This was the day before the unbelievable comeback game at Oregon 4 years ago. What a privilege it was to watch a practice directed by Mike Montgomery up close. The man knows how to teach.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Josh Childress: Eugene Mall Tour Guide
Yep, I went to the mall with Josh Childress. I'm not a big fan of malls so visiting one was the last thing I expected to do in Eugene, OR when I made the trip up there in January 2004. But the Valley River Mall happened to be right next to the hotel. And Mr. Childress had a little time to kill and felt like checking out some shoes:
Note: I apologize for the video quality - it looks perfect when captured, but not so good after going through the Youtube compression process.
This mall excursion was the day before the unbelievable 83-80 win over the Ducks at Mac Court after coming back from a 19-point deficit in the 2nd half. Btw, Josh is one of my all-time favorites. Just a great, funny, unassuming, straight-up dude. And, as you know, a helluva basketball player, who is currently having an outstanding season for the Atlanta Hawks.
He's scoring 12.1 ppg on 60% from the floor this year, an unheard of field goal percentage for a wing in the NBA. 55% is #2 in the league right now. Prediction: Josh Childress will be an NBA All-Star within 3 years.
Note: I apologize for the video quality - it looks perfect when captured, but not so good after going through the Youtube compression process.
This mall excursion was the day before the unbelievable 83-80 win over the Ducks at Mac Court after coming back from a 19-point deficit in the 2nd half. Btw, Josh is one of my all-time favorites. Just a great, funny, unassuming, straight-up dude. And, as you know, a helluva basketball player, who is currently having an outstanding season for the Atlanta Hawks.
He's scoring 12.1 ppg on 60% from the floor this year, an unheard of field goal percentage for a wing in the NBA. 55% is #2 in the league right now. Prediction: Josh Childress will be an NBA All-Star within 3 years.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Highlights of Stanford vs UCLA 2004
When Stanford and UCLA met at Maples on January 22, 2004, Stanford won with ease, 67-52 (the Cardinal led 42-21 at half-time).
Stanford came into the game 14-0 and ranked #1 in the nation. UCLA was 9-4 coming in, with a 5-1 record in the Pac-10. This was Ben Howland's first year at UCLA and Monty's last year as the head coach at Stanford. In what was Josh Childress's first game in the starting lineup that season, he filled up the stat sheet: 14 pts on 5-10, 6 rebs, 3 assts, 2 blks, and 2 stls in 32 min. Offensively, Justin Davis was the big star with 21 points on 10-11 from the floor, and 5 rebs (all on the offensive end) in only 26 min.
"You can't slip against them at all, and we did often. They're like poison. They physically beat us up tonight. They beat us on the perimeter, on the glass, and on the break. Every way you can beat a team." - UCLA guard, Cedric Bozeman
"We were beaten today by a vastly superior team in every aspect of the game. They're a very disciplined team, a very unselfish team." - UCLA Head Coach, Ben Howland
Stanford came into the game 14-0 and ranked #1 in the nation. UCLA was 9-4 coming in, with a 5-1 record in the Pac-10. This was Ben Howland's first year at UCLA and Monty's last year as the head coach at Stanford. In what was Josh Childress's first game in the starting lineup that season, he filled up the stat sheet: 14 pts on 5-10, 6 rebs, 3 assts, 2 blks, and 2 stls in 32 min. Offensively, Justin Davis was the big star with 21 points on 10-11 from the floor, and 5 rebs (all on the offensive end) in only 26 min.
