The Stanford Cardinal survived an upset scare from a persistent Iowa State team with an 87-81 overtime victory on Sunday’s round of 32.
Tara VanderVeer’s team had missed the Sweet 16 last season, breaking a 14-year streak. But now they are back, which will be their 29th overall Sweet 16 appearance
Stanford star Cameron Brink — the Pac-12 Player and Defensive Player of the Year — fouled out late in the fourth quarter. The game was too tight for comfort, but Kiki Iriafen took over and registered a career-high 41 points.
Seventh-seeded Iowa State might have fallen short, they took the host No. 2 seed Cardinal to overtime. Cyclones freshman Audi Crooks’ 40 points vs. Maryland on Friday game her team a spot in this game, but the team needed veteran leadership of senior guard Emily Ryan, who established a career high with 31 points.
