Round NIT Win
The Stanford Cardinal, coming off a disappointing loss to the 17th-ranked Utah Runnin’ Utes in the PAC-12 tournament, used a second-half surge to roll past its fellow Northern California counterparts, the UC-Davis Aggies, in the first round of the NIT tournament. The Cardinal, led by its starting backcourt tandem of sophomore guard Marcus Allen and senior guard Chasson Randle, ran away from the Aggies in the second half.
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There are usually two ways most major conference teams approach being selected for the NIT tournament. The initial feeling is one of letdown, because being selected in the NIT means you were left out the “Big Dance”, the NCAA tournament.
The second prevailing message that most head coaches preach to their teams relays a concept about this being the last opportunity to end the season on a high note, and carry momentum into the ensuing season.
“We’re excited to still be playing, a lot of teams aren’t. We still have the opportunity to play for a championship. Our young kids have an opportunity to grow as they get some postseason experience,” said Stanford head coach Johnny Dawkins, per an interview on sfgate.com.
“We’re excited to still be playing, a lot of teams aren’t” -Dawkins
The Cardinal entered their first round matchup versus UC Davis having experience on their side, having played in the NIT seven previous times and posting a 13-5 record in those contest. Stanford has been the last team standing twice, winning the tournament in 1991 and 2012, on the historical court of Madison Square Garden.
The Aggies are making their first postseason appearance on the Division I-level, after moving up from Division II in 2007 and joining the Big West Conference.
The Cardinal used a balanced attack as they grabbed an early 11-7 lead, with every one of their starters having scored just 5 minutes into the game. The game had a good tempo early on, with both teams taking turns scoring with successful early offense. Stanford was getting everyone involved, while the Aggies were almost a one man wrecking crew from the start.
Davis Sophomore guard Corey Hawkins (the son of former Bradley University and NBA star Hershey Hawkins) came out the gates on fire, scoring 21 of the Aggies’ first-half 36 points. The Cardinal were led by their backcourt duo of Allen (no relation, Raider fans) and Randle both totaling eight points, leading the Cardinal to a 37-36 halftime lead.
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Stanford began to lengthen the lead early in the 2nd half, outscoring the Aggies 9-4 in the first five minutes to take a 46-40 lead. The lead ballooned to 55-42 eight minutes into the 2nd half. Hawkins was doing everything in his power to keep Davis close, as he had 25 points at the 14-minute mark, but no other Aggie had more than three points.
Davis had no answer for the Cardinal’s Allen, who came into the game averaging just 5.5 points for the season. Allen’s 22 points led the Cardinal as they slowly expanded it’s one-point halftime lead to 17 points with five minutes left in the game.
Allen routinely beat his man off the dribble and penetrated the Aggies’ defense at will. The backcourt combination of Allen and Senior guard Randle combined for 40 points and proved to be too much for the Aggies to overcome, even with the fantastic performance of Big West Player of the Year Corey Hawkins, who put up a season-high 34 points on 12-of-22 shooting for UC Davis.
The balanced scoring of Stanford ultimately wore down the one man show of the Aggies, and the Cardinal claimed a 77-64 victory. Stanford (20-13) will next face Rhode Island (23-9), winners of their first-round matchup against Iona, in the 2nd round of the NIT on Friday.