"You can't slip against them at all, and we did often. They're like poison. They physically beat us up tonight. They beat us on the perimeter, on the glass, and on the break. Every way you can beat a team." - UCLA guard, Cedric Bozeman
"We were beaten today by a vastly superior team in every aspect of the game. They're a very disciplined team, a very unselfish team." - UCLA Head Coach, Ben Howland
Monday, October 15, 2007
Interview with Lotty in May '04
This interview with shooting guard, Matt Lottich, took place shortly after the 2003-04 season ended:
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Living and dying with Stanford basketball
As Stanford fans, we all live and die with the team, depending on how the game is going. But it probably means just a little bit more if your son is the star point guard. This clip features ChrisH's mom and dad, Jose and Jan Hernandez as they watch the Arizona game from the Maples stands. The sequence happens to begin after Stanford had built up a 67-58 2nd half lead, so we see Jan and Jose suffer through parts of a 14-0 run by Arizona, which swung the advantage over to the Wildcats, 72-67. As you know, the Cardinal got things going again and outscored Zona 13-5 down the stretch. The tide has turned by the end of the video. Man, I love seeing passion like this. It's one of the things that makes Stanford hoops what it is.
Btw, speaking of Chris, the clip further down the page of Lute Olson raving about him during the post-game press conference, is not to be missed.
Btw, speaking of Chris, the clip further down the page of Lute Olson raving about him during the post-game press conference, is not to be missed.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Putting the STUDENT in Student-Athlete
Stanford basketball players take their hoops seriously, but they take their education seriously as well. This video was shot just as the season was getting under way, and the guys had final exams looming. (featuring Matt Lottich, Matt Haryasz, Carlton Weatherby, Evan Moore, and Mark Bradford, with a cameo from Josh Childress and Dan Grunfeld)
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Justin Davis Getting Huge
Actually, he was going easy since they had a game the next day. It happened to be Monty's birthday, and according to him, he's almost as old as Nick Robinson. The strength coach is John Murray, who now does his thing in the NBA for the Golden State Warriors.
Chris Hernandez on the point guard position
ChrisH talking about the point guard position and who his point guard role models have been. He was a redshirt soph at Stanford at the time.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Girlfriends
Some funny training room banter about who on the team is and isn't single. (featuring Matt Lottich, Josh Childress, Evan Moore, Chris Hernandez, Dan Grunfeld, and Andrew Tai)
Could've Dunked
Inquiring minds want to know why Lotty didn't take the opportunity to throw one down for his first in-game dunk on a breakaway the night before. Despite the non-dunk, Lotty is adamant that he has "MAD BOOSTIES." (featuring Matt Lottich, Josh Childress, Joe Kirchofer, and Evan Moore)
More Training Room Adventures...
Feets, Don't Fail Me Now
First, a little sequence featuring the sights and sounds from the Stanford hoops training room. Then, some banter about ankle injuries and foot modeling. (featuring Justin Davis, Josh Childress, Mark Bradford, Matt Lottich, Andrew Tai, Jason Haas, Matt Haryasz, and Evan Moore)
Twain-ing Room
In what other basketball training room in America would you hear a playful reference to great American literature? (featuring Josh Childress, Rob Little, Matt Haryasz, Andrew Tai, Fred Washington, and Nick Robinson)
Could've Dunked
Inquiring minds want to know why Lotty didn't take the opportunity to throw one down for his first in-game dunk on a breakaway the night before. Despite the non-dunk, Lotty is adamant that he has "MAD BOOSTIES." (featuring Matt Lottich, Josh Childress, Joe Kirchofer, and Evan Moore)
More Training Room Adventures...
Feets, Don't Fail Me Now
First, a little sequence featuring the sights and sounds from the Stanford hoops training room. Then, some banter about ankle injuries and foot modeling. (featuring Justin Davis, Josh Childress, Mark Bradford, Matt Lottich, Andrew Tai, Jason Haas, Matt Haryasz, and Evan Moore)
Twain-ing Room
In what other basketball training room in America would you hear a playful reference to great American literature? (featuring Josh Childress, Rob Little, Matt Haryasz, Andrew Tai, Fred Washington, and Nick Robinson)
Saturday, August 25, 2007
The Press Room after Zona at Maples '04
Right after the game, the reporters are abuzz over what they've just witnessed. The guy on the mic is Bob Vazquez, aka "Bobby Vee."
Monty Speaks
Lute Speaks
Stanford players: Nick Robinson, Chris Hernandez, and Rob Little
Monty Speaks
Lute Speaks
Stanford players: Nick Robinson, Chris Hernandez, and Rob Little
Friday, August 24, 2007
Give Em the Axe!
