There is no more need for qualifiers. Stanford Cardinal is the best college basketball team. They consolidated that fact on Sunday night with an emotional 54-53 victory over the Arizona Wildcats in the national championship game to win their first title since 1992.
It certainly wasn’t the most beautiful basketball game ever played, but it was an absolute battle that reached its limit, and that’s all you can ask for. Arizona, who had the best defense of the tournament, forced Stanford to a colossal 21 turns, including a breach of the timer with 5.5 seconds remaining.
That stop gave Arizona the ball and the chance to win the game in the final possession, but Stanford’s defense showed some heroism of its own. They knew that Arizona would give the ball to point guard Aari McDonald, and several defenders attacked her on the ball. With time running out, McDonald was forced to just toss the ball towards the basket, and his 3-point shot did not diminish.
Haley Jones led the way to Stanford, finishing with 17 points and eight rebounds on her way to be voted the most outstanding player in the tournament, while Lexie Hull contributed a 10 point double-double with 10 rebounds. Cameron Brink also scored 10 points, six rebounds and three blocks.
On the Arizona side, McDonald went to 22 points, but really had to work for them. She picked things up in the second half to help lead the Wildcats’ return, but it was 5 out of 20 on the field. Shaina Pellington moved up with 15 points from the bench, but no one else scored double digits.