'We Didn’t Play Four Quarters of Basketball': Gonzaga WBB Posts Sloppy Performance in 65-52 Loss to Stanford
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Taryn Gardner (24) of Gonzaga looks for a shot over Stanford’s Chloe Clardy (13) during the Bulldogs’ 65-52 loss to the Cardinal at the McCarthey Athletic Center on November 16, 2025. Credit: Gonzaga Athletics/Instagram [/caption]
After a promising beginning to the game, Gonzaga women’s basketball (2-2) slowly fell apart at the seams on Sunday, as the Bulldogs were defeated by Stanford (5-0) 65-52, suffering a second consecutive home loss. Similar issues from the team’s previous game against Toledo trickled into their next performance, and through the first four games, the scarce veteran presence and overall lack of cohesiveness have become issues the Zags are going to have to work through.
It begins with staying locked in mentally and playing together when things start to spiral.
“We didn't play four quarters of basketball,” said GU head coach Lisa Fortier. “I think that fatigue makes cowards of us all and our team, I don't know why they look tired, to be honest … but I think maybe mental fatigue when you're struggling as a team, that's still something that we're working through, and we don't have the endurance yet mentally to push through the times when things are not going our way.”
An undesirable game script dictated how the team responded, something which will not bode well for a program with aspirations of playing deep into March if the concerns continue.
The Bulldogs jumped out to an 18-6 lead over the Cardinal through the contest’s first seven minutes. After sluggish starts for Allie Turner scoring-wise in her last two outings, she knocked down a pull-up jumper for the game’s first bucket before draining a three-pointer two minutes later. She went on to have 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting with six assists. Zeryhia Aokuso had a brilliant first quarter as well, tallying seven points and five rebounds, including drawing a foul at the end of the period when she grabbed a board and went coast-to-coast.
But the tide was on the downturn for Gonzaga from then on out, as they were outscored by Stanford in each of the next three quarters, with the Zags posting a nine-point third quarter and a 10-point fourth. They turned the ball over 20 times while shooting just 38 percent from the field. After the Bulldogs played their brand of basketball in the opening period, the Cardinal controlled the tempo and pace of the game, and GU could not overcome it.
There was a lot of one-and-one play offensively and inefficient ball movement overall. Aokuso, Lauren Whittaker, and Inês Bettencourt were the other Zags to take at least 10 shots outside of Turner. Those three shot a combined 9-for-32 (28 percent).
Defensively, it was a similar trend for Gonzaga as the game unfolded. Interestingly enough, the Zags didn’t pull out their 1-2-2 trap until late in the third quarter. From Fortier’s postgame comments, it was the second straight game where the players didn’t execute what they were coached to take away from the opposition.
Chloe Clardy of the Cardinal was a dangerous threat coming into the game as a shooter from the outside. She finished with two huge threes and was the game’s highest scorer with 20 points. The Bulldogs’ coaching staff also emphasized forcing Stanford into taking mid-range shots. Instead, the Zags were outscored 38-22 in the paint.
“We didn't defend the areas that we're supposed to defend…it was not to let them drive off us without help…and they really, we did that a couple times, but really they got to the rim too freely,” Fortier said. “I think the defensive game plan, we didn't follow that very well.”
When stretches of a game begin to unravel, teams turn to their leaders who, based on experience, can give their teammates guidance and assurance to power through the rough stretch. But GU doesn’t have that figure at the moment, even as multiple players have attempted to step up to the plate.
“I don't know when it will get easier, not until we start managing ourselves and being able to have someone you know on the team who will pull everybody together and say, ‘Listen’, and we don't have that person quite yet,” Fortier said. “You know, I know Neshy’s [Bettencourt] tried. I think Allie tried today…I think Lauren tries at times, but we don't have that person yet. And I think it's going to take us continuing to improve as a team, and then also identifying who is it going to be, like, who are we going to look to in those times of trouble?”
It's by design that Gonzaga schedules a difficult non-conference slate, as the hope is to prepare the players for the long road ahead, chock full of challenges. The next task for the Zags will be a road affair against South Dakota State on Thursday, Nov. 20, another mid-major program that routinely plays above its skis. The Bulldogs will have time to grow with plans to mesh better as a unit, but the process won’t be without its wounds.
“It’s going to be tough, and you can't get out of there with a victory without playing tough and playing physical and playing smart and playing together. So we're going to have to help our team just continue to move in that direction,” Fortier said. “I think we're close. We're just not quite, we weren't quite there yet, and hopefully by the time we get to the game on Thursday, we will be.”
