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		Stanford wins at the Final Four, setting up showdown with UConn By Morris Phillips April 4, 2010

	When it comes to outstanding performers at the Final Four, no name rolls off the tongue smoother than Sheryl Swoopes. But with the help of a pronunciation chart, Nnemkadi Ogwumike might soon be right up there with Swoopes. Ogwumike led Stanford with a career-best 38 points and 16 rebounds in a 73-66 national semifinal win over Oklahoma that gives the Cardinal the much-anticipated rematch with undefeated Connecticut on Tuesday night for the NCAA crown. Ogwumike’s big night produced the second biggest point total in the history of the women’s Final Four behind Swoopes 47 points in Texas Tech’s overtime win in the 1993 championship game. “We’re so proud of her,” Ogwumike’s teammate Kayla Pedersen said. “She really hung with it, especially in the first half. If we can get that out of her every game, we’ll be happy with that.” “Nneka got in there and kind of stood her ground in a physical game. I think it shows how much she’s improved and how competitive she is,” Coach Tara VanDerveer said. Ogwumike was big throughout, but when Oklahoma sliced Stanford’s 18-point lead to three with less than a minute remaining, she made the big play to close it out. On an out-of-bounds play, Ogwumike slipped behind the defense and received a 60-foot pass from Pedersen for a layup that put Stanford up 71-66 with 15 seconds remaining. Early on, Stanford took advantage of its size advantage by repeatedly attacking Oklahoma in the paint. On the other end, Oklahoma responded to Stanford’s packed-in defense by hosting a bunch of errant jump shots. The Sooners missed their first six shots, and 17 of their first 20 as Stanford established a double-digit lead, 19-8, with eight minutes remaining before halftime. The repeated empty trips seemed to affect the Sooners on the defensive end, as they failed to disrupt Stanford with their quickness and defensive pressure in the halfcourt. The Cardinal only committed two turnovers in the first half and eight for the game, and they never experience foul trouble, committing just 12 in the game. “I felt like the first maybe four defensive possessions of the game we really guarded them. We did some good stuff. We made them uncomfortable, and we went down and missed shots,” Oklahoma Coach Sherri Coale said. “We were just stagnant,” OU’s Danielle Robinson, who led the Sooners with 23 points, but missed her first nine shots, said. “We had no rhythm. Everybody was just standing, waiting for somebody else to do it.” The opening minutes came back to haunt the Sooners, as Stanford never shot the ball well enough to run away and hide. The Cardinal guards, who were lights out, earlier in the tournament, struggled for the second straight game, making just 4 of 18 and hitting only one 3-point basket. But what saved Stanford, once again, was a wide disparity on the backboards, in which they outrebounded OU by eleven, and grabbed 17 rebounds on the offensive end. Stanford (36-1) now turns their attention to Connecticut, winners of 77 straight, and the overwhelming favorite to win the title on Tuesday, and do it comfortably, as they have won every game in their streak by at least 10 points. The Huskies advanced in the second game with a 70-50 win over Baylor. Stanford comes in well-versed in the brilliance of their opponent, having played them in December, becoming the only team during the 77-game run to hold a halftime lead on UConn. But in that game, Stanford deteriorated after halftime, allowing Connecticut to go on a 30-6 run to seal it. The championship could be a defining moment for women’s basketball—if Stanford can make a game of it. Along with the superiority of Connecticut, Stanford comes in with a 27-game win streak and Ogwumike, a matchup nightmare even for the Huskies. The Cardinal will need to shoot better to make a game of it, but ability to protect the ball against OU provides a good indicator of where they are headed into Tuesday. “If they rebound like they rebounded tonight, I think it will be a good matchup,” Oklahoma’s Amanda Thompson said.