They may have bristled at being seeded sixth in the Midwest region of the NCAA tournament, but they were all business on the court. And on their journey to the regional final, the Cardinal players left no doubt that they belonged.
Led by senior and three-time All-American Nicole Powell, the women’s basketball team (27-7) came within two points of a Final Four appearance, falling to No. 1 seed Tennessee, 62-60, on March 30. After winning the Pac-10 championship, the team rolled over Missouri 68-55 in the first round of the NCAA tournament and knocked off third-seeded Oklahoma 68-43 in the second round. “Stanford was terrific in the second half,” said Oklahoma coach Sherri Coale after the game. “They were as good as any team in the country, if not better. If they play two halves like that, there’s no reason they can’t win a national championship.”
In the Sweet Sixteen, against No. 2 seed Vanderbilt, the Cardinal trailed 55-54 with 11.2 seconds remaining. Powell took the inbounds pass, dribbled up court and found herself double-teamed. She spun and confidently passed the ball back to junior Kelley Suminski, who fired a three-pointer from the top of the arc with 0.3 seconds left.
“I’m so excited, I don’t know whether to cry or celebrate,” Suminski said afterward, then promptly burst into tears. The win brought Stanford its first Elite Eight appearance in seven years.
But Powell & Co., as they were dubbed by the media, could not quite overcome Tennessee. Stanford had lost seven straight to the Lady Vols, including a 70-66 December home game in overtime. The NCAA matchup, a back-and-forth battle to a 60-60 standoff, looked like a potential Cinderella Cardinal story. But Tennessee’s Tasha Butts hit a layup to squeak ahead by two points with 1.7 seconds remaining.
It was all up to Powell, who had scored more than half of Stanford’s points. She snagged a Hail Mary pass from junior T’Nae Thiel, shook off two Tennessee defenders, got a good look at the basket and released a graceful, arcing three-point attempt. The ball bounced off the rim, and the storybook journey ended.
“She gave it all she had,” head coach Tara VanDerveer said after the game. “Nicole had a great game and showed great poise. I don’t think there’s any debate about her talent. She had a fabulous senior year.”
Within minutes of the loss, Powell was on TV, reflecting on her college career in a previously taped interview with ESPN. “I hope people enjoy watching me play,” she said. “I hope people take some kind of joy from that.”
The effervescent 6-foot-2 forward from Phoenix tallied her 2,000th career point in the Oklahoma win, and averaged 21.8 points per game in NCAA tournament action, ahead of Suminski’s 11 and redshirt junior Susan Borchardt’s 10. The only Cardinal team member to score in double figures in the Tennessee game—she had 31 points, plus 10 rebounds for good measure—Powell was named most outstanding player of the Midwest regional. In Stanford’s record books, she ranks first in career rebounds per game (9.6), second in points per game (17.3) and second in free-throw percentage (82.9). She has recorded six triple-doubles and 51 double-doubles in 119 career games, and the stats go on and on. “I don’t really keep up with them,” she says. “That’s what moms and fans are for.”
Powell’s parents, Ruth and Lawrence, surprised her by driving out from Arizona for her first game on the Farm, and they have been fixtures in Maples Pavilion for much of the past four years. “I’m an only child—their baby,” Powell explains. “I tease my mom because she’s always, like, ‘Get up, we’re watching [game] film.’ She’s hard-core, but it’s all good.”
As a freshman, Powell stepped into the point-guard slot when Borchardt was sidelined with a knee injury, and she has been a versatile, go-to player who can play either forward position, scoring from the inside or outside. At press time, Powell was expected to be the third player chosen in the WNBA draft, and to start playing in the league this summer. She’ll return to Stanford next fall to finish her final quarter.
There is little question Powell will be difficult to replace. “If we hadn’t defended her the way we did, I think she might have had 61 points,” said Tennessee coach Pat Summit after the regional final. Wrote San Jose Mercury News columnist Ann Killion the next day, “Stanford may never have another player like her again.”
