Stanford 2009 CBI Tournament Preview

Stanford Cardinal - Pacific 10 (18-13, 6-12)

RPI: 106

Big Wins: 1/4 Arizona (76-60), 1/17 California (75-69), 3/5 at Arizona State (74-64)

Bad Losses: 1/24 Oregon State (62-77), 2/19 at Oregon State (54-66), 2/21 at Oregon (60-68)

Coach: Johnny Dawkins

Probable Stanford Starters:

• Mitch Johnson, Senior, Guard, 6.7 ppg, 4.4 apg

• Anthony Goods, Senior, Guard, 16.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg

• Landry Fields, Junior, Guard, 12.7 ppg, 6.7 rpg

• Lawrence Hill, Senior, Forward, 13.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 2.4 apg

• Josh Owens, Sophomore, Forward, 7.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg

Key Stanford Roleplayers:

• Kenny Brown, Senior, Guard, 5.5 ppg, 1.1 apg

• Jeremy Green, Freshman, Guard, 6.0 ppg, 2.2 rpg

• Will Paul, Sophomore, Center, 4.0 ppg, 1.3 rpg

• Drew Shiller, Junior, Guard, 2.3 ppg, 1.5 apg

Why Stanford Can Surprise:

Last year Stanford made it to the NCAA Tournament on the shoulders of their frontcourt. However, the Lopez twins are gone and now the Cardinal depend on their backcourt to win games. Anthony Goods and Landry Fields are the scorers, but Mitch Johnson makes the team go. The senior point guard has had a problem with turnovers in the past, but that is not the case this year. Johnson has turned Stanford into a team that takes care of the ball and his senior leadership will be very important during the tournament.

Goods is a prolific outside shooter, but he also does a superb job attacking the basket. The 6-3 senior gets to the charity stripe 5.6 times per game and connects on 79.3 percent of his attempts once he is there. Fields is Goods’ complimentary scorer on the perimeter. At 6-7, Fields has plenty of size and he will use that to shoot over the opposition or get to the rim. Fields is capable of scoring 20 or more points in a game, but he is also just as likely to score three points.

Why The Cardinal Can Disappoint:
What was a strength is now a weakness. Stanford does not block many shots and is consistently outrebounded. Lawrence Hill is an experienced and versatile scorer who can be dangerous with his back to the basket or beyond the arc, but he is not an intimidating shot blocker or that great of a rebounder. Sophomore Josh Owens has emerged as the usual starter at the five spot and will do the dirty work around the basket. It is unfair to expect anybody to live up to the Lopez twins, but Coach Johnny Dawkins needs his frontcourt to put up better numbers.

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Who To Watch:
Will Paul is an option to grab some boards and block a shot or two. The 6-10 sophomore is the largest player in the regular rotation and the Cardinal need him to be a productive player off the bench or the team will be forced to play small when Hill and Owens need a rest. The production from the bench in the backcourt is almost as important. Jeremy Green is an explosive scorer when his shot is falling, but it is hard to tell when that will happen. Kenny Brown is the more experienced option and he has had some of his best games late in the season. Drew Shiller is another option, but his minutes have been limited this season. Green, Brown and Shiller may not be able to provide everything that the starters do, but they will need to be productive when the starters need a break.

Stanford By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 73.3 (82nd in nation, 4th in conference)

Scoring Defense: 68.8 (199, 8)

Field-Goal Percentage: 46.1 (63, 8)

Field-Goal Defense: 48.1 (322, 9)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.3 (71, 4)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 38.8 (26, 6)

Free-Throw Percentage: 70.7 (114, 6)

Rebound Margin: -0.6 (204, 8)

Assists Per Game: 15.0 (60, 4)

Turnovers Per Game: 12.6 (58, 5)

Joel’s Bracket Says: CBI Champions

By Joel Welser
CollegeSports-fans.com Senior Basketball Writer

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