Stanford Basketball Faces Huge Test in Wake Forest, with Dreams of Madness Fading

This is another must-win game for Stanford if they hope to re-insert themselves in NCAA tournament talks

Jan 17, 2026; Stanford, California, USA; Stanford Cardinal guard Ebuka Okorie (1) gets fouled by Duke Blue Devils guard Cayden Boozer (2) in the first half at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

This weekend, Stanford will face one of their biggest road tests of the year, taking on Wake Forest in Winston-Salem. This is going to be a crucial contest for both teams on Saturday, with tip-off scheduled for 1 p.m. (PT).

Stanford is currently 16-9, and 5-7 in the ACC. Wins over North Carolina, Louisville, and St. Louis have proven that the Cardinal are a legit program and can contend with some of the better teams in college basketball.

However, the season has certainly been a bumpy road. The Cardinal have fallen to Seattle, UNLV, and Cal, all at home, and are in danger of missing the NCAA tournament after a five-game swoon in the past few weeks. It’s going to take wins in four or five of the final six games to keep the Cardinal in the running for their first tournament bid since 2013-14.

Talkin' tourney

One of the most crucial games that Stanford has left will be this one, on the road, against Wake Forest. According to the NET rankings, Wake Forest is ranked No. 66, while Stanford is up to No. 69, making this a fairly even matchup on paper. This is also a big opportunity for Stanford, facing a top-75 program on the road, making this a Quad 1 game for them.

Stanford already has four Quad 1 wins, and another would put them in the upper echelon of college programs, with only 21 teams having as many as five Quad 1 victories. If Stanford ends up on the bubble, that would be one heck of a selling point to put them in the fray of the Madness.

The Demon Deacons have been solid themselves, but a 12-12 record won’t cut it, given the program they are. Wins against Virginia Tech, Florida State, and West Virginia have been solid, but they have won just three of the last 12 games. It’s going to take a miracle for the Demon Deacons to make the tournament, but anything is possible in Winston-Salem.

By comparison, they are 0-8 in Quad 1 games, providing a meaningful difference between the two programs.

How the rosters stack up

Wake Forest is led by guards Juke Harris, Myles Colvin, and Nate Calmese. Harris does the majority of the scoring, but Colvin and Calmese are dynamic guards that can help at any time, especially down the stretch. Tre’Von Spillers is Wake Forest’s main big man, however at just 6-foot-7, the Demon Deacons don’t have a ton of size to offer.

Stanford has a three-guard game as well, with Ebuka Okorie, Benny Gealer, and Jeremy Dent-Smith doing plenty of damage this season. Their big-man game matches up much better though, with AJ Rohosy and Oskar Giltay both providing some extra size.

The two teams matched up last year in Palo Alto, with Wake Forest winning on the road. It was Stanford’s only ACC loss at home, as they went 9-1 in their own building. However, Stanford locked up Harris to 22 minutes but just four points, meaning that Kyle Smith and the Stanford coaching staff may have the secret for how to stop the dynamic guard.

Wake Forest currently has a 72.3% chance to win against Stanford per ESPN analytics.

We are actually going to pick the Cardinal in this one. Most importantly, Stanford is playing for much more in this one, with their tournament hopes still on the line. In addition, the Cardinal have proved themselves on the road much more this season than in the year prior, giving Stanford an unlikely edge. They also match up well against the Demon Deacons three-guard front.

This game will take a lot out of the guards defensively, plus some solid offense from Rohosy and Giltay for the Cardinal to win, but Stanford pulls off a close one on the road, keeping their season alive for one more game.