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STANFORD — Nnemkadi Ogwumike had 23 points and 11 rebounds, sister Chiney Ogwumike added 18 points and seven rebounds and second-ranked Stanford survived a slow start to roll past Pac-12 newcomer Colorado 68-46 on Thursday night.
Amber Orrange also scored seven points, including a three-point play to highlight a 19-2 run to open the second half that propelled the Cardinal (25-1, 16-0) to their 22nd straight win and 77th in a row at Maples Pavilion — the longest active home-winning streak in the nation. Stanford hasn't lost anywhere since a 68-58 setback at Connecticut on Nov. 21.
Chucky Jeffery had 13 points and 13 rebounds and Ashley Wilson scored nine points for the Buffaloes (16-10, 5-10), who were down only eight at the half. Colorado, which started the season 12-0 for only the third time in school history, has lost two straight and five of the last six games.
For a change, Stanford's start didn't overwhelm its opponent.
On the Cardinal's second possession of the game, Nnemkadi Ogwumike drove hard to the basket and delivered an elbow to Jen Reese's left eye while protecting the ball. Reese, who was called for a blocking foul, tumbled hard to the floor and stayed there for several minutes, emerging with light tears streaming under her bruised left eye.
The Buffaloes showed they could take a punch.
They hardly let the Cardinal coast the way they do so often at Maples Pavilion, hustling for loose balls and contesting every shot, even if it meant fouling back harder. The Buffaloes built a 12-11 lead, but had three players — Brittany Wilson, Rachel Hargis and Meagan Malcolm-Peck — with three fouls in the first 15 minutes, relegating each to the bench.
Stanford closed an ugly, physical first half ahead 26-18 behind Ogwumike's strong inside presence despite shooting only 31.6 percent and committing 15 turnovers — seven by point guard Toni Kokenis alone. Colorado didn't do much better, shooting 32 percent with 11 turnovers, but the sloppy play kept it close.
If only for a half.
The Cardinal came out sprinting and showing the typical tenacity of Hall of Fame coach Tara VanDerveer's teams following the break. The Ogwumike sisters each had a pair of high-driving layups and Orrange's three-point play over Julie Seabrook with 16:29 remaining started highlighted the huge spurt that put Stanford ahead 45-20.
Stanford already has clinched the inaugural Pac-12 title, its 12th straight conference crown and 21st overall, but VanDerveer surely knows her teams can't afford any early lapses if the program wants to return to its fifth straight Final Four — much less break the trend of those tearful plane rides home.
All that will have to wait.
VanDerveer can earn her 700th victory at Stanford on Saturday against Utah. She would become the seventh Division I coach to reach the milestone at one school, joining Tennessee's