Give 'em the axe, the axe, the axe!
Give 'em the axe, the axe, the axe!
Give 'em the axe, give 'em the axe,
Give 'em the axe, where?
Right in the neck, the neck, the neck!
Right in the neck, the neck, the neck!
Right in the neck, right in the neck,
Right in the neck! There!
These three seasoned yell leaders were a combined 267 years young when they led the 6th Man Club with "Give em the Axe" during a timeout of the Oregon game in '04:
Give 'em the axe, the axe, the axe!
Give 'em the axe, give 'em the axe,
Give 'em the axe, where?
Right in the neck, the neck, the neck!
Right in the neck, the neck, the neck!
Right in the neck, right in the neck,
Right in the neck! There!
These three seasoned yell leaders were a combined 267 years young when they led the 6th Man Club with "Give em the Axe" during a timeout of the Oregon game in '04:
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Good stuff from the Arizona game
Students camped out for days to get tickets to this one
When Dickie V Came to Maples
Some nice words for Stanford from Dick Vitale. Of course, he also talked about Duke and how its basketball program makes academics such a high priority. But I went ahead and cut that part out, what with Duke's 50% graduation rate and all. Maybe he was only kidding. My apologies for the bad pixelation - looks much better on the tapes. Dickie V says "CLICK THE PLAY BUTTON, BABY!"
6th Man Club Greets the Arizona Bus
As we're standing outside the players' entrance at Maples a couple of hours before tip-off, the Arizona team bus comes rumbling in. Out of nowhere, a giddy gang of 6th Manners comes bouncing down the hill to welcome Lute and friends to campus.
Pre-Game Interview with Coach Reveno
Stanford assistant coach, Eric Reveno (he's head coach at University of Portland today), sharing his thoughts before the 2004 Arizona game at Maples. Remember those old wooden bleachers?
Zona takes the floor
The camera follows the Arizona players out of the locker room and onto the Maples Pavilion floor before the 2004 classic.
Short clip of Julius Barnes talking about the 2003-04 team
Julius had graduated 6 months earlier.
Happiness in the Hallway
After Nick hit "The Shot," the then-still-bouncy Maples floor became a giant hardwood trampoline of euphoria. Stanford fans stormed the court and mobbed any Stanford player they could find. Lovingly, of course. When the victors finally had a chance to breathe in the hallway outside the lockerroom, this spontaneous hug-fest was captured. That's Julius Barnes in the light blue jacket. Gotta love Grunfeld.
Stanford guys watch a TV replay of the game's amazing ending
Watching this reminds me why I love college basketball:
Josh and Nick interviews
Our camera guy shows Nick footage he got of "The Shot." The guy with the big smile at the end is the proud pops of Pops.
Haryasz is Stoked!
Many people didn't want to leave Maples that day, including sophomore Matt Haryasz. This was about an hour after the game.
When Dickie V Came to Maples
Some nice words for Stanford from Dick Vitale. Of course, he also talked about Duke and how its basketball program makes academics such a high priority. But I went ahead and cut that part out, what with Duke's 50% graduation rate and all. Maybe he was only kidding. My apologies for the bad pixelation - looks much better on the tapes. Dickie V says "CLICK THE PLAY BUTTON, BABY!"
6th Man Club Greets the Arizona Bus
As we're standing outside the players' entrance at Maples a couple of hours before tip-off, the Arizona team bus comes rumbling in. Out of nowhere, a giddy gang of 6th Manners comes bouncing down the hill to welcome Lute and friends to campus.
Pre-Game Interview with Coach Reveno
Stanford assistant coach, Eric Reveno (he's head coach at University of Portland today), sharing his thoughts before the 2004 Arizona game at Maples. Remember those old wooden bleachers?
Zona takes the floor
The camera follows the Arizona players out of the locker room and onto the Maples Pavilion floor before the 2004 classic.
