STANFORD, Calif. – After a hard fought first half and outnumbering the Cardinal in multiple defensive categories, No. 15 Norfolk State fell 79-50 to No. 2 Stanford in round one of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night at the Maples Pavillion. Stanford advanced to the semi-finals of the Portland 4 pod and will face No. 7 Iowa State, who knocked out the No. 10 University of Maryland Terrapins in round 1.
As a team, the Spartans rose above the Cardinal with 10 steals (10-4), converted into nine points off 14 turnovers forced onto Stanford.
“I thought we had some sloppy turnovers, we ended up with 14, it felt like 40...We had some times where people had the ball and it was taken out of their hands..They (Norfolk State) did make some deflections and that’s what they do, they won a lot of games doing that” stated Stanford Head Coach Tara VanDerveer.
Norfolk State also outnumbered Stanford in offensive rebounds (13-10) with an advantage in second chance points. Kierra Wheeler and Cameren Brink lead their teams with five offensive boards a piece.
MEAC Newcomer of the Year, Diamond Johnson, led all players with a game-high 19 points and seven rebounds. Johnson also was the leader in steals (4) along with free-throws made, where she shot 5-of-6 from the stripe.
MEAC Player of the Year Kierra Wheeler posted 17 points, leading all players with eight field-goals made, while adding a team high eight rebounds and four blocks.
Freshman Anjanae Richardson finished with seven points and four rebounds, while Da’Brya Clark added five rebounds. MEAC Second Tam All-Conference honoree Niya Fields chipped in four points, three steals, and two assists.
For the Cardinal, Elena Bosana was Stanford’s leading scorer with 18 points, while Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year awardee Cameron Brink posted a double-double of 17 points and 15 rebounds. Pac-12 Most Improved Player of the Year, Kiki Iriafen, also finished with 17 points and was one rebound shy of a double-double with nine in the game.
The Spartans caused havoc in the first quarter, forcing six Stanford turnovers. Diamond Johnson scored six of the Spartans 12 points, as Norfolk State stayed within a three-point radius going into the second quarter (15-12). This is the lowest first quarter margin that any team has maintained with Standford in round one of the NCAA Tournament since 2016-17.
The Cardinal went on a 10-0 run through the second quarter (24-12) until Johnson hit a free-throw to deflate Stanford’s momentum. Wheeler, Clark and Johnson put up seven points cumulative in the second quarter. The Spartans trailed 32-19 to close the half.
Wheeler opened the third quarter scoring four straight points for NSU. Wheeler and Johnson combined for 14 of the Spartans 18 points in the third quarter. Johnson hit a memorable trick shot at the shot clock buzzer to deflate a Cardinal scoring run.
“Believe it or not, I practice those types of shots, practicing against shot clocks and getting it off taller defenders...You never know when you need to pull that out” says Johnson.
Richardson knocked down a three to halt an 8-0 Stanford run in the fourth. Wheeler put up the final four points for the Spartans before the clock expired as Stanford finished on top claiming a 79-50 victory.
“Every team preaches family, and that's what this was...” stated Norfolk State Head Coach Larry Vickers. “They let me just truly coach this year. We were disappointed with the result of the game, but I am happy for this group and the tremendous season that they had.”
Kierra Wheeler added “The family that was built and the work that we put in was not easy, despite the record. There was a lot of anticipation because of the successes from last season...Every last one of these girls are my sisters and we put in work to build that family as well."
Attesting to the culture that was built in arguably the best season for Norfolk State, Diamond Johnson stated “I couldn’t have asked for more of a family from this team...Coming into the MEAC was tough, teams wanted to get us every night, but it prepared us to raise our expectations. Every goal that we set for this season, we reached.”
Norfolk State’s season ends with a 27-6 overall record and a 13-1 mark in MEAC action. NSU’s 27 wins marked the most in the program's Division I history, while the loss to Stanford ended a 15-game win streak, another program Division I record.
Coach Tara VanDerveer closed her Spartan remarks, stating “Diamond Johnson is a terrific player, and we had to work really hard to get this win...The press is what they do, and we haven’t played against that a lot...They did what they do best and this is one of those games that is good for us to play against.”