The Stanford Cardinal wrapped up their 2010-2011 men’s basketball season with a loss at archrival Cal. The loss dropped Stanford to 15-15 on the season and likely will have to settle for a bid in the 2011 College Basketball Invitational. Given the youth on the team and the rebuilding process in place, that’s not too bad.
The Golden Bears cruised to an easy 74-55 victory behind 24 points from Allen Crabbe and 20 points from Harper Kamp. Cal took a 12 point lead into halftime and never let it get below ten points. Stanford had only one player get into double digit scoring in the form of 19 points from Jeremy Green. The junior guard will be a key leader next season.
Stanford has no chance at an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament and likely don’t have much chance at an NIT bid. They could still win the Pac-10 tournament but it would take one heck of a Cinderella run. The Cardinal will be the No. 8 seed and if they can get past Oregon State they would then have to beat top seeded Arizona in the second round.
While the odds are long that Stanford could win the Pac-10 tournament, the recently created College Basketball Invitational could provide a spot for the Cardinal. The tournament began in 2008 and provides a postseason opportunity for teams that can’t get into the NCAA tournament or the National Invitational Tournament. Last year the tournament included an Oregon State squad that was 14-17 heading into the tournament. We’ll keep an eye out for the CBI bracket to see if the Cardinal find themselves in postseason play in 2011.