Short clip of Julius Barnes talking about the 2003-04 team
Julius had graduated 6 months earlier.
Happiness in the Hallway
After Nick hit "The Shot," the then-still-bouncy Maples floor became a giant hardwood trampoline of euphoria. Stanford fans stormed the court and mobbed any Stanford player they could find. Lovingly, of course. When the victors finally had a chance to breathe in the hallway outside the lockerroom, this spontaneous hug-fest was captured. That's Julius Barnes in the light blue jacket. Gotta love Grunfeld.
Stanford guys watch a TV replay of the game's amazing ending
Watching this reminds me why I love college basketball:
Josh and Nick interviews
Our camera guy shows Nick footage he got of "The Shot." The guy with the big smile at the end is the proud pops of Pops.
Haryasz is Stoked!
Many people didn't want to leave Maples that day, including sophomore Matt Haryasz. This was about an hour after the game.
Monday, August 20, 2007
Welcome to Cardinal Junkie
So are you already fired up for hoops season? Trent and the boys are primed for a huge year, even in the fiercest Pac-10 in recent memory. We've got a team here that could go deep into March. But for the moment, let's get a little nostalgic...
During the 2003-04 season, with the support of the Athletic Dept, we shot hours and hours of video footage of our beloved Cardinal. So now, thanks to the advent of the video blog, I'll be posting a new video every other day or so.
Here's one from the 2004 Arizona game. As you know, this is the game that ended on the unbelievable 35-foot runner by Nick Robinson at the buzzer. What made the win a bigger deal was that both Justin Davis and Matt Haryasz were out with injuries, which is why Pops started at the 4. It also ended a 4-game losing streak to Arizona at Maples and got Stanford to 20-0 for the season.
This next one covers the last 2 minutes of the same game. No announcers or soundtrack. Just raw and real as if you were sitting in the front row at Maples (just like Tiger):
TRIVIA TIDBIT: All five of Arizona's 2003-04 starters were drafted by NBA teams. Four of them are still in The League: Andre Iguodala (Philadelphia 76ers), Channing Frye (New York Knicks), Salim Stoudamire (Atlanta Hawks), Mustafa Shakur (Sacramento Kings). Hassan Adams was drafted by the New Jersey Nets, but is no longer on the team. So Arizona brought a little talent to Maples that day. Meanwhile, Stanford was without JD and MH.
Looking Back at 2003-04
It was Monty's swan song as head coach before he took the Warriors head coaching reins. It was Josh Childress' All-American junior year that led to his being picked #6 in the following NBA draft. Chris Hernandez was one of the best PG's in the country as a redshirt soph. We ran off 26 CONSECUTIVE WINS before finally going down at Washington, in the last conference game of the year.
This team, which NO ONE in the media picked to win the Pac-10 that year, swept Arizona (everybody's favorite), UCLA, USC, Cal, Oregon (3 times), OSU, ASU, and WSU (3 times), and took 2 out of 3 from Washington. That's 20-1 in the Pac-10, including the Pac-10 Tournament. A pretty unbelievable achievement.
Additional Highlights: Taking down #1-ranked Kansas (Miles, Langford, Simien) 64-58 at the Wooden Classic without an injured Childress, who could only cheer from the bench...
Upsetting a loaded Gonzaga team (Stepp, Turiaf, Violette, Morrison) 87-80 at the Pete Newell Challenge, still without Childress. Matt Lottich's line that day: 34 pts on 12-17 (6-7 from 3-land) and 7 assists. The other story of the game was our big men, who weren't supposed to be able to stand up to the Zags' bigs, considered the best in the country. But Justin Davis (16 pts on 7-13, 8 rebs, 4 stls) and Rob Little (14 pts on 7-12, 7 rebs, 3 blks, 2 stls) took care of business, owning the paint from the opening tip. Turiaf, Violette, Fox, and Mallon could only muster 22 points combined...
Scratching and clawing in a nailbiter at ASU and then closing the deal 63-62 when Childress slithered past big Ike Diogu for a stunning putback bucket with 9.4 seconds left...
