STANFORD, Calif. (AP) - Tyrell Terry makes sure he gets in a certain amount of free throws and 3-pointers before he leaves the gym every night. It showed Saturday night.
Terry scored 21 points, including an 11-of-11 performance from the foul line, in helping Stanford beat neighboring Santa Clara 82-64.
“It’s all about muscle memory,” Terry said. “I just want to get my reps in.”
Oscar da Silva added 18 points and had 10 rebounds for the Cardinal (4-0), which was playing the Broncos (3-1) for the first time in 11 years.
“I feel a lot more comfortable out there,” da Silva said. “When you’re put in position to score, you want to take advantage. Everybody can contribute in different ways. We have to stay hungry and keep working.”
Daejon Davis added 15 points and Lukas Kisunas came off the bench to score eight points and grab 10 rebounds for the Cardinal.
Josip Vrankic scored 13 points to lead Santa Clara, which was playing its first road game of the season.
“Our abundance of fouls in this game was a real factor,” Broncos coach Herb Sendek said. “When you commit 26 personal fouls, and they attempt 35 free throws, that’s a lot to overcome. It wasn’t foul trouble on one particular player; we had a few guys foul out, several in foul trouble, and it was a parade to the free-throw line.”
Santa Clara scored the game’s first seven points and had several opportunities to extend that advantage.
The Broncos were still ahead with just over seven minutes in the first half when Jaden Bediako hit a short jumper for a 25-21 edge.
Terry hit a pair of free throws and James Keefe turned an offensive rebound into a basket to tie it, part of a 17-3 run that put Stanford ahead to stay, eventually taking a 38-32 edge into halftime.
“We went down early right off the bat but the last 10 minutes of the first half we defended at a high level and that set the tone for the rest of the game,” Stanford coach Jerod Haase said. “We did a good job of attacking the paint and when you can do that good things happen. Free throws are a byproduct of that.”
BEING UNDEFEATED
While the Stanford players are happy to be undefeated, it’s no big deal on a campus that enjoys the moniker “nerd nation”.
“You walk around Stanford and you run into people running their own companies, people who own gold medals,” da Silva said. “We’re just playing basketball.”
“It’s crazy walking around here,” Tyrell Terry added. “Four-and-oh is mediocre compared to the things people have done on this campus.”
BIG PICTURE
Santa Clara: The Broncos rely on an experienced group, with its five top scorers returning. They opened with three straight home wins, including a victory over Washington State. Santa Clara had won three straight against the Pac-12 Conference until Saturday night. The Broncos are without a senior on the roster.
They looked terrific in the first 10 minutes but then lost some of their shooting touch.
Stanford: How Oscar da Silva and Daejon Davis go, so go the Cardinal. The juniors provide leadership and play hard on every possession. They’re joined by two freshmen and a sophomore among the starting five. Both had solid games against Santa Clara, inspiring the younger players.
UP NEXT
Santa Clara: The Broncos return home to host Division II Notre Dame de Namur on Tuesday.
Stanford: The Cardinal continues their six-game, season-opening homestand against Maryland Eastern Shore on Tuesday.
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