STANFORD, Calif. - This time, the Stanford men's basketball team didn't need a buzzer-beating three-pointer by senior swingman Nick Robinson.
It had more than enough guts and grit from ailing junior guard Chris Hernandez.
Overcoming back spasms that caused him to miss Thursday's 12-point loss against ASU, Hernandez sparked Stanford to a nine-point lead early in the second half Saturday, and the Cardinal held on to beat No. 13 UA 87-76 before 7,233 at Maples Pavilion.
The improbable victory snapped UA's nine-game winning streak and gave first-year coach Trent Johnson his first Pac-10 win at Stanford. The Cardinal started the Pac-10 season with three consecutive losses, getting swept by the Washington schools before falling to ASU.
Johnson said he didn't know whether Hernandez would be able to play until Saturday morning, about 90 minutes before tip-off. After Hernandez found his touch, there wasn't much doubt about Stanford's likelihood of pulling the upset.
Hernandez drilled a three-pointer less than three minutes into the second half after picking UA senior guard Salim Stoudamire in the backcourt, and then sank a jumper on the next possession, enabling Stanford (7-7, 1-3 Pac-10) to take a nine-point lead that later stretched to double digits.
The Wildcats (12-3, 3-1) closed within 77-71 with 1:39 left after Stoudamire capped a 14-6 run with a pair of free throws, but Hernandez put the game away with a driving layup on a full-court in-bounds pass from Robinson.
"Last year's win against Arizona was more of an excitement," said Hernandez, who finished with 23 points, six steals and four assists on 7-of-12 shooting from the field, including a 3-for-5 effort from three-point range. "This was more of like a very big confidence builder. This has more impact on our team because hopefully it will get us on a winning streak."
Junior guard Dan Grunfeld helped Stanford's cause by scoring a game-high 29 points, 15 of which came in the first half as the Cardinal grabbed a 39-36 lead. Senior center Rob Little added 16 points and 12 rebounds before fouling out with 1:07 left.
UA was paced by senior center Channing Frye, who marked a double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds. Junior forward Hassan Adams added 19 points, 10 rebounds and four steals. Stoudamire had 14 points and sophomore forward Ivan Radenovic had 12 points, but went 5 for 13 from the field.
Little and Grunfeld loomed large during a momentum-shifting stretch in the second half in which Stanford pulled ahead 60-47 after scoring nine unanswered points. Little started the burst with a three-point play, then Grunfeld scored on three consecutive possessions after a slew of UA turnovers.
"They have a lot of good athletes on the wings, and we just tried to run our offense and do the best we could," said Grunfeld, who finished 10 for 12 from the field, including 3 for 3 from three-point range. "We had everyone at every position contributing, and that's really what's most important."
Said Johnson: "I told them, ‘We're defending something, and you just have to fight for every little inch. I don't care who is out there playing. As long as we've got five guys, we're going to represent Stanford in the utmost fashion and compete at a high level.' "
UA coach Lute Olson downplayed his team's mistakes on an afternoon in which the Wildcats committed 14 turnovers and shot 38.4 percent from the field. He did give Hernandez credit for his toughness and leadership abilities.
"Chris Hernandez is as tough and as competitive of a player as you'll ever see in your life," Olson said. "There's no question who is in charge on the court. He reminds me a great deal of [former UA guard] Miles Simon from the standpoint that he just makes everybody better because of his presence."
Reach the reporter at brian.gomez@asu.edu.
