Women’s college basketball: Big wins for Cal, Stanford and Santa Clara as regular season winds down; Saint Mary’s upset bid thwarted

Michelle Onyiah scored 21 points and the Cal women’s basketball team rolled to a 72-63 win over Boston College on Thursday night at Haas Pavilion to reach 20 victories for the first time since the 2018-19 season.

Cal (20-6, 8-5 ACC) has five regular season games remaining, including three more at home where they are 13-1. This is the 16th time Cal has won at  least 20 games in a season. The 2012-13 team that reached the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament holds the school record with 32 victories.

Onyiah also had 11 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season and became the 32nd Cal player to score 1,000 career points.

Cal dominated the Eagles (13-14, 4-10 ACC) inside, out-scoring BC 38-18 in the paint and finished with a 40-28 edge in rebounds.

Marta Suárez added 18 points and nine rebounds for the Bears, who shot 50.0% for the game while limiting Boston College to just 32.2% from the field.

Cal, which is tied for seventh in the ACC standings, has five regular season games remaining. The Bears face Syracuse on Sunday at 3 p.m. at Haas Pavilion.

Stanford 79, Syracuse 59

Brooke Demetre scored 11 of her 14 points in the first quarter as the Cardinal earned a much-needed win at Maples Pavilion on Thursday night.

Stanford (4-9, 12-12 ACC) has five regular season games remaining to bolster its chances to reach the NCAA Tournament for a 37th consecutive season. The Cardinal have the second-longest active NCAA streak in the nation to Tennessee, which has played in all 42 NCAA Tournaments.

The Cardinal entered the game on a three-game losing streak but came out firing against the Orange (10-14, 4-9 ACC), opening the game on an 8-1 run and taking a 27-13 lead in the first quarter. Stanford never trailed.

Stanford had five double-digit scorers, led by Elena Bosgana (18 points and 11 rebounds). Chloe Clardy also had a double-double, contributing 14 points and 12 assists without committing a turnover in 39 minutes.

Up next for Stanford is Boston College at 2 p.m. on Sunday at Maples Pavilion.

Santa Clara 54, Pepperdine 46

Malia Latu scored a game-high 15 points and Olivia Pollerd added 13 points as the Broncos completed a regular season sweep of Pepperdine at Leavey Center.

The Broncos (14-12, 8-8 WCC) led by as many as 18 points before the Waves (8-16, 3-12 WCC) made a late push, scoring the final seven points of the game.

Latu scored in double-digits for the 11th time in 12 games for the Broncos.

SCU is tied for seventh in the WCC standings, but is just a game out of fourth place with four remaining. The Broncos play Saturday at last-place San Diego and then have road games at fourth-place Oregon State and second-place Portland before ending the regular season at home against conference-leading Gonzaga.

Portland 71, Saint Mary’s 69

The Gaels had five players score in double figures for the first time this season, but 10 turnovers in the second half – six in the fourth quarter – allowed the visiting Pilots to overcome a 14-point deficit and spoil the Gaels’ upset bid against the WCC’s second-place team.

Emily Foy scored a team-high 17 points and Kennedy Johnson added 12 for SMC (12-12, 8-7).  The Gaels can move into a tie for fourth place with idle Oregon State with a win at Pepperdine (8-17, 3-13 WCC) on Saturday.