Lexie Hull leads No. 6 Stanford past Washington 58-41

SEATTLE (AP) — Lexie Hull had 17 points and 11 rebounds and No. 6 Stanford used a pair of big first-half runs to roll past Washington 58-41 on Friday night.

The Cardinal (19-2, 8-1 Pac-12) won their fourth straight following their lone conference loss against Oregon two weeks ago. It was Stanford’s eighth straight win over Washington.

Stanford raced to an early 13-point lead after a dominating first quarter, watched the entire lead evaporate in a matter of minutes and managed to still hold a 32-22 halftime advantage, thanks to a barrage of 3-pointers late in the first half.

That run late in the second quarter proved to be decisive as Washington never pulled closer than eight in the second half.

Kiana Williams was the only other Stanford player in double figures with 16 points. The Cardinal rolled despite shooting just 33% and were 2 of 13 on 3-pointers in the second half.

JaQuaya Miller led Washington (10-10, 2-7) with 10 points, while Haley Van Dyke and T.T. Watkins each scored nine. Top scorer Amber Melgoza, averaging 15.4 per game, missed all eight of her shots and was held scoreless for the first time since her freshman season. Melgoza, a senior, had 17 points in the first meeting with Stanford and scored 40 against the Cardinal in 2018.

It was Washington’s seventh straight loss after opening conference play 2-0. The Huskies’ previous two losses to USC and UCLA came in overtime.

Stanford jumped to a 16-3 lead after the first quarter when Washington made just 1 of 13 shots. The Cardinal lead was gone in barely four minutes after the Huskies opened the second quarter on a 15-2 run, pulling even at 18-all.

But Stanford withstood the run by Washington and closed the half on a 12-3 spurt, coming on a series of four 3-pointers, including a pair from Lexie Hull.

BIG PICTURE

Stanford: Cardinal freshman star Haley Jones, ranked the No. 1 recruit in the country last year on some lists, missed her third straight game with a right knee injury suffered in Stanford’s win at Oregon State. … Freshman Francesca Belibi left the arena buzzing after missing on a breakaway dunk attempt early in the second half.

Washington: Melgoza was averaging 18.4 points in conference games, good for fourth in the Pac-12. Her previous season-low was six points, and she had scored in double figures in nine straight games.

UP NEXT

Stanford: The Cardinal travel to Washington State on Sunday.

Washington: The Huskies host California on Sunday.