Utter domination over #3 Arizona in an 82-72 victory at a very hostile McKale Center - it wasn't nearly as close as the score with Stanford's tenacious D holding the Cats' high octane offense to only 20 points in the first half...
At a raucous Mac Court, Stanford roared back from a NINETEEN-point deficit in the 2nd half to beat Oregon 83-80 (despite Luke Jackson's 25 for the Ducks). HUGE in the comeback were sophomores, Chris Hernandez and Matt Haryasz. The latter was given his first start ever in place of Justin Davis, who had injured his knee in Corvallis two nights earlier. Chris and MattH combined for 41 points (22 and 19 respectively). Amazingly, 35 of the 41 came in the 2nd half, including all of Chris's 22...
Oh, Those Buzzer Beaters
And best of all, two of the most unthinkable, miraculous, heart-stopping buzzer-beating shots you could ever dream up against Arizona at Maples (Nick Robinson's steal and 35-foot swish on the run made the team 20-0 SEE VIDEOS ABOVE) and WSU up in Pullman (Lotty's impossible 3-pointer from deep kept the Card undefeated at 26-0).
Then, after losing at UW, the Cardinal bounced right back to sweep through the Pac-10 Tournament, including a convincing revenge win over the red-hot Huskies in the finals: 77-66. Stanford headed back up to Seattle for The Big Dance, ranked #1 in the nation.
An Early Exit
As you know all too well, things didn't go as planned in the tourney. In the second-round 70-67 upset loss to 8-seed Bama, the refs were rough on our boys to the tune of 44 free throws for the Tide. Stanford only attempted 11. PF, Justin Davis, was a dominant force that day, in his final game for the Card, but he fouled out after only 22 minutes. Those refs whistled your typically disciplined Cardinal all day long (Childress and Haryasz fouled out as well).
TRIVIA TIDBIT: Interestingly, current Stanford head coach, Trent Johnson, stayed in the tournament longer than Stanford did that year. His 10th-seeded Nevada Wolf Pack schooled 2nd-seeded Gonzaga 91-72. Their game took place right before Stanford-Alabama, on the same floor. I remember seeing Monty, Rev, and Tony Fuller watching Nevada's performance and looking very impressed. Who knew at the time that Trent would be coaching Stanford's next game?
Even without the Hollywood ending we all wanted, there's no forgetting this team and that magical season. Finishing 30-2, they gave us Stanford fans one thrilling ride. So as you root on Stanford football and hoops this year, keep coming back to Cardinaljunkie.com for a walk down Memory Lane.
During the 2003-04 season, with the support of the Athletic Dept, we shot hours and hours of video footage of our beloved Cardinal. So now, thanks to the advent of the video blog, I'll be posting a new video every other day or so.
Here's one from the 2004 Arizona game. As you know, this is the game that ended on the unbelievable 35-foot runner by Nick Robinson at the buzzer. What made the win a bigger deal was that both Justin Davis and Matt Haryasz were out with injuries, which is why Pops started at the 4. It also ended a 4-game losing streak to Arizona at Maples and got Stanford to 20-0 for the season.
This next one covers the last 2 minutes of the same game. No announcers or soundtrack. Just raw and real as if you were sitting in the front row at Maples (just like Tiger):
TRIVIA TIDBIT: All five of Arizona's 2003-04 starters were drafted by NBA teams. Four of them are still in The League: Andre Iguodala (Philadelphia 76ers), Channing Frye (New York Knicks), Salim Stoudamire (Atlanta Hawks), Mustafa Shakur (Sacramento Kings). Hassan Adams was drafted by the New Jersey Nets, but is no longer on the team. So Arizona brought a little talent to Maples that day. Meanwhile, Stanford was without JD and MH.
Looking Back at 2003-04
It was Monty's swan song as head coach before he took the Warriors head coaching reins. It was Josh Childress' All-American junior year that led to his being picked #6 in the following NBA draft. Chris Hernandez was one of the best PG's in the country as a redshirt soph. We ran off 26 CONSECUTIVE WINS before finally going down at Washington, in the last conference game of the year.
This team, which NO ONE in the media picked to win the Pac-10 that year, swept Arizona (everybody's favorite), UCLA, USC, Cal, Oregon (3 times), OSU, ASU, and WSU (3 times), and took 2 out of 3 from Washington. That's 20-1 in the Pac-10, including the Pac-10 Tournament. A pretty unbelievable achievement.
Additional Highlights: Taking down #1-ranked Kansas (Miles, Langford, Simien) 64-58 at the Wooden Classic without an injured Childress, who could only cheer from the bench...
Upsetting a loaded Gonzaga team (Stepp, Turiaf, Violette, Morrison) 87-80 at the Pete Newell Challenge, still without Childress. Matt Lottich's line that day: 34 pts on 12-17 (6-7 from 3-land) and 7 assists. The other story of the game was our big men, who weren't supposed to be able to stand up to the Zags' bigs, considered the best in the country. But Justin Davis (16 pts on 7-13, 8 rebs, 4 stls) and Rob Little (14 pts on 7-12, 7 rebs, 3 blks, 2 stls) took care of business, owning the paint from the opening tip. Turiaf, Violette, Fox, and Mallon could only muster 22 points combined...
Scratching and clawing in a nailbiter at ASU and then closing the deal 63-62 when Childress slithered past big Ike Diogu for a stunning putback bucket with 9.4 seconds left...
Utter domination over #3 Arizona in an 82-72 victory at a very hostile McKale Center - it wasn't nearly as close as the score with Stanford's tenacious D holding the Cats' high octane offense to only 20 points in the first half...
At a raucous Mac Court, Stanford roared back from a NINETEEN-point deficit in the 2nd half to beat Oregon 83-80 (despite Luke Jackson's 25 for the Ducks). HUGE in the comeback were sophomores, Chris Hernandez and Matt Haryasz. The latter was given his first start ever in place of Justin Davis, who had injured his knee in Corvallis two nights earlier. Chris and MattH combined for 41 points (22 and 19 respectively). Amazingly, 35 of the 41 came in the 2nd half, including all of Chris's 22...
Oh, Those Buzzer Beaters
And best of all, two of the most unthinkable, miraculous, heart-stopping buzzer-beating shots you could ever dream up against Arizona at Maples (Nick Robinson's steal and 35-foot swish on the run made the team 20-0 SEE VIDEOS ABOVE) and WSU up in Pullman (Lotty's impossible 3-pointer from deep kept the Card undefeated at 26-0).
Then, after losing at UW, the Cardinal bounced right back to sweep through the Pac-10 Tournament, including a convincing revenge win over the red-hot Huskies in the finals: 77-66. Stanford headed back up to Seattle for The Big Dance, ranked #1 in the nation.
An Early Exit
As you know all too well, things didn't go as planned in the tourney. In the second-round 70-67 upset loss to 8-seed Bama, the refs were rough on our boys to the tune of 44 free throws for the Tide. Stanford only attempted 11. PF, Justin Davis, was a dominant force that day, in his final game for the Card, but he fouled out after only 22 minutes. Those refs whistled your typically disciplined Cardinal all day long (Childress and Haryasz fouled out as well).
TRIVIA TIDBIT: Interestingly, current Stanford head coach, Trent Johnson, stayed in the tournament longer than Stanford did that year. His 10th-seeded Nevada Wolf Pack schooled 2nd-seeded Gonzaga 91-72. Their game took place right before Stanford-Alabama, on the same floor. I remember seeing Monty, Rev, and Tony Fuller watching Nevada's performance and looking very impressed. Who knew at the time that Trent would be coaching Stanford's next game?
Even without the Hollywood ending we all wanted, there's no forgetting this team and that magical season. Finishing 30-2, they gave us Stanford fans one thrilling ride. So as you root on Stanford football and hoops this year, keep coming back to Cardinaljunkie.com for a walk down Memory Lane.
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