Stanford Takes Down Portland, Shoots the Lights Out

Stanford's shooting led them to their third straight win on Monday night

Mar 5, 2025; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Stanford Cardinal guard Benny Gealer (5) drives to the basket as Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Markus Burton (3) defends in the second half at the Purcell Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-Imagn Images | Matt Cashore-Imagn Images

On Monday night, Stanford took on Portland in a non-conference battle. Coming into the night, the Cardinal were favorites due to their 6-1 record and back-to-back wins, but this game was interesting regardless.

The Pilots run a similar scheme, were run by an undersized freshman guard, and possess great depth. While Stanford is more talented, Portland surely had the potential to cause the Cardinal some problems.

Portland began the game strong with a 5-0 start which got their bench and crowd going. But Stanford wasn’t going to let a good start stop them. The Cardinal made their way back into the game quickly, courtesy of all of their players, not just one or two. Stanford’s depth was showing up early, and they took their first lead of the game 10-7 in the first half.

Following the under 12 minute timeout, the Cardinal found their way to a big lead. With the help of every single player, Stanford was able to build and continue to craft a lead, and the Cardinal made their way up 20 by the time the first half horn blared. The 51-31 start looked great, especially offensively. They were on pace to reach 100 points for the first time of the season.

The first part of the second half saw Stanford’s big men contribute at a high level. Chisom Okpara and AJ Rohosy were able to continue the Cardinal’s lead into the second half. Throughout the entire half, Stanford’s ability to stay connected and work with the lead paid off, as they dominated almost the entire second half. When the final horn sounded, Stanford had won 94-72, in dominant fashion.

This is now Stanford’s third straight win in a row, as they improve to 7-1 on the season.

Jeremy Dent-Smith led the scoring for the Cardinal, with 16 points from the transfer being his Stanford high. With back-to-back great games, he's building some momentum for the future. His partner in crime, Benny Gealer, had 15 points, also building momentum from his iconic buzzer beater a few days before.

The big men were absolutely incredible as well. Oskar Giltay, Chisom Okpara, and AJ Rohosy were phenomenal, having 10+ points and having an overall massive impact on the game.

Portland’s top player, Joel Foxwell, had a tough night while being guarded by Gealer. He had just two points. However, Camer Williams did his due diligence, making up for Foxwell’s off night with 22 points of his own. Micah Ballew was a key piece as well, putting up 14 points of his own. However, it wasn’t enough, as Stanford was able to dominate.

Stanford now sits at 7-1, riding a three-game win streak. They have a five day break before hosting UNLV on Sunday in one of the most pivotal non-conference games of the year. A win would build their NCAA Tournament resume even more, while a loss could ultimately end their hopes, given their fairly easy non-conference slate.