Oregon State
Stanford
Hunter tracks down Stanford
January 18, 2016 | Women's Basketball
Corvallis, Ore. – Senior guard Deven Hunter (pictured with teammate Sydney Wiese) had 19 points and 12 rebounds and 12th-ranked Oregon State used an incredible comeback to stun 11th-ranked Stanford 58-50 on Sunday night.
Spurred on by a roaring Gill Coliseum crowd of 4,314, the Beavers (14-3, 5-1 Pac-12) ended the game on a 23-4 run to erase a decade of frustration against Stanford (14-4, 4-2). It was OSU's first win over the Cardinal since Jan. 11, 2001, ending a streak of 29 consecutive losses in the series.
"It's hard to put this one into words," said Oregon State head coach Scott Rueck. "This was a great basketball game tonight. You know you're going to get Stanford's absolute A game, especially in a game like this one. For 30 minutes it was a struggle, and then things changed. The last 12-13 minutes of this game were a blur, and that's a stretch of basketball no one here will ever forget. This is only one game, but it's a significant one for us, and I'm so proud of the we we competed today."
Hunter rained home a career-high five 3-point baskets in seven attempts and was 7 of 12 from the field overall in recording the ninth double-double of her career. She had eight points in the fourth quarter, when OSU outscored Stanford 28-10 to erase a 40-30 deficit.
Senior guard Jamie Weisner added 18 points, six assists and four steals and helped spark the comeback with 12 fourth-quarter points. Her 3-pointer from the right wing with 57 seconds to play was the dagger in the heart, as it gave the Beavers an insurmountable 55-48 advantage and sent the crowd into a frenzy.
The Beavers trailed 46-35 with 7:07 to play when the game turned 180-degrees on its axis. Hunter scored a layup with 6:45 to play, then hit a 3-pointer off a Weisner assist with 6:14 to play to draw OSU within 46-40.
A Weisner steal and jumper cut it to 46-42 with 5:32 to play and freshman Katie McWilliams buried a foul-line jumper at 4:46 to get the Beavers within 46-44. Weisner made 1 of 2 free throws with 3:52 to play to get the Beavers within a point (46-45) and then Hunter drilled her final 3-pointer from the left wing for a 48-46 lead with 3:03 to play.
It was the first time the Beavers had led since the 9:33 mark of the second quarter, and they did not take their foot off the gas. Weisner hit another jumper after a Stanford miss for a 50-46 lead with 2:02 to play, and junior guard Gabriella Hanson made two free throw with 1:25 to play to stretch the margin to 52-46.
Stanford scored with 1:16 left to end a 6:33 scoreless stretch and cut the cushion to 52-48. But Weisner answered with her decisive trifecta and OSU went 3-for-4 from the foul line over the final 34 seconds to lock down its first win over a ranked opponent this season.
The Beavers held Stanford to 2 of 12 shooting (.167) in the fourth quarter and just 18 of 57 (.316) for the game. Stanford was 2 of 11 from beyond the arc. The Cardinal had just one basket in the final 8:46 and just six in the entire second half.
It was the 13th time this season OSU held an opponent to 51 or fewer points. They have limited Pac-12 opponents to 50 or fewer points in five of six games this season.
Hanson had seven points, five rebounds and three assists and McWilliams added six points, three assists and two blocked shots to prevent layups.
The Beavers resume Pac-12 action at 7 p.m. Friday at Utah. It will be televised by the Pac-12 Oregon and Pac-12 Mountain networks.
Tickets for home games are available at BeaverTickets.com or by calling 800-GOBEAVS.
