Publication Date: Friday, March 12, 2004
Stanford sweeps Pac-10 men's basketball honors; women win title
Stanford sweeps Pac-10 men's basketball honors; women win title
(March 12, 2004) by Rick Eymer
The Stanford men's basketball team came within one game of sweeping through the Pac-10 undefeated so it was only fitting that the Cardinal also nearly sweep the postseason accolades.
Mike Montgomery was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year and junior Josh Childress was named conference Player of the Year.
Childress, a first time all-conference selection, became the first Cardinal player ever to be named Pac-10 Player of the Year.
"I'm very surprised," said Childress. "There were so many guys who were deserving of it. I'm extremely honored to get the award. When you're winning, it always helps. Fortunately we won the majority of our games."
Childress averaged a team-high 15.2 points per game as he helped the Cardinal win their 11th conference title, and the fourth in the last six years.
"I'm pleased for Josh," said Montgomery. "I thought that there were three or four players on our team that could have gotten that. I think the obvious thing is, when you win league, especially by five games, most coaches probably felt that it (The Player of the Year) should come from our team. I've always told the kids that individual honors come with team success and I think that is both for the Coach of the Year award and the Player of the Year."
Childress has recorded six double-doubles this season and is ranked fifth in the league in rebounding, posting 7.4 rebounds per game.
"My coaches and my teammates told me to be really aggressive and it was like a light bulb went off and I was able to have a few big games," said Childress. "I was also able to stay aggressive. If things weren't going my way in the first half, I didn't worry about it. I never got down on myself and I never hesitated."
Montgomery has guided Stanford to a 26-1 record, a 17-1 mark in the Pac-10, and a No. 2 national ranking. He led the Cardinal to their 10th consecutive 20-win season and they will be making their 10th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
"It's a great honor to be recognized by your peers," said Montgomery. "I thought several coaches in the league did excellent jobs this year and they could have been nominated. Even some people with not so great records did a great job."
This is the fourth Pac-10 Coach of the Year honor for Montgomery, and second consecutive, having earned Co-Coach of the Year honors last season with Lute Olson of Arizona. By winning the league title by five games, the Cardinal tied Arizona (1988, 1993) for winning the Pac-10 by the greatest margin.
"There's more to coaching than just winning," said Montgomery, "because sometimes it's difficult and you have situations. Obviously, I'm very pleased."
Stanford sophomore point guard Chris Hernandez joined Childress on the 10-man All Pac-10 team. He averaged 10.6 points per game, and led the Conference in free throw percentage (.921) and three-point field goal percentage (.463).
Justin Davis and Matt Lottich earned Honorable Mention honors. Davis, who has been sidelined with a knee injury, is averaging 11.5 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Lottich is second on the team in scoring at 12.3 points per game. Lottich is fifth in the Pac-10 in assist/turnover ratio at 1.92.
Nicole Powell wanted the ball with the game on the line, and once again proved her efficiency in times of stress. She handles it with the same aplomb as she does greeting youngsters who ask for her autograph.
Arizona coach Joan Bonvicini, who is in her 25th year of coaching and her 13th with the Wildcats, called Powell the greatest player ever to come out of Stanford. Monday night, Powell reinforced that notion.
Powell made all six of her free throws in the final 2:22 and the 12th-ranked Cardinal (24-6) successfully defended their Pac-10 tournament title with a 51-46 victory over Arizona at the HP Pavilion in San Jose.
Stanford will now await word from the NCAA selection committee on Sunday to determine where it begins postseason play.
"We'll use this week to rest the team and fine tune some things," said Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer. "Winning a Pac-10 championship is not easy. We had to work very hard to win it."
Powell was named tournament MVP after scoring 24 points, including the go-ahead free throws with 2:22 left to give Stanford a 46-45 lead. There have been three women's Pac-10 tournaments, and Powell has won the MVP award each time.
Pinewood grad Sebnem Kimyacioglu had given the Cardinal their first lead of the game a couple of minutes earlier at 44-42, connecting on the only shot - a 3-pointer - she took all game.
"It was an awesome moment," said Powell, who then proceeded to handle the ball for Stanford for all but a few seconds down the stretch.
How valuable was Powell? At one point in the game she was 4-of-6 from the field and the rest of the team was 0-for-8.
"Nicole is a great player," said Bonvicini. "That's why she's an All-American."
Stanford fell behind by 16 points in the first half, and then began its comeback when Susan Borchardt, who finished with 11 points, scored eight straight points to close the gap to 31-23 by halftime.
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