March 10, 2001
By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer
STANFORD, Calif. - Casey Jacobsen scored 15 of his 21 points in the first half and Ryan Mendez had 19 as top-ranked Stanford clinched the Pac-10 Conference title, beating Arizona State 99-75 Saturday.
The Cardinal (28-2, 16-2) avoided sharing their third straight conference crown with Arizona or UCLA, the only teams to beat Stanford at Maples Pavilion this season, and earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Afterward, students stormed the court as the Cardinal cut down the nets. Coach Mike Montgomery cut the final strand, then held up three fingers as the crowd roared.
Stanford hadn't won three straight conference crowns since winning the Pacific Coast Conference from 1935-36 to 1937-38.
The Cardinal, who lost 76-75 to No. 8 Arizona Thursday night on a last-second basket, left no doubt against the Sun Devils (13-16, 5-13). Stanford led by 22 points in the first half and by 26 in the second while cruising to its eighth victory in nine games, all but assuring the Cardinal of the top seed in the West Regional.
All five Stanford starters scored in double figures. Jacobsen hit four 3-pointers, while Jarron Collins had 15 points, Mike McDonald 12 points and Jason Collins 10.
With Stanford undergrad Chelsea Clinton cheering from a seat two rows behind the west basket, Arizona State lost its seventh straight to Stanford and ended the season with five losses in seven games.
Stanford seniors Mendez, Jarron Collins and McDonald were honored before the game. All three starters played key roles as the Cardinal quickly grabbed an insurmountable lead and spent the second half in a free-throw shooting contest.
Alton Mason, the Sun Devils' only senior, had 23 points. Awvee Storey had 16 points and 16 rebounds before becoming one of three Arizona State players to foul out in yet another heavily officiated Pac-10 game. Forty-seven free throws were shot in the second half - including 34 in a 7 1/2-minute stretch.
Stanford ended the game in style, with Mendez throwing an alley-oop pass to the 6-foot-1 McDonald, who made a layup with 2:08 left. Moments later, Montgomery threw his hands in the air to incite the student body to an ovation when all three seniors left the game.
Mendez, who had hit 41 straight free throws before the game, made six in the first half to break the school record and two Pac-10 marks for consecutive free throws. The Stanford record, which he shared with Todd Lichti, was four less than the conference record, set earlier this year by David Bluthenthal.
Mendez broke the Pac-10 record on two free throws after a technical foul on Arizona State coach Rob Evans, whose team fell behind 50-28 late in the first half. The Sun Devils didn't use a player taller than 6-foot-9 against the Collins twins, who blocked three shots apiece and got 18 rebounds.