Ogwumikes spark Stanford
<p>Stanford's Lindy La Rocque, left, leaps to grab an inbounds pass in front of North Carolina's Italee Lucas in the first half Saturday at the Spokane Arena.</p>
When Stanford needed its sister act the most, Chiney and Nnemkadi Ogwumike came through with exactly what the Cardinal needed.
Nnemkadi Ogwumike and her freshman sister, Chiney, scored 12 of Stanford's final 15 points and the top-seeded Cardinal held on in the final minute for a 72-65 win over No. 5 seed North Carolina on Saturday night in the Spokane Regional semifinals.
Stanford (32-2) kept alive its hope for a fourth straight Final Four trip - a string that started four years ago on this floor in Spokane - thanks to its talented sister duo who made up for an off night from Pac-10 player of the year Jeanette Pohlen.
Nnemkadi Ogwumike led the Cardinal with 19 points while Chiney, the Pac-10 freshman of the year, added 16. Pohlen missed eight of her nine shots and finished with just six points.
The Cardinal's road to Indianapolis and the Final Four now intersects with hometown favorite, 11th-seeded Gonzaga on Monday night in the regional final.
Stanford and Gonzaga met earlier this year on the Bulldogs' home floor with Stanford holding on for an 84-78 victory.