Jaylen Blakes buried a tiebreaking jumper with two seconds remaining, Maxime Raynaud poured in a game-high 32 points and visiting Stanford remained unbeaten with a 71-69 victory over Santa Clara in a nonconference matchup game Saturday night.
Blakes’ heroics came after a series of missed free throws in the final 1:09 following an Oziyah Sellers 3-pointer that had drawn the Cardinal (6-0) even at 67-all.
Adama-Alpha Bal put the Broncos (2-4) back on top by making one of two free throws, after which Raynaud countered from the interior to give Stanford a 69-68 lead with 32 seconds to play.
After Bal missed from point-blank range, Blakes bricked a free throw and Raynaud couldn’t convert a second-chance shot, leaving Santa Clara with another chance.
This time, Christoph Tilly made just one of two foul shots, tying the score with eight seconds left and setting up a Stanford timeout, after which Blakes buried the eventual game-winner.
Down by as many as 11 in the first half and 10 at the break, Stanford scored the first 12 points after halftime to take its first lead at 39-37. Raynaud and Sellers each had two- and 3-point hoops in the run, which led to a tightly contested second half.
Raynaud complemented his 32 points with a season-high 16 rebounds, 10 of which were offensive boards. He came within one point of matching his season-best point total, which he set in a 79-65 win at U.C. Davis last Sunday.
Sellers provided plenty of support with 23 points, while Blakes finished with eight points, a game-high 10 assists and four steals.
Sellers (three) and Raynaud (two) combined for all five of Stanford’s 3-point baskets. The Cardinal shot 5-of-13 from distance (38.5 percent), while Santa Clara finished just 4-of-19 beyond the arc (21.1 percent).
Playing on the road for the first time this season, Stanford won despite making just 10 of its 21 free throws. Santa Clara went 21-for-26 but missed two of its last three.
Tilly paced the Broncos with 16 points, while Carlos Stewart Jr. had 11 and Bal 10 to go with a team-high-tying five rebounds.
–Field Level Media
