Stanford needs overtime to eliminate Iowa State in Round 2 - ESPN

STANFORD, Calif. — Kiki Iriafen hit midrange jumpers from every possible spot. She took the ball hard at the hoop and right at star Iowa State freshman Audi Crooks, then blocked Crooks' path on the defensive end.

Iriafen crashed the boards and converted all nine of her free throws — and Stanford needed every bit of Iriafen's heart and guts to outlast Iowa State.

«She's a warrior out there,» Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer said. «She gave an All-American performance out there tonight.»

Brooke Demetre hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 18 seconds left in overtime and Iriafen scored 11 of her career-high 41 points in OT, securing No. 2 seed Stanford a place in the Portland Regional with a thrilling 87-81 win over the seventh-seeded Cyclones in the second round of the NCAA tournament Sunday night.

At 70 years old and having become the winningest coach this year, VanDerveer noted, «This is why you do this.»

«This is the type of game you learn a lot about your team,» she said. «They battled, they stayed with things, they stayed together.»

Addy Brown made a 3 from the top of the arc with 31 seconds left in OT to put Iowa State ahead, only for Demetre to answer from nearly the same spot moments later. Six of Demetre's eight total points came on timely 3s, and she also hit two free throws with 11.7 seconds left to help seal it.

Iriafen shot 16-for-30.

«Kiki Iriafen, whoa!» VanDerveer said afterward.

Iriafen converted a three-point play with 3:41 left in overtime after drawing the fifth foul on Crooks and also contributed 16 rebounds and three blocks. Talana Lepolo added a 3 in the extra period, and Iriafen had a go-ahead baseline jumper with 1:59 to go before scoring again the next time down.

«This was a heavyweight fight, we had a