National Team finishes sweep of college tour

The Lisa Leslie Rehab Tour -- otherwise known as the USA Basketball National Team College Tour -- made its final stop at Stanford Thursday, with predictable results.

The putative Olympians are simply too big, too smart, too skilled and too good for collegians, even when the college team has Candice Wiggins, who’s about a half-step from being able to play with the big girls. And even when the National Team has only eight players, and only four of those will land on the team going to Beijing (barring the unexpected), they are just too much. The final score was 97-62, and though the Cardinal made it close on occasion, there was never really much doubt.

Nor was there much doubt in any of the previous games, as the National Team rolled over eight of D-1’s best on its cross-country tour -- which didn’t seem to have a lot of basketball purpose. The four players who appear to be destined to play next fall (Seimone Augustus, Sue Bird, Lisa Leslie and Diana Taurasi) don’t necessarily need a lot of time together, though certainly it benefits Bird and Taurasi to get used to Leslie’s game a little more. The other five at Stanford (Jamie Carey, Swin Cash, Kara Lawson, Taj McWilliams-Franklin and, for part of the time, Kara Braxton) don’t have much shot to be among the 12 who head to China, but then again you never know what might happen. After all, everyone thought Tamika Catchings would be here, but an Achilles’ tendon tear even threatens her participation next summer.

Anne Donovan clearly wanted to work the likelys together, and that quartet logged the most minutes on the tour. They all played well, though Bird’s 23 turnovers to just 13 assists wasn’t spectacular. Taurasi, though, was outstanding throughout, and her halfcourt, spinning bounce pass to a streaking Augustus against Stanford was a play Steve Nash would like to have on his highlight reel.

Leslie, of course, is still sanding off the rust, and this tour was made to order for her (or was it simply made for her?). After giving birth June 15, Leslie returned to action on Oct. 31 against Maryland, and the eight games showed that she’s definitely ready to help in Beijing. She didn’t do much Thursday (three points, five rebounds in 20 minutes) but she did have five assists and played like the veteran warrior she is. These eight games were tremendously valuable for her, and thus for USA Basketball, which needs her in top form if a gold medal is to be forthcoming in Beijing.

Augustus is ready to take a larger role, and shot a torrid 60.8% on the tour, though she also showed a serious disdain for contact, getting to the line only six times (fewer even than the notoriously unphysical Bird).

Cash probably has the best chance among the others to go to China, but didn’t dazzle on the tour -- and her less than stellar play in the WNBA the last couple years hasn’t helped her cause. Lawson, though, has shown that she can produce, both on this tour and at the FIBA Americas, and since she outrebounded and outscored Cash (as well as handling the ball better), she might, if the stars align, play in Beijing.

McWilliams-Franklin did not look particularly spry against Stanford, and shot just 41.0% for the tour, which pretty much killed the 37-year-old’s chance of fulfilling her lifelong dream of playing in the Olympics. Carey, a late addition, caps a gutty career with this honor, and though she may never put on a USA Basketball uniform again, it was great to see a player who has gotten every ounce out of her talent get a few brief moments in the spotlight. ‘To be part of this team for five games was awesome,’ said Carey afterwards, and it was a well-deserved reward.

Braxton, she of the million-dollar talent and ten-cent head, killed her chances of going to Beijing (which were admittedly slim) by missing the bus to the game. Anne Donovan sat her out for the first half, and though she was seven of nine from the field in the last 20 minutes, she also threw three horrible passes and once again validated the generally accepted opinion that she can’t be relied on.

Katie Feenstra made an appearance on the tour, but doesn’t really fit with the Americans’ athleticism, and Loree Moore was supposed to play but couldn’t participate because of an injury. That was unfortunate, as Moore is pushing her way into the USA Basketball picture with her steadily improving play.

As for Stanford, the Cardinal showed just how much experience matters. The younger collegians were, for the most part, quicker and jumped higher than their veteran opponents, but it always seemed that the National Team players were able to get a hand in the face just in time to force a miss, and find the angle to slide in the pass that set up a shot.

And though they may not have raw speed and quickness, they know precisely what they’re about. ‘They play at a pace our team is not used to,’ said Tara VanDerveer, recalling several Taurasi runouts in the first half. VanDerveer also let everyone play, knowing that the Cardinal really had no chance of winning. ‘We were doing our civic duty,’ she said.

VanDerveer’s concern about her point guard play was evident, as Rosalyn Gold-Onwude and JJ Hones combined for zero assists and eight turnovers – ‘Today, Candice is our best point guard,’ she said, which is not good news for the Stanford faithful.

Kayla Pedersen, though, is good news, and continued her impressive early freshman season, finishing with 11 points (on four of nine shooting) and nine rebounds. Wiggins, of course, was very comfortable (she was the last cut from the FIBA Americas team), but only played 19 minutes. Next time around, expect her to be wearing a USA Basketball jersey, and giving a new set of youngsters a lesson in how the game is played.