Preseason No. 6
STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford will open the 2014-15 season ranked sixth in the The Associated Press women's basketball poll, the organization announced Thursday.
It’s the ninth consecutive season the Cardinal has been among the top seven teams in the nation in the preseason. Stanford has been ranked in the AP Preseason Top 25 every year since 2000-01.
Connecticut topped the preseason prognostication, receiving all 35 first-place votes, followed by South Carolina and Notre Dame. Tennessee was fourth and Texas A&M followed to round out the top five.
Stanford, which last week was tabbed by Pac-12 coaches to capture its 15th straight conference title, will host Connecticut in Maples Pavilion on Monday, Nov. 17 (6 p.m.) in a game carried on ESPN2 as part of the network’s 24-hour College Hoops Tip-Off Marathon. The Cardinal will also face Tennessee in Knoxville on Saturday, Dec. 20 (10 a.m. PT) in a SEC Network broadcast.
In all Stanford faces seven members of the preseason Top 25 in 2014-15. No. 9 Texas visits Maples on Thursday, Nov. 20 at 6 p.m. for a Pac-12 Networks broadcast. The Cardinal will meet No. 13 North Carolina in an Elite Eight rematch from a season ago in this first game of the Rainbow Wahine Shootout in Honolulu on Friday, Nov. 28 (4 p.m. PT).
Pac-12 foes California (No. 15), Oregon State (No. 20) and UCLA (No. 23) also checked in among the nation’s best. Stanford hosts Cal on Sunday, Feb. 22 at 1 p.m. (ESPN2) and UCLA on Sunday, Feb. 15 at 4:30 p.m. (Pac-12 Networks). The Beavers do not make the Bay Area trip this season and instead the Cardinal will matchup with OSU on Thursday, Feb. 26 at 6 p.m. in Corvallis, Ore. (Pac-12 Networks).
Single-game tickets and season packages for every Stanford women’s basketball home game, including Connecticut and Cal are on sale now. Flexible three and six game partial plans are also available starting at $60 (Pick 3) and $85 (Pick 6) and include Connecticut and your choice of other games, including any Pac-12 rival. For more information, visit www.gostanford.com/wbbcentral or call 1-800-STANFORD (option 3) to speak to a ticket sales consultant.
In 2014-15, Stanford returns two backcourt starters in two-time All-Pac-12 honoree Amber Orrange (10.3 ppg, 4.5 apg) and sophomore guard Lili Thompson (8.3 ppg, 2.7 apg), a 2014 Pac-12 All-Freshman Team selection.
Ten other returning letterwinners in senior Bonnie Samuelson (7.3 ppg, 1.36 rpg), senior Taylor Greenfield (5.2 ppg, 2.2 rpg), sophomore Karlie Samuelson (5.1 ppg, 1.3 apg), sophomore Erica McCall (3.3 ppg, 2.2 rpg), sophomore Kailee Johnson (2.4 ppg, 1.7 rpg), sophomore Briana Roberson (1.6 ppg, 0.7 rpg), redshirt junior Alex Green (1.0 ppg, 0.6 apg), redshirt junior Jasmine Camp (0.8 ppg, 0.2 rpg), junior Tess Picknell (0.5 ppg, 1.1 rpg) and senior Erica Payne (0.4 ppg, 0.6 rpg) will look to collectively replace the production of departed seniors Chiney Ogwumike, Mikaela Ruef and Sara James. That trio accounted for 35.5 points and 22.9 rebounds per game a season ago.
The group is bolstered by a highly-touted freshman class that features guards Brittany McPhee and Taylor Rooks along with forward Kaylee Johnson. The guards were both 2014 Parade All-Americans. McPhee was a three-time Washington Gatorade Player of the Year (2012, 2013, 2014) and Rooks was a two-time New Jersey Gatorade Player of the Year (2013, 2014). Johnson was also consistently the best player in her home state and was a three-time Wyoming Gatorade Player of the Year (2012, 2013, 